Obituary: Clyde Collins Hopkins

Clyde Collins Hopkins, age 85, of Oak Ridge, went to be with the Lord on October 29, 2014.

Clyde was a native of Brownsville, Tennessee.

He joined Union Carbide in Oak Ridge as an accountant in 1952. He moved to Paducah, Kentucky, in 1972 to manage its Gaseous Diffusion Plant, but returned to Oak Ridge in 1978 as the executive director of the Oak Ridge National Laboratory.

In 1984, Clyde was named senior vice president of Martin Marietta Energy Systems when the company became the U.S. Department of Energy’s managing contractor in Oak Ridge. He was named president of Martin Marietta Energy Systems in 1988 and corporate vice president of Martin Marietta Corporation in 1991. In 1993, he became president of Martin Marietta’s Energy Group, one of six business units created within the corporation.

Clyde served the Knoxville community through his membership on the University of Tennessee Development Council, the Knoxville Chamber of Commerce, the Advisory Council for the United Way of Greater Knoxville, the Smoky Mountain Council of the Boy Scouts of America, and the Thompson Cancer Center.

In Oak Ridge, he served on the boards of Methodist Medical Center and ETTAC. He also served on the boards of Third National Corporation in Nashville, Covenant Health, and the Roane State Foundation, and he was a past president of the Oak Ridge Breakfast Rotary Club. He was inducted into the Junior Achievement Business Hall of Fame in 1999. Clyde was a member of First United Methodist in Oak Ridge, where he also served in various roles.

He began enjoying retirement in 1995, which allowed him time for playing golf, traveling, and enjoying his grandchildren.

He is survived by his wife of 65 years, Ada (Rudolph) Hopkins. He is also survived by daughters Cindy (Scott) Briggs and Susan Hopkins, and grandchildren Clark and Grant Milner.

The family will receive friends from 1-3 p.m. on November 8 at First United Methodist Church in Oak Ridge with a celebration of life to follow. In lieu of flowers, donations can be made to First United Methodist Church.