Mr. Robin Reese
Licensed Funeral Director and Licensed Embalmer
Mr. Robin Reese ~ Licensed Embalmer & Licensed Funeral Director
Mr. Reese has over 45 years of funeral directing and embalming experience. Our families take comfort in knowing that Mr. Reese, in his role as our most senior embalmer and funeral director, oversees all preparation services as well as assisting with maintaining facility compliance with funeral home industry regulations. Mr. Reese is also responsible for ensuring that our operations at Hopper Funeral Home, Inc., in the preparation room, inside the facility, and at visitation, funeral, and interment services are fulfilled to the highest standards. In addition to his other responsibilities, Mr. Reese mentors our next generation of funeral directors and embalmers to ensure that Hopper Funeral Home's unparalleled level of service continues into the future.
Mr. Robin Reese
Licensed Funeral Director and Licensed Embalmer
Mr. Robin Reese ~ Licensed Embalmer & Licensed Funeral Director
Mr. Reese has over 45 years of funeral directing and embalming experience. Our families take comfort in knowing that Mr. Reese, in his role as our most senior embalmer and funeral director, oversees all preparation services as well as assisting with maintaining facility compliance with funeral home industry regulations. Mr. Reese is also responsible for ensuring that our operations at Hopper Funeral Home, Inc., in the preparation room, inside the facility, and at visitation, funeral, and interment services are fulfilled to the highest standards. In addition to his other responsibilities, Mr. Reese mentors our next generation of funeral directors and embalmers to ensure that Hopper Funeral Home's unparalleled level of service continues into the future.
Reid Brewer
Funeral Director & Embalmer
Reid Brewer ~ Funeral Director & Embalmer
Reid has been employed with Hopper Funeral Home since 2020. Reid, our youngest team member, brings a fresh, vibrant energy to Hopper Funeral Home, Inc. He has a natural ability to connect with others, always professional and respectful. Reid began his Funeral Director and Embalming Apprenticeship in June 2022 and graduated in December, 2024 from the well-respected John A. Gupton School of Mortuary Sciences in Nashville, Tennessee. Reid is involved in every aspect of the business, from time of death to interment. He is now both a licensed funeral director and licensed embalmer.
Reid Brewer
Funeral Director & Embalmer
Reid Brewer ~ Funeral Director & Embalmer
Reid has been employed with Hopper Funeral Home since 2020. Reid, our youngest team member, brings a fresh, vibrant energy to Hopper Funeral Home, Inc. He has a natural ability to connect with others, always professional and respectful. Reid began his Funeral Director and Embalming Apprenticeship in June 2022 and graduated in December, 2024 from the well-respected John A. Gupton School of Mortuary Sciences in Nashville, Tennessee. Reid is involved in every aspect of the business, from time of death to interment. He is now both a licensed funeral director and licensed embalmer.
Lorena M Blankenship
Funeral Director & Embalmer
Lorena “Rena” May Blankenship ~ Funeral Director & Embalmer.
Our longest-serving Hopper Funeral Home, Inc. employee, Lorena, learned the business from the ground up. After starting her career with Hopper as manager of grounds and facility maintenance in 2018, Lorena began honing her skills as a transporter, an office assistant, and a mortuary science student. In June of 2022, Lorena began her Funeral Director & Embalming Apprenticeship. Lorena, now a graduate of a recognized mortuary science program in Iowa, DMACC, holds the honor of being the first female in Knox County to have earned both her funeral directing and embalmer's license. Lorena is involved in all aspects of servicing our families. She provides our families with compassion during transports, arrangements, visitations, and funeral services. Lorena is tasked with overseeing all aspects of all services we provide at Hopper Funeral Home, Inc., a calling which she handles with grace and professionalism.
Lorena M Blankenship
Funeral Director & Embalmer
Lorena “Rena” May Blankenship ~ Funeral Director & Embalmer.
Our longest-serving Hopper Funeral Home, Inc. employee, Lorena, learned the business from the ground up. After starting her career with Hopper as manager of grounds and facility maintenance in 2018, Lorena began honing her skills as a transporter, an office assistant, and a mortuary science student. In June of 2022, Lorena began her Funeral Director & Embalming Apprenticeship. Lorena, now a graduate of a recognized mortuary science program in Iowa, DMACC, holds the honor of being the first female in Knox County to have earned both her funeral directing and embalmer's license. Lorena is involved in all aspects of servicing our families. She provides our families with compassion during transports, arrangements, visitations, and funeral services. Lorena is tasked with overseeing all aspects of all services we provide at Hopper Funeral Home, Inc., a calling which she handles with grace and professionalism.
