By Greg Deeg — Special to The Review
In August of 2006, Orion Township approved naming the northeast baseball field at Friendship Park ‘Hopkins Field.? It was named for Lake Orion resident Tom Hopkins.
This past Sunday, Tom looked on from his wheelchair as Orion families gathered to celebrate the anniversary of the dedication by playing a baseball game.
Hopkins moved from Toms River, NJ, to Lake Orion with his family 11 years ago. He was immediately visible in the community as a youth soccer and Lake Orion Youth Baseball League coach.
He worked for Hasbro Inc. for 32 years, leaving the company as a national account manager. He and his wife Cathy have three children: Sarah, 15; Connor, 14 and Christian, 11.
Tom was diagnosed with ALS in 2004. ALS (Amyotrophic Lateral Sclerosis) is better known as Lou Gehrig’s Disease.
ALS is a motor-neuron disease for which there is no remission or cure. It causes rapid deterioration of all voluntary muscle activity. Later stages of the disease result in total paralysis, yet, through it all, the mind is unaffected. ALS robs a person of their ability to move, speak, swallow and eventually breathe. There is no known cause, treatment or cure for ALS (although research is promising.)
Tom has maintained a positive attitude throughout his battle with ALS. His sense of humor and attitude has been an inspiration. He has a strong faith, which helps to him to carry on. The Hopkins family has raised over $4,000 for ALS of Michigan. Visit www.alsofmichigan.kintera.org/hopkins for more information.
Because’baseball is Tom’s lifelong favorite activity, having the field named in his honor has provided the family fond memories. It appears that the field will supply fond memories to the rest of the community for decades to come.