Leonard and Phyllis Hopkey
Friends of the Geneseo Foundation
In their will, Leonard and Phyllis Hopkey designated $795,000 to support
the Geneseo Foundation. Their bequest was for unrestricted use of their
funds. Bequests and endowments may be directed for a particular interest
of the donor, or to support the simple principles on which the Foundation
was based, to have a positive impact on the lives of the citizens of
Geneseo and the surrounding communities. That seemed like a perfect
fit to Mr. and Mrs. Hopkey. Their lifetimes of commitment to their family,
their church, and their community lives on through their decision to
include the Geneseo Foundation in their will.
As such, the Foundation uses the Hopkey’s legacy to support local
scholarships, the arts, youth activities and organizations, athletics
and other various activities. To those who knew Leonard and Phyllis,
it’s no surprise these two modest people have a continuing impact
on our lives.
The Hopkeys were the kind of couple you could call "the salt of
the earth”. Roget’s Thesaurus defines this as “a straight
arrow, an honest person, an upright person”. This is a perfect
description of our friends.
Both Leonard and Phyllis grew up on farms, and shared 56 years of marriage
in good times and bad. They were baptized, confirmed, married and buried
from St. John’s Lutheran Church, as were both sets of their parents.
(continued on P.2)
In fact, they met as young people in Walther League at St. Johns, and
were married in 1943. Their final resting place is together in Oakwood
Cemetery in Geneseo.
During their lifetimes, Leonard and Phyllis farmed, raised hogs, and
fed cattle. They always had a vegetable garden, fruit trees, and flower
gardens. Leonard had a special bed for summer blooming amaryllis, and
enjoyed collecting toy tractors. Phyllis collected stuffed animals and
did various kinds of handwork, including knitting and embroidery.
“The Hopkeys had no children of their own, but enjoyed their
nieces and nephew, cousins, and neighbor children”, stated Leonard’s
sister Ione Shelp. They were like foster grandparents to several boys,
and enjoyed watching them grow through college to manhood.
Wilbert and Carol Keppy
Friends of the Geneseo Foundation
Two great benefactors of the Geneseo Foundation, were Wilbert and Carol Keppy
of Osco, Illinois. Through the Geneseo Foundation, the Keppys established
a scholarship funding three $2,000 scholarships annually. This program recognizes
individuals who are graduates of a Henry County high school, and are pursuing
a degree in agricultural or similar related field. The scholarships are available
to a college junior or senior. The Keppys designated the remainder of their
$700,000 gift to the Geneseo Foundation to assist organizations that were
close to their heart. Some of these include the Henry County 4-H Foundation,
the Geneseo Endowment for Excellence in Education, the Illinois Pork Producers,
and scholarships to further the education of young men and women in the agricultural
industry.
Wilbert and Carol Keppy helped many young people from all over the country,
especially those in the pork producing business. Wilbert Keppy, who
stood 6’6”, was a very humble man, who always helped friends
and neighbors through the years. He was a hardworking man who was very
proud of his crop production, as well as the quality of the hogs he
raised. Wilbert was sensational at critiquing hogs, and garnered a lot
of respect throughout the industry for his knowledge of pork.
In the tough farming years of the early 1960's, Wilbert Keppy solicited
90 farmers who were willing to invest $100 each with him to promote
pork, and make a better life for hog farmers. The Keppys were instrumental
in organizing the Henry County Pork Producers, and among the group that
formed the Ilinois Pork Producers.
Carol Keppy was an avid reader, who loved antiques and had a great
zest for life. She helped form the Illinois Porkettes, the forerunner
of the Illinois Pork Producers Auxiliary, and was a leader in the Henry
County Republican Women. Carol was a fabulous cook and together, the
Keppys would host dinner parties featuring only the finest pork dishes.
The couple promoted the pork industry night and day. They were famous
for bringing some of the finest speakers money could buy for the Henry
County Pork Producers Banquet, which would attract as many as 500 pork
producers to the then Deck Plaza in Geneseo.
Dr. Ralph & Dorothy Young Graham
Friends of the Geneseo Foundation
This is another story of local people who worked hard, had good lives
here, and wanted to share their success with others.
