Dorothy Dalton Hopkins, 94, of Moultrie, GA, and Greenville, SC, died Friday, December 16, 2011, at UniHealth Magnolia Manor South.
Memorial services will be 11 a.m., Thursday, December 22, at Bridges Funeral Chapel in Athens, GA, with her sons, the Rev. Dr. Gerald Hopkins and the Rev. Dr. David Hopkins, officiating and grandchildren participating.
Family visitation will be just prior to the memorial service from 10 - 11 a. m. at Bridges Funeral Chapel in Athens, GA. It is located at 3035 Atlanta Highway, Athens, Georgia 30606.
Burial will follow in Evergreen Memorial Park, just blocks away from the funeral home.
Born December 17, 1916, in Stuart, Virginia, Dorothy was the daughter of William Critz Dalton and Mary Lula Carter Dalton. Throughout her life she was a devoted wife, mother, and homemaker and stood by her husband as he pastored churches for more than 50 years in the International Pentecostal Holiness Church.
She was preceded in death by her husband, the Rev. Dr. William Paul Hopkins; two sisters, Ellen Dalton Ayers and Rachel Dalton; and four brothers, Leslie Dalton, Joel Dalton, Carter Dalton, and Crawford Dalton.
Survivors include three sons, Dr. Kenneth P. Hopkins and wife LaFaye of Memphis, TN; Dr. Gerald T. Hopkins and wife Linda of Greenville, SC; and Dr. David R. Hopkins and wife Claudia of Moultrie, GA; six grandchildren; and 19 great-grandchildren.
Arrangements have been entrusted to Bridges Funeral Chapel in Athens. That address is 3035 Atlanta Highway, Athens, Georgia 30606.
[Editor's Note: The Bible says, "Precious in the sight of the LORD is the death of his saints" (Psalm 116:15, NIV). Dorothy Hopkins was indeed a saint.
It was my honor and privilege to know Dorothy and Paul Hopkins. I met this lovely couple and their three sons when I was a freshman at Emmanuel College in the early 50s. Paul and I had some classes together. He was brilliant, and I was challenged by his scholarship and study habits. He took me up in a single engine airplane for a flight over the college and Franklin County. We took off and landed in a cotton field. I thought we would not make it as we had to clear some power lines on our landing approach with a cross wind. But Paul was a skillful pilot and managed to land us safely.
It was because of his persistence and persuasion that I considered being his successor at Tarkenton Memorial Pentecostal Holiness Church in Athens. I was the senior pastor of the Birmingham Pentecostal Holiness Church, called Good Shepherd Church. That was my home church as a teenager when O. N. Todd, Jr. was our pastor. Well, the time was ripe, and I felt God leading me as He released me from my pastorate there in Birmingham, my hometown.
Melvine and drove over to Athens one weekend for me to preach in the Sunday morning and evening worship services. Apparently they liked us, and I think I got all the votes except two in favor of us becoming the pastor. It's good to have some opposition. You can grow better when a few people don't like you. Sometimes, I believe, that your enemies can be your best friend. I have found that to be true.
Well, Dorothy was a lovely lady and made us feel right at home. She was a lot of fun and laughed alot. In fact, David and his mother's laugh is identical. The people in Athens all loved Dorothy. She was an ideal pastor's wife, and knew how to love the people.
There is no loss quite as great as losing one's mother. I know the family will be grieving. Grief is real and we never get accustomed to the loss of a significant person in our lives. My heart goes out to Kenneth, Gerald, and David and their families. I look forward to seeing them and their families on Thursday. They will always hold a special place in my life.
Melvine and I plan to attend the memorial service.]
Posted on
Tue, December 20, 2011
by Hugh Morgan