Don and Lee Hopkins

Don was born and raised in Brattleboro, Vermont. He attended Northeastern University in Boston where he received his Bachelor’s degree in Accounting. From there he went to the University of Illinois and received his MS in Management. During his time there he was a graduate teaching assistant. Following a time in the US Army, he worked for 27 years at Eastman Kodak in Rochester, NY.

Leila (call her “Lee”) was born and grew up in Camden, TN. She was the seventh of ten children. She earned her Bachelor of Science degree in Home Economics from the University of Tennessee. She then received an MS in Nutrition from the University of Iowa. At the Massachusetts General Hospital she was the Dietitian for their metabolic research ward. She was a one year interim as an Assistant Professor at Western Michigan University. She then became an Assistant Director of the Dietetic Department at the University of Michigan in the years preceding her marriage to Don. She was a hospital dietitian in Rochester until their children arrived. In the children’s younger years she had various part time assignments teaching nutrition at Roberts Wesleyan College, the University of Rochester, and the State University of NY at Buffalo. When their children were older she became the Director of the Dietetic program at the Rochester Institute of Technology. She served in that capacity for 13 years until retirement. 

Leila died on March 10, 2020.

Before moving to Westminster Canterbury the Hopkins resided at Smith Mountain Lake. There, both Don and Lee were active in the Bethlehem United Methodist Church . Both served in various church offices. 

Don used his photographic interest to document the new construction done at the church. Lee served on the Smith Mountain Lake Association Board and as a Trustee at Ferrum College. Don’s computer interest served him well in developing web pages for SMLA, their church, and the Lake Charity Home Tour.  

Don's and Lee's son and wife live at Bainbridge Island, WA. Their daughter has been employed since college in Los Angeles.  Her married brother has his MD from UC San Diego Medical School and in July 2021 started a five year residency in Radiation Oncology at Emory (Atlanta) .

The Hopkins daughter’s family lives in the Rochester, NY area.  Her husband is a dentist, she a teacher. Their older son is employed in Austin, TX.  His brother is also a teacher.