Robert Allen Hopwood, 90

Robert Allen Hopwood, 90, passed away early Sunday morning at his home in Gudrid Township in Lake of the Woods County, just east of Baudette.

He died of natural causes surrounded by his family. His daughter, Stephanie, was beside his bed and present for his final breath.

Hopwood was born Aug. 30, 1931, to Ethel and Albert Hopwood in Reading, Pa. He spent his early years living in the rolling countryside in and around Yerkes, Pa., before moving to Pike Township, Pa., in 1968. In 2003, he moved to Baudette, where he spent the remainder of his life in retirement.

Hopwood held several jobs during his lifetime, starting as a dairy farmer with his father near Valley Forge, Pa., and ending as a consultant for a Philadelphia-area manufacturer. He also was a mechanic and the general manager of an outdoor furniture factory in Pottstown, Pa.

Hopwood married Eunice Hafner, who lived in Upper Providence Township, Pa., in the early 1950s. They had one son, Walter, who was born in Pottstown, Pa. In 1967, Hopwood married Janis Williams, who lived in Royersford, Pa. Together they had three children, Stephanie, Robert and Albert II, who were all born in Lansdale, Pa.

God and religion were essential aspects in Hopwood’s life.

He split his church attendance between the Charlotte Street and Walnut Street Seventh-day Adventist Churches in Pottstown, Pa., before eventually becoming an elder for the Charlotte Street congregation. After moving to Greater Minnesota, he became an elder at the Lake of the Woods Community Seventh-day Adventist Church.

He also traveled the country and spread God’s love to everyone he met.

Hopwood loved to travel, but hated flying. That resulted in long road trips his family remembers fondly. He traveled with his wife and children across the continent, where he visited every U.S. state, except Hawaii, and most Canadian provinces.

Hopwood was born into a large, extended Pennsylvania family that was a mix of Pennsylvania Dutch and English cultures. He adored his grandparents, aunts, uncles and cousins. And he would entertain his wife and children for hours with stories about his childhood, like the one in which he brought a cow into his grandmother’s kitchen.

Hopwood was preceded in death by his parents and son Albert II.

He is survived by his wife, three children; daughter-in-law, Heather; three grandchildren, Wayne, Brian and Jeff; and cousins Sheila Gropp and Nancy Brenneman.

A memorial service is planned for 1 p.m., Thursday, Aug. 25, at Lake of the Woods Community Seventh-day Adventist Church, located at 118 4th Ave. NW in Baudette. The service is open to everyone and will be conducted by Pastor Joel Kratze.

Hopwood will be buried during a graveside service near Collegeville, Pa, outside of Philadelphia, where his family and friends will be able to say a final goodbye. Until the resurrection, when the Lord calls him home, he will rest in the grace of God next his grandparents, parents, son, his Aunt Mildred and his Uncle Walter in the Pennsylvania Piedmont.

His final resting spot will be in sight of the farmhouse he grew up in, and a stone’s throw from the fields he farmed with his father and the rolling hills where he played as a child. His family, Janis, Stephanie and Robert, will join him in burial in Pennsylvania when God calls them to their final rest.

Hopwood chose to be cremated and some of his ashes will be spread across a few of his favorite places, including Lake of the Woods; Silver Lake, near Ely, Minn.; a quiet spot under a pine tree somewhere in Maine; and Joshua Tree National Park in Southern California.

He was the patriarch of a bi-coastal family, and in death, he will have a bi-coastal burial.

The family especially would like to thank the Red River Valley Hospice and its employees and volunteers for the help, care and comfort they provided Hopwood in his final days.