Donald Lee Hopps
September 7, 1941-January 31, 2025
Don was born in Kewanee, Illinois to Faust Beryle “Bud” Hopps and Gladys Evelyn (Conkling)
Hopps on September 7, 1941. He passed away at home on January 31, 2025, at age 83, with
family holding his hands. They lived on a farm in Illinois until moving to Ford’s Logging Camp
near Sutherlin around 1950 and later to another logging camp on the Siuslaw River in coastal
Oregon. The family settled in Mapleton where Don was a four-sport athlete and Outstanding
Senior Boy at Mapleton High School class of 1960. Inspirational teachers and coaches
motivated him to pursue his teaching and coaching career. He recalled how much fun it was to
play football in the mud and became a devoted fan of the sport, especially the Oregon Ducks!
His DUCKS baseball cap sparked conversations with strangers everywhere when they were
winning.
While Don was growing up, Oregon had a strong logging economy with mills, sawdust burners
and trucks with huge logs everywhere. Bud supported the family with logging, and Don was
able to put himself through college working at Davidson’s Mill and setting chokers in the dense
coastal forests. He graduated from the Oregon College of Education (now Western Oregon
University) in Monmouth in 1966 with a Bachelor of Education, lettered in football and wrestling,
and made many lifelong friends. He later earned a Master of Education from Linfield College in
1970 and an Administrative Certificate from Portland State University in 1988.
Don and Ruth Ann Knight met while both were teaching at Burns High School and married in
Sherwood on November 27, 1968. They moved to Madras “temporarily” in 1970 but stayed to
raise Bryan (1972) and Kevin (1975) and finish their teaching careers. Don spent 27 years with
the Jefferson County School District, teaching Math, Science, PE, and Health; coaching football,
wrestling and track; and as MHS Athletic Director. His contributions were recognized when he
was named the State 5A Athletic Director of the Year in 1991. But he was especially gratified
when former students called years later to express appreciation.
Growing up in the forest, Don relished outdoor activities. He and the boys created water slides
and bike/ski jumps on our sloping property with backyard campouts common. The family hiked,
camped, backpacked – once along 25 miles of the Pacific Crest Trail on the west side of the
Three Sisters - and climbed mountains including the South Sister. When young, Don and his
friends jumped off bridges, swam in the river, played in creeks and he became a “water dog.”
He was an excellent water-skier teaching many (including his father-in-law), scuba-dived with
Bryan and Kevin in Hawaii, and found frozen water (snow) in Central Oregon exceptional for
cross-country skiing and snowmobiling. Then river rafting became his prime focus. He joined
groups on the Selway, Snake and Salmon Rivers in Idaho, but the Deschutes, John Day and
Rogue Rivers in Oregon were the most frequently rafted. He guided others, inspired generations
of Knight family members to raft, led splash-and-giggle paddle trips for church groups and even
got his mother AND mother-in-law to enjoy a trip.
While the family enjoyed car trips throughout the west and visiting family and friends back east,
in 1988 a summer-long expedition around the perimeter of the US was exceptionally
memorable. We mostly stayed in KOAs, usually ate at McDonalds once a day discovering that
grits were on the menu in the south. The boys enjoyed the water parks and Dinosaur National
Monument, Ruth Ann wanted to see the Bristlecone Pines and Smithsonian, and all loved
learning to snorkel in Key West, Florida. Don’s side trips were to the Professional Football and

Baseball Stadiums. Last Christmas, the four of us reminisced and laughed about that trip for
several hours.
In retirement, Don and Ruth Ann enjoyed multiple trips and cruises with friends to Australia,
New Zealand, Fiji, Italy, Greece, Turkey, Alaska, Hawaii, the Caribbean and through the
Panama Canal. What eye-opening experiences for these small-town Oregonians! We saw
Grand Bazaars, gargantuan ships, natural wonders, ingenious engineering, history explained,
bumbled into a cave where Leonardo da Vinci used to get his wine and saw life through a more
diverse lens. One exceptional trip in 1999 was driving with another couple through 13 European
countries planning to meet Kevin who was stationed in Germany. He’d been deployed to Serbia
but with the help of the US Embassy, we did connect in Vienna. From bullfights to castles to
caves with pre-historic art to the Normandy beaches to the Louvre, seeing things in person is so
disparate from pictures in a book. Who knew that the Mona Lisa was so small and the Eiffel
Tower so big? Bathrooms (!) had to be figured out and money changed at every border. We
observed waiters who spoke a different language at every table, while we once had trouble
getting a glass of water because we spoke only English. Yet Don’s favorite travel experience
was sitting on stumps around a campfire in the Australian Outback, looking at the gorgeous
southern hemisphere skies with hosts telling stories about the people, history and animals of the
area.
From an active lifestyle to long years of chronic health issues, including going deaf and blind,
home was a safe and comfortable sanctuary. Family and friends, memories of past adventures,
Hospice, and extensive football seasons helped bridge the seasons. And throughout, Don’s job
every day was to make Ruth Ann laugh, which he did right up to the end.
Don is survived by his wife of 56 years, Ruth Ann; their sons, Bryan (Wilsonville) and Kevin
(Madras); nephews, Brad (Christy) Hopps of Anacortes WA and Rob (Sarah) Hopps of Kailua-
Kona, Hawaii; sister-in-law Jean Salls or Edmonds, WA; four generations of the Knight family,
and was especially close to brother-in-law, Bruce. He was preceded in death by his parents
and brother Darwin.
The Memorial service for Don will be Saturday, April 26, 2025, at 11 am at the United Methodist
Church in Madras. Following the service, there will be an informal gathering and lunch at the
Jefferson County Community Center. Internment will be later this summer at Gibbs Cemetery in
Sherwood, Oregon.
In lieu of flowers, donations may be made to the Jefferson County Scholarship Foundation or Madras Community Pantry