Harvey L. Hopp Died 2012

HOPP RALSTON

Posted By: Connie Swearingen-Volunteer (email)
Date: 8/14/2012 at 12:03:20

Sioux City Journal
June 13, 2012

Harvey L. Hopp of Moville died May 31, 2012, after a several-month illness.

Memorial services will be 11 a.m. Saturday at First Unitarian Church, 2508 Jackson St., in Sioux City. Arrangements are under the direction of Nelson-Berger Northside Chapel. Condolences may be sent online to www.meyerbroschapels.com.

He lived his 85 years in Moville, hauling livestock and grain from farms to market for most of those years. He started farming with his father, even driving while excused from high school classes during wartime. He was self-employed, an owner/operator who developed lifelong friendships with many of his customers.

Although he worked long, hard hours, he was an avid gardener with a particular passion for heirloom tomatoes. He could patiently and endlessly fish without a bite and could not say "no" to anyone who needed help. He was a builder. He and a handful of helpers built the family home. He made furniture with wood he harvested from black walnut trees, milling them and turning them into chairs, tables, sofas and beds. He would tromp through local woodlands to find wild berries and mushrooms.

Harvey enlisted in the U.S. Navy after graduating in 1944 from Moville High School, later named Woodbury Central. He was stationed on the USS Hoist (ARS-40), a search and recovery ship in the final years of World War II.

He was an active member of First Unitarian Church in Sioux City. He was a usual volunteer whenever there was a job to do, whether it be a service project, something to be fixed or a garden to be tended.

In 1951, Harvey married a nurse, Linda Ralston.

He is survived by his wife; three children, Mark (Fonda) of Marshalltown, Iowa, Daniel (Linda) of Cedar Rapids, Iowa, and Lisa of Valparaiso, Ind.; a brother, Harold Hopp of Mason City, Iowa; six grandchildren; 10 great-grandchildren; and many nieces, nephews and their families.

He was preceded in death by his parents, Henry and Emma Hopp; and a brother, Henry, all of Moville.

In lieu of flowers, make memorial contributions to First Unitarian Church, or Hospice of Siouxland, whose nurses and staff took such good care of Harvey in his waning months.