Obituaries

Evelyn Virginia Hillhouse Hopkins Riley, age 98, passed away peacefully on July 10, 2026, at Pecan Point Assisted Living in Sherman, Texas.

Visitation will be July 14, 2026, from 6-8 pm at Dannel Funeral Home, 302 S. Walnut Street, Sherman, TX 75090. A celebration of life will be held at First United Methodist Church, 401 N. Elm Street, Sherman, TX 75090, on Wednesday, July 15 at 10:00 am with internment following at West Hill Cemetery. The Reverend Denise Peckham of First United Methodist Church will officiate.

Evelyn was born on September 19, 1927 in Topeka, Kansas, the only child of Virgil Preston and Augusta Evelyn Hillhouse. At Washburn University, she was active in the Delta Gamma sorority and met Arthur Gorman Hopkins, Jr. They married in 1947 and moved to the University of Texas where Evelyn earned a Bachelor of Science in Home Economics.

The young couple moved to Sherman, Art's home town, where they were active with the Travis Street Methodist Church and its transition to the current location in 1955. They started a family soon afterwards and, over the years, Evelyn was active in the First United Methodist Church chancel choir, bell choir, United Methodist Women, and various committees.

Like her mother, Evelyn started employment with the church later in life. She began at the Sherman-McKinney District Office and later moved to FUMC, working with several clergy over the years.

Evelyn was preceded in death by her husbands, Arthur Gorman Hopkins Jr. and Lenoard Riley; son, David Robert Hopkins; daughter, Elizabeth Ann Henderson; granddaughter, Mindy Ann Pine; and blended family grandson, Brian Steven Fredrickson.

She is survived by her son Brian Preston Hopkins and his husband Michael James McNett; grandsons Casey Hopkins and David Pine and wife Nicole, and granddaughter, Chanda Hopkins; great-grandchildren Bradly, Matthew, Joshua, Jazmyne, and Christian. Upon Evelyn’s marriage to Leonard in 2010, he brought his children: daughter Cynthia Lee Fredrickson; son James Wesley Simpson and wife Jane; grandchildren, Neal Roland Fredrickson, Leigh Anne Simpson, and Lauren Elizabeth Simpson; and two great grandchildren, Riley and Parker Simpson Topping. She also considered Jeremy Blackwood a "son in heart."

Recently, Evelyn was supported by a growing number of caring professionals, including staff at Pecan Point, Cedar Hollow, Texoma Medical Center, Home Instead, and Home Hospice. Longtime caregiver Jan Austin became a close friend and Evelyn's niece Jennie Carrell provided invaluable assistance.

Memorials in Evelyn’s memory may be given to The Music Ministry at the First United Methodist Church, 401 North Elm Street, Sherman, Texas 75090, or a favorite charity of your choice.