Ralph and Dorothy endowed the Geneseo Foundation with a gift totaling
over $400,000. The Grahams’ wished to perpetuate their interests
in the sciences and humanities following their lifetimes as a dentist
and an artist, respectively. Their wish was to provide scholarships
benefiting students needing financial assistance in these areas of study,
as well as gifting organizations and federations that promote environmental
and conservation awareness, humanitarian and wildlife issues.
Dorothy “De” Young was born on May 4, 1918 in Annawan,
in the local hospital where her father, Dr. James M. Young practiced.
She studied art at Stephens College and then at the University of Iowa
under Grant Wood, graduating in 1942. She knew Ralph Graham for many
years before meeting him again on a blind date. They married in 1940.
Dr. and Mrs. Graham lived on the family farm for years, before moving
north of Atkinson. They adopted and raised two children, daughter, Phia
Gannett, and son Steven Robert Graham. De taught art and founded the
Art Department at Atkinson High School.
Her work was exhibited at the Davenport Municipal Art Gallery, as well
as in Chicago at the Paul Theobald Gallery. One of her pieces won the
Best of Show from the Davenport Gallery, and was purchased by and will
be part of the display at the new Figge Art Museum. She also taught
adult art classes in Atkinson, Geneseo, and at her home studio for several
years. De toured Europe in the 1960s with artist friends and her daughter,
where they visited many of the great museums and galleries in England,
Scotland, Belgium, France and the Netherlands.
She later studied sculpture, and although most of her work is oil on
canvas, she did some large garden sculptures in iron, as well as glass,
fiberglass, and wood assemblages.
Dorothy Graham continued to paint, write short stories and poems,
garden, and read until her passing in 2001. Many of her paintings are
in private collections, as well as the homes of many of her friends.
Locally, her work may be seen in several law offices, banks, and at
the Henry County Court House.
Dr.
Gifford & Carol Zimmerman
Friends of the Geneseo Foundation
Dr. Gifford “Giffy” and Carol Zimmerman were friends to
many, including the Geneseo Foundation. Actively involved in the Geneseo
community for decades, the Zimmerman’s believed in giving to others.
Their gift of $24,000 to the foundation, is designated to further their
support of worthwhile organizations and community activities.
Dr. Zimmerman was born in 1913 in Atkinson, Illinois. Called Giffy
by his friends, he served in the Army Medical Corp. during World War
II. He was a graduate of the Illinois College of Optometry in Chicago,
and opened his own optometrist practice in Geneseo. In June of 1941,
he married Carol Mathwig. After practicing for 36 years, Dr. Zimmerman
retired in 1981. Gifford passed away in 1996 at the age of 82.
Carol was a special lady who always had a smile and a kind word to
pass along. She was actively involved in many community, and church
activities at the First Congregational Church in Geneseo, where the
Zimmermans were members.
While her husband was in the Army, Carol worked in a hospital in Fort
Bragg, NC, as a private secretary for the Chief of Laboratory Service.
It was at the end of World War II that the Zimmerman’s made their
home in Geneseo. In addition to assisting Gifford in his optometric
practice, Carol helped raise their family; daughters Sue Brown and Terry
Wyffels, and son, Gifford R. Zimmerman. Carol enjoyed traveling, time
spent with family and friends, and she even participated in the same
bridge club for over 50 years.
One of Carol’s proudest accomplishments was the donation of the
Abraham Lincoln bust at the Geneseo Historical Museum in 1997. This
gift was in memory of her husband and as a legacy to the community.
The friendships formed throughout their lives continues with the Zimmerman’s
gift to the Geneseo Foundation. We are thankful for Giffy and Carol’s
gift and glad to call them friends.
Friends of The Foundation
George B. Dedrick’s wish was to create a charitable trust to
be used for the betterment of the lives of citizens of Geneseo and the
surrounding communities. That wish came true with the creation of the
Geneseo Foundation in 1961.
Mr. Dedrick’s original $1,000,000 legacy funded the trust, and
it’s lasting impact has been supported by prudent investments,
the dedication of the Board of Managers, as well as additional gifts
from other generous contributors.
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