Lorraine Hoopman

Lorraine Sylvia (Helleckson) Hoopman of Hackensack, MN, left us on Friday, January 10, 2020, at Good Samaritan Society, Pine River, MN. She was born on March 3, 1920, to Carl and Hilda Helleckson. She was preceded in death by her parents and her siblings, Dorothy Troop, Curtis Helleckson and Iona Helleckson. She was also preceded in death by her husband, Ralph Andrew “Andy” Hoopman and daughter, Janice Klosner. She is survived by sons: Gary (Judy) Hoopman, Larry Hoopman, Steven Hoopman, David Hoopman, Brian Hoopman (Meg Hostetler), Douglas Hoopman; daughters, Shirley Mace, Marcia Rice; 13 grandchildren and many great grandchildren, nieces and nephews. She warned us in November that she was warming up her wings. She had a great sense of humor.

Lorraine graduated from Deer River High School in 1937. During World War II she worked in the machine shop of the Boeing Aircraft Factory in Seattle, Washington after training in Duluth, MN. She married Ralph Hoopman on July 1, 1944. Later she became a nurse and worked at Ah Gwah Ching for 18 years, retiring in 1982.

Lorraine is known for many hours of volunteer work at Countryside Co-Op in Hackensack. She was a member of the American Legion Auxiliary for 52 years and a longtime member of the Akeley VFW Auxiliary. Lorraine was a member of St. Paul’s Lutheran Church and enjoyed quilting sessions with the ladies there. She was a good cook and baker of bread, cinnamon rolls and many pies. She made her own chokecherry jelly up until the last few years.

Lorraine was a loyal fan of the Minnesota Twins since they came to Minnesota in 1961. She enjoyed bowling on several leagues and traveled to tournaments all over the country. For the past several years she excelled at Wii bowling at Birchview Gardens. Lorraine kept her mind sharp with crossword puzzles, jigsaw puzzles, Scrabble, cribbage and game shows like Jeopardy and Wheel of Fortune. Her last “job” was clipping coupons for the military families overseas. She had a system and knew which ones were accepted and would cut out, sort and put them into envelopes to go to the Legion for distribution.

Lorraine’s funeral will be 11 AM on Friday, January 17 at St. Paul’s Lutheran Church in Hackensack. Visitation will be one hour prior to the service. In lieu of flowers, the family wishes that memorials be given to St. Paul’s Lutheran Church. Arrangements are with Kline Funeral Home, Pine River.