A Journey of Courage and Compassion:
My Amazing Dad, Dr Paul F Hopper
Dr Paul F Hopper amazed everyone throughout his life, including his strength in facing pancreatic cancer.
A “genius IQ” that had him graduating from Holy Cross College at 19 years old ,a Lieutenant in the Navy at 21 years old, and achieving a Doctorate in Organic Chemistry from Notre Dame by 24, Paul’s passion was his family, his faith and his immense desire to share his knowledge with the world. As the chief scientific officer for Kraft Foods (then General Foods) and the youngest EVP at Johnson and Johnson, Paul helped create the World Food Prize for countries and individuals who found new ways to feed the world’s hungry, while also being one of the originators of the now famous “food pyramid” we see on cereal boxes , crackers and more.
Paul carried this amazing strength with him when his radiologist and dear friend Dr Lyris Schonholz, in a routine body scan, found a “pin dot” on his pancreas at the age of 72. Wisdom helped Lyris lead Paul to Mass General Hospital where they removed what was discovered as a cancerous tumor. After a year of chemo and radiation eradicated any evidence of cancer, the Harvard Medical School asked Paul to be a case study for them and to “come back for an exam in 10 years!”. Our family was so elated we rented a stretch limousine to drive in style to New York’s famous Rainbow Room for a well deserved celebration.
Ironically, days after the celebration, Paul’s two year old grandson Timmy was diagnosed with Stage 4 brain cancer. Instead of finding the time to self indulge in his newly found health, Paul instead tossed that to the wind and spent the next few months sleeping by his grandson’s hospital bed, researching doctors (as only a true PhD can do), requesting new therapies and praying with groups across the country. Despite the doctor’s frequent prepping on the inevitable conclusion, Paul refused to give up. And somehow he won. His grandson, sent home after the “doctors could do no more for him” defied all odds and went into full remission weeks later.. not a trace of cancer!. Paul knew there was a reason his own life was given a second chance… to fully give of himself to his family and help , however he could, save this young boy.
Within weeks of his grandson’s great news, Paul’s pancreatic cancer returned. And if calendars are accurate, at the same time Tim’s mom, Mary Lynn, was blessed with conceiving her 4th child . Despite a courageous battle against his cancer -with his family learning from Paul on how to seek help, advice and more -Paul released his soul on May 12, 1998 .A full moon literally appeared at the moment he left us… the first sign of any clear sky after a record 12 days of rain –with the raining starting within minutes of Paul being admitted to the hospital for the last time.
To add to his glorious memory, 10 weeks after, Paul’s last grandchild – Kateri -was born a healthy wonderful young girl with her Granddad’s smile, blue eyes and drive to succeed. She joins Paul’s pride and joy grand kids -Jonathan, Ally, Christopher, Perry, Katey, Kiki, and of course Timmy. All of whom have a lot of their Granddad in them.
Courage and compassion. -Just two of the many lessons learned from our family’s journey with Pancreatic Cancer. While we miss our Dad tremendously, his journey taught us how much more needs to be done to help others win this fight .
So next time you see a full moon, smile and think of my Dad and all who share in this courageous battle. And in remembering, find the time to support the great organizations that are discovering new ways to keep these great people with us longer!
Written by John Hopper, with encouragement from Paul’s wife Gloria and children, Maureen, Paul Jr, Mary Lynn and Rob