Brenda Johnson
Administrative Support Specialist
Brenda Johnson ~ Administrative Support Specialist
Brenda is an invaluable staff member at Hopper Funeral Home, Inc. Brenda has been working with us at Hopper Funeral Home, Inc. since 2020 and has become a familiar and comforting presence to the families who call upon us. Brenda assists our Directors in every way, from answering the phones, announcing our obituaries on our 24-hour Obituary line, and working with insurance companies and other vendors, to comforting our families during arrangements and services. You will often find Brenda in our office, working to make sure your insurance is filed in a timely manner and standing ready to help you with filing any forms or paperwork needs you may have regarding your loved one's services.
Brenda Johnson
Administrative Support Specialist
Brenda Johnson ~ Administrative Support Specialist
Brenda is an invaluable staff member at Hopper Funeral Home, Inc. Brenda has been working with us at Hopper Funeral Home, Inc. since 2020 and has become a familiar and comforting presence to the families who call upon us. Brenda assists our Directors in every way, from answering the phones, announcing our obituaries on our 24-hour Obituary line, and working with insurance companies and other vendors, to comforting our families during arrangements and services. You will often find Brenda in our office, working to make sure your insurance is filed in a timely manner and standing ready to help you with filing any forms or paperwork needs you may have regarding your loved one's services.
Steven Walker
Transport and Staff / Service Assistant
Steven Walker ~ Transporter & Staff/Service Assistant
Since joining the staff of Hopper Funeral Home in 2022, Steven has provided quality service to our families through his reliability and hardworking spirit. Steven is involved with facility and grounds maintenance as well as assisting with transportation, visitations, and funeral services. Steven is a valued member of our team who continues to grow his career with Hopper Funeral Home, Inc.
Steven Walker
Transport and Staff / Service Assistant
Steven Walker ~ Transporter & Staff/Service Assistant
Since joining the staff of Hopper Funeral Home in 2022, Steven has provided quality service to our families through his reliability and hardworking spirit. Steven is involved with facility and grounds maintenance as well as assisting with transportation, visitations, and funeral services. Steven is a valued member of our team who continues to grow his career with Hopper Funeral Home, Inc.
Quinlynn Chrisco
Assistant
Quinlyn Chrisco - Staff Assistant
Quinlyn Chrisco has worked with our staff since 2022, complementing our directors and our office staff in numerous ways. You may experience Quinlyn's warm smile at our front door, or see her replenishing our refreshment table. Whatever the task may be, Quinlyn efficiently gets the job accomplished to help elevate our families’ experiences when they are having services at Hopper Funeral Home, Inc.
Quinlynn Chrisco
Assistant
Quinlyn Chrisco - Staff Assistant
Quinlyn Chrisco has worked with our staff since 2022, complementing our directors and our office staff in numerous ways. You may experience Quinlyn's warm smile at our front door, or see her replenishing our refreshment table. Whatever the task may be, Quinlyn efficiently gets the job accomplished to help elevate our families’ experiences when they are having services at Hopper Funeral Home, Inc.
Sally Hopper
Virtual Assistant
Sally Hopper ~ Virtual Assistant
Fourth Generation Hopper – Daughter of Charles F. Hopper and Kermit Ann Hopper
Sally Hopper assists our families with the writing of their obituary. She works closely with staff members as a mentor to ensure every detail of every service is addressed. Additionally, she is a Licensed Clinical Social Worker who has worked throughout her career as a therapist and often assists families through their various grief processes. Sally brings her 30 years of experience as a mental health provider to her role as an assistant at Hopper Funeral Home, as she understands the various emotions that often accompany loss. She brings sound insight to our directors and staff to assist with every service that she oversees.
Sally Hopper
Virtual Assistant
Sally Hopper ~ Virtual Assistant
Fourth Generation Hopper – Daughter of Charles F. Hopper and Kermit Ann Hopper
Sally Hopper assists our families with the writing of their obituary. She works closely with staff members as a mentor to ensure every detail of every service is addressed. Additionally, she is a Licensed Clinical Social Worker who has worked throughout her career as a therapist and often assists families through their various grief processes. Sally brings her 30 years of experience as a mental health provider to her role as an assistant at Hopper Funeral Home, as she understands the various emotions that often accompany loss. She brings sound insight to our directors and staff to assist with every service that she oversees.
