Dorothy Hopp
Dorothy (Gade) Hopp died Nov. 21, 2017. Dorothy celebrated her 101st birthday, joyfully surrounded by adoring fans, and left on her own terms, dying gracefully of old age. She will be missed and always remembered.
Born Dorothy Louise Gade, Nov. 6, 1916, on a farm near Seward, Neb., she grew up hard-working, active, inventive and artistic. She drove tractors, helped harvest, cooked for threshers and sewed a closet full of dresses. At the University of Nebraska in Lincoln her eyes were opened to cultural pursuits, classical music and interior design. She graduated with foods and nutrition and interior design majors.
She met Ralph Hopp at a dance in 1938, and they married on June 8, 1941. After travels for Ralph’s studies, they settled in St. Anthony Park. They enjoyed a happy life of Colorado skiing, tennis leagues, canoe trips, golf, dancing, music and entertaining—and raising three kids (Caroline, 1944; Tom, 1948; and Susan 1951). Summers were spent car-camping and at their cabin in Amery, Wis. The family spent 1962–63 in Ankara, Turkey.
Dorothy was active in organizations, including the University of Minnesota Faculty Women’s Club, where she was president in 1973-74. Dorothy’s lifelong passion for interior design was evident in her lovely homes full of Oriental rugs, paintings and treasures gathered from Turkey and world travels. Asked late in life what her profession was, she replied, “I make things beautiful.” She did indeed.
She is survived by her son, Thomas (Lorraine); her daughter, Susan (Karl Schweikart); and two grandsons. She was preceded in death by her husband, Ralph (2003); her daughter, Caroline (1963); her brother, Donald Gade; and her sister, Josephine Stoner.
Private services will be held. Her ashes will be buried alongside Ralph’s at Osage Church in Cook, Neb.
