James Francis Hopfensperger
James Francis Hopfensperger was Born on March 21, 1928 in Kaukauna, WI, he was the youngest of four children.
He was married to Mary Rose Garvey on September 7, 1950 at Saint Nicholas Catholic Church in Freedom, WI. Jim received a Bachelor of Science degree from the University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee in 1954 and that same year the couple moved to Midland, MI when he accepted a teaching position with the Midland Public Schools. Jim later earned a Master of Science degree from the University of Wisconsin-Madison in 1965.
Prior to arriving in Michigan he served in the United States Navy from 1946 to 1948, continuing in the United States Navy Reserve until 1953. Jim was recognized in Midland as a one-of-his-kind educator and artist, affectionately referred to as “Mr. Hop” or “Hoppy” by students and colleagues alike. Endlessly engaged, doggedly determined, and unbowed by boundaries, he shepherded a generation of aspiring artists and thinkers at Northeast Intermediate School. In the 1970s he transitioned to a leadership role with the Midland Public Schools, serving as its Fine Arts Coordinator while also teaching as an adjunct faculty member at Delta College and Central Michigan University.
In 1966 he founded and was the principal designer for a family business, Hopfensperger Art Studios. Guided by the steady business hand of his co-owner and spouse, Mary Rose, the studio earned a reputation for exceptional craftsmanship and creativity in the Great Lakes area. His highly distinctive architectural glass installations employ rich and varied interplays of color, form, and light to dramatic effect in both religious and secular settings. Midland’s Blessed Sacrament Church, completed in 1967 and Jim’s home parish, contains some remarkable early examples of his glass window walls and commissioned sculptures. His bronze figures also grace the mid-Michigan landscape and include the noteworthy “Family” sculpture adjacent to the Midland Tridge, dedicated in 1982. Jim also found time to be the owner and manager of several area restaurants including the immensely popular Dog n Suds drive-in on South Saginaw Road from the 1960s into the early 1970s. In addition, he was an occasional but ambitious entrepreneur, imagining and launching projects such as the Mid-Michigan Pop Festival and Rock Concert in 1969.
As the father of ten children he eventually became known as “Pop Hop” and proudly sported a personalized automobile license plate bearing the moniker