Victoria Hopper
Business Manager & Licensed Funeral Director
Victoria Hopper ~ Business & Operations Manager & Licensed Funeral Director
Fourth Generation Hopper – Daughter of Charles F. Hopper and Kermit Ann Hopper
Victoria Hopper oversees every aspect of Hopper Funeral Home’s business operations, including personally mentoring each staff member to ensure that they provide our clients and our community members with the unparalleled service that Hopper Funeral Home, Inc. has been known for since 1905. Victoria is a licensed funeral director; thus, she brings knowledge also to our staff and to our families in her role as funeral home director.
Perhaps the best education that both Victoria Hopper and Sally Hopper have garnered over the years, however, was growing up in the family that has served the Knox County community for 120 years and learning from their parents, their grandparents, and their great-grandparents how the Hopper Family provides care to client families - always striving to ensure that the services provided for their client families' loved ones are managed with attention to detail and professionalism.
Victoria Hopper
Business Manager & Licensed Funeral Director
Victoria Hopper ~ Business & Operations Manager & Licensed Funeral Director
Fourth Generation Hopper – Daughter of Charles F. Hopper and Kermit Ann Hopper
Victoria Hopper oversees every aspect of Hopper Funeral Home’s business operations, including personally mentoring each staff member to ensure that they provide our clients and our community members with the unparalleled service that Hopper Funeral Home, Inc. has been known for since 1905. Victoria is a licensed funeral director; thus, she brings knowledge also to our staff and to our families in her role as funeral home director.
Perhaps the best education that both Victoria Hopper and Sally Hopper have garnered over the years, however, was growing up in the family that has served the Knox County community for 120 years and learning from their parents, their grandparents, and their great-grandparents how the Hopper Family provides care to client families - always striving to ensure that the services provided for their client families' loved ones are managed with attention to detail and professionalism.
Mrs. Bonita Bingham Creech
Licensed Funeral Director
Mrs. Bonita Bingham Creech ~ Licensed Funeral Director
Mrs. Creech retired from funeral service in 2023, after serving the families of Southeastern Kentucky for over 45 years, both in her own funeral homes and as a director at Hopper Funeral Home, Inc. In addition to her compassionate care during visitations and funerals, Bonita Creech was known for her hairdressing and cosmetology talents in the preparation room. Mrs. Creech was passionate about the presentation details of each service, making sure that everything for the families she served was "perfect".
Mrs. Bonita Bingham Creech
Licensed Funeral Director
Mrs. Bonita Bingham Creech ~ Licensed Funeral Director
Mrs. Creech retired from funeral service in 2023, after serving the families of Southeastern Kentucky for over 45 years, both in her own funeral homes and as a director at Hopper Funeral Home, Inc. In addition to her compassionate care during visitations and funerals, Bonita Creech was known for her hairdressing and cosmetology talents in the preparation room. Mrs. Creech was passionate about the presentation details of each service, making sure that everything for the families she served was "perfect".
Kermit Ann (Melton) Hopper
1941-2019
Kermit Ann (Melton) Hopper was born and raised in Columbus, Ohio. She was the daughter of Kermit Melton and Sallie West Melton, of Swan Pond, Kentucky, and Columbus, Ohio. Mrs. Hopper attended Upper Arlington High School in Columbus and, after graduating, attended Ohio State University. Although Mrs. Hopper lived in Ohio during her childhood, her roots were firmly planted in Knox County, Kentucky. Mrs. Hopper spent the summers of her childhood visiting her many cousins and her maternal grandmother, Lillie Lickliter West, at the family farm in Swan Pond.
Like the Hopper family, Kermit Ann Melton’s paternal and maternal families also have a long history of service to the families of Knox County, Kentucky. Her grandfather, C.A. West, was killed during service as Knox County Jailer, after which time her grandmother Lillie West was appointed to serve out his term. Lillie won by a landslide, a second term as Knox County Jailer. With this win, Miss Lillie became the first woman jailer to be elected by the voters of Knox County and one of the first female jailers elected by vote in the state of Kentucky.
