Henlopen Grange presents Community Award

Henlopen Grange No. 20 presented its 36th Annual Community Citizen of the Year to local dairy farmer and businessman Walter Hopkins April 16 at the Grange Hall in Lewes. Hopkins operates Green Acres Farm, the largest dairy farm in Delaware, just outside of Lewes.

The family farm milks over 500 cows a day and has been in the Hopkins family for four generations. Hopkins is a graduate of Lewes High School Class of 1965, served with the U.S. Army in Vietnam and graduated from the University of Delaware with a bachelor's degree in agriculture engineering.

In January of this year Delaware Secretary of Agriculture Ed Kee presented Hopkins with the Secretary’s Award for Distinguished Service to Delaware Agriculture. Hopkins is an elder and treasurer of Coolspring Presbyterian Church, past senior and grand deacon of Jefferson Lodge of the Ancient Free and Accepted Masons, past president of the Cape Henlopen School District Board of Education, past chairman of the Mid-Atlantic Master Farmer Association, past director of the Delaware Farm Bureau, a member of the Delaware Holstein Association, a member of Land-O-Lakes Cooperative, director of the MidAtlanticFarm Credit and director of the AgFirst Credit Bank.

Shown is (l-r) is Grange Master Yvonne Martz, Hopkins and Grange lecturer Jenny Dull.