Home builder and 5th generation master carpenter John (“Big John”) Raymond Hopkins of Fredericksburg, Va. (formerly of Goshen, NY), passed away peacefully at home on Wednesday, July 28, 2021, surrounded by loved ones. He was 81.
He is survived by the love of his life, Elaine Hopkins, his children: Susanne Hopkins of Fredericksburg, Va., Cindy White of Allendale, N.J., Brian Hopkins and his wife Wendy of New Rochelle, and Jennifer Hopkins and her fiancé John of Huntingdon Valley, Pa., as well as eleven grandchildren: Ryan, Deirdre, Ian, Lindsay, Kristen, Jonathan, Kaitlyn, Melissa, Christopher, Julia and Jacqueline.
He is preceded in death by his parents, William and Anna Hopkins, and his siblings: William (Bill) Hopkins, Margaret (Peg) McGrath, Edward (Eddie) Hopkins and Kenneth (Kenny) Hopkins.
John was born in New York City on June 16, 1940, and grew up in Waldwick, N.J. He married Elaine on June 13, 1959.
Raised in a hardworking family, John learned carpentry at a young age by working with his father and brothers. In the mid-1960s, he and his brother Kenny formed J&K Hopkins Brothers, Inc., a residential framing and trimming business. After the recession of the early 1970s, he and Elaine formed John Hopkins Construction, Inc., a custom home building business where they designed, built and renovated homes in the lower Hudson Valley.
Upon his retirement in the mid-2000s, John continued to do carpentry projects for friends and family, especially his children.
While John and his family lived in a number of homes and communities over the years, he lived the majority of his life in Goshen. Except for the recent move to Virginia, for the last 40 years, John lived in Goshen in a home on Sarah Wells Trail that he and Elaine designed and built together.
John was an avid golfer and in the 1990s and early 2000s, he could be found on many Saturday mornings (and often Sundays as well) on the golf course. He also enjoyed tending to his yard with Elaine where you could find him driving his lawn tractor “assisting” her.
John will be remembered for his love of family, especially his grandchildren, his sense of humor and love of life.
A memorial service was held on Aug. 5 at St. Mary of the Immaculate Conception Roman Catholic Church in Fredericksburg, Va.
An additional memorial service will be held in Goshen on Saturday, Aug. 21, at 11 a.m., at the Church of St. John’s the Evangelist, 71 Murray Ave. A reception to follow.
In lieu of flowers, the family asks that donations be made to St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital (www.stjude.org).