Kermit Ann Melton met her husband, Charles F. Hopper, during one of her many summer visits to Knox County. Mr. Charles Hopper’s family owned and operated the oldest, largest, and most well-known funeral home in Barbourville, Hopper Funeral Home. Soon after Ann and Charles were married, they moved to Manchester, Kentucky, to manage and operate Britton Funeral Home, which was owned by the Hopper family at that time. Eventually, Ann and Charles returned to Hopper Funeral Home and worked side by side with Charles’s father, Harry G. Hopper, and his grandfather, Walter Charles Hopper. After Walter Charles Hopper and Harry G. Hopper retired, Charles and Ann became the sole owners of the Hopper Funeral Home.
Charles Hopper passed away in 1994, at which time Mrs. Kermit Ann Hopper became the first female owner and manager of the century-old Hopper Funeral Home. Mrs. Hopper added her elegance and grace to the time-honored traditions for which the Hopper Family was well known.
Mrs. Hopper, like the other Hoppers before her, dedicated her life to her family and to the families who called on her in their greatest time of need.
Kermit Ann and Charles Hopper had two daughters and two grandsons. Victoria Hopper York has one son, Bennett Van York III (Hopper). They reside in Chicago, Illinois. Sally Hopper lives in Eugene, Oregon, and has one son, Oscar Charles Hopper. Both Victoria and Sally have an active role in policymaking and management at Hopper Funeral Home. Oscar and Bennett have also shown great interest in Hopper Funeral Home and look forward to serving the families of Knox County in the near future.
Kermit Ann (Melton) Hopper
1941-2019
Kermit Ann (Melton) Hopper was born and raised in Columbus, Ohio. She was the daughter of Kermit Melton and Sallie West Melton, of Swan Pond, Kentucky, and Columbus, Ohio. Mrs. Hopper attended Upper Arlington High School in Columbus and, after graduating, attended Ohio State University. Although Mrs. Hopper lived in Ohio during her childhood, her roots were firmly planted in Knox County, Kentucky. Mrs. Hopper spent the summers of her childhood visiting her many cousins and her maternal grandmother, Lillie Lickliter West, at the family farm in Swan Pond.
Like the Hopper family, Kermit Ann Melton’s paternal and maternal families also have a long history of service to the families of Knox County, Kentucky. Her grandfather, C.A. West, was killed during service as Knox County Jailer, after which time her grandmother Lillie West was appointed to serve out his term. Lillie won by a landslide, a second term as Knox County Jailer. With this win, Miss Lillie became the first woman jailer to be elected by the voters of Knox County and one of the first female jailers elected by vote in the state of Kentucky.
Kermit Ann Melton met her husband, Charles F. Hopper, during one of her many summer visits to Knox County. Mr. Charles Hopper’s family owned and operated the oldest, largest, and most well-known funeral home in Barbourville, Hopper Funeral Home. Soon after Ann and Charles were married, they moved to Manchester, Kentucky, to manage and operate Britton Funeral Home, which was owned by the Hopper family at that time. Eventually, Ann and Charles returned to Hopper Funeral Home and worked side by side with Charles’s father, Harry G. Hopper, and his grandfather, Walter Charles Hopper. After Walter Charles Hopper and Harry G. Hopper retired, Charles and Ann became the sole owners of the Hopper Funeral Home.
Charles Hopper passed away in 1994, at which time Mrs. Kermit Ann Hopper became the first female owner and manager of the century-old Hopper Funeral Home. Mrs. Hopper added her elegance and grace to the time-honored traditions for which the Hopper Family was well known.
Mrs. Hopper, like the other Hoppers before her, dedicated her life to her family and to the families who called on her in their greatest time of need.
Kermit Ann and Charles Hopper had two daughters and two grandsons. Victoria Hopper York has one son, Bennett Van York III (Hopper). They reside in Chicago, Illinois. Sally Hopper lives in Eugene, Oregon, and has one son, Oscar Charles Hopper. Both Victoria and Sally have an active role in policymaking and management at Hopper Funeral Home. Oscar and Bennett have also shown great interest in Hopper Funeral Home and look forward to serving the families of Knox County in the near future.
Charles F. Hopper
1940 -1994
Charles F. Hopper
1940 -1994
Harry G. Hopper, Sr.
1911 - 1987
Harry G. Hopper, Sr.
1911 - 1987
Walter Charles Hopper, Sr.
1889 - 1972
Walter Charles Hopper, Sr.
1889 - 1972
