Kendall Burton Hopkins, amazing family man
Kendall Burton Hopkins passed away Monday, Feb. 26, 2018, in Greenwood. He was the ninth child of sharecropper parents Noah Short Hopkins Sr. and Anna Mae Burton Hopkins. His nicknames were "Buck," "Mr. Buck," "Uncle Buck," "Kenny," and his CB handles, "Green Back," and "Dollar Bill." His children and grandchildren referred to him as "Daddy" or "Pop-Pop."
Kendall met Dorothy Cirwithian Fambro in the 1950s. Dorothy had a son, Roosevelt A. Fambro, from a previous marriage. From their union, Kendall and Dorothy had four additional children. The couple was married and together until Dorothy's death in 1994.
Kendall was a hard worker and provider. He was a truck driver for most of his adult life. During his early years, he worked for Milton Poultry. In 1964, he began to work for the Reed Trucking Company. He worked at Reed for 41 years until his retirement in 2005. Kendall was a good and caring father. He always provided for his family and made sure his family had everything they needed.
Kendall's older brothers were in the armed services. While the older brothers were in active duty, Kendall, who was the youngest, had to quit school in the eighth grade to help out on the farm. You would never know, however, that Kendall only had an eighth-grade education from all of the things that he could do. For example, Kendall loved working with wood. If he could visualize it, he could build it. He often created lounge chairs, swings, picnic tables, dog houses, carts, bird feeders, cabinets, gun racks and sheds.
Kendall also thought of himself as a very good chef, and loved to cook for his family. He often made homemade ice cream for family barbecues, sweet potato pies, chicken and dumplings and many more dishes. He loved breakfast, and was known at home for his pancakes. He and his wife often competed in the kitchen to see who could make the best homemade yeast rolls and other dishes.
Kendall loved to be outside. If he was not sitting in his favorite lounge chair with his homemade fan blowing on him, he could be spotted working in his garden or working under the hoods of cars. He was a self-taught mechanic, and could diagnose and fix any car problem. Despite the countless hours spent working on cars, he never charged anyone a fee for his services.
Anyone who knew Kendall would agree that he had the gift of gab. He loved being around his family and friends where he shared jokes and tons of stories. If you ever stopped by his home to visit, you were greeted with a smile, a joke, and most likely, a funny story.
After retiring from the Reed Trucking Company, Kendall spent numerous hours driving and sitting in his red GMC pick-up truck. Both Kendall and his favorite truck could be spotted in the Milton Food Lion parking lot, where he chatted with friends and family, and enjoyed a good meal from KFC.
Although Kendall was not a member of a church, his life could be summarized under the following principle: "Do unto others as you would have them do unto you." Kendall's life reflected this value in that he never held a grudge, no matter how mad he may have been. Additionally, he would give to his family and strangers, money, time, or anything else that they needed. Prior to departing this life, Kendall accepted Jesus as his personal Savior and Lord.
Kendall is preceded in death by his wife and son, Dorothy and Roosevelt; his parents; his four brothers, Lindford, Preston, William J. and Noah L. Hopkins Jr.; and three sisters, Viola Drummond, Minnie Bibbins and Elva Wise.
Kendall leaves to mourn his loss, three sons, Kendall Hopkins Jr. of Camden, Kevin L. Hopkins of Chicago, Ill., and Duane K. Hopkins Sr. of Milton; one daughter, Lorie A. Hopkins of Milton; two grandchildren, Duane K. Hopkins II of Bridgeville and Shanice Durham of Laurel; one brother, Melvin Hopkins Sr. of Long Neck; one sister, Lillian Kenney of Delmar, Md.; one brother-in-law, Vincent Wise,Sr. of Millsboro; one honorary son, William Tiggs of Harrington; a devoted nephew and niece, Robert Savage of Milton and Mary Parker of Milton; and a host of nieces, nephews, cousins and friends.
Celebration of Life Service will be held Saturday, March 10, at noon, at St. John 2nd Baptist Church 26602 Mount Joy Road, Millsboro. Family and friends may visit two hours priors to the service.
Professional service entrusted to Bennie Smith Funeral Home, Milford.
To offer words of comfort, or sign guestbook, visit www.benniesmithfuneralhome.com
