Richard Lee Hopping

Richard Lee Hopping, 97, passed away in Fullerton, California on August 12, 2025. Born on July 26, 1928, to parents Dorothy Marie (Anderson) Hopping and Lavon Lee Hopping, in Dayton, Ohio. Richard was driven throughout his life to Service to others and to Excellence in every endeavor. He was a compassionate doctor, an imaginative political leader, innovative educator as well as a dedicated father and husband.

Richard became an inspirational and uniquely visionary national leader whose lasting impact can be seen in the successes and the significant growth of the profession of optometry in the second half of the twentieth century. For several decades, he was a leading national advocate for the expansion of scope of optometric practice and patient care. Dr Hopping guided leaders, nationally and internationally, and testified in numerous legislatures across our country to advance optometric scope of practice for the patients’ benefit. As a leading college president, he was a force in advancing optometry’s educational curriculum and training. His influence was pervasive and improved public health and veterans’ health care across our nation.

He is the founder and original author of the Optometric Oath recited and pledged by every optometrist at graduation ceremonies and optometric meetings across the nation.

His focus on the future started early when at age 9, while reading books in his attic, Richard resolved to attend college. With determination, but no financial support, he was the first in his family to do so. After the family moved to El Paso, Texas as a youth, Richard’s strength of resolve was apparent early on when in the eighth grade, he hitchhiked alone returning to Ohio where he took a job as a laborer to support himself in school. Shortly thereafter, when the United States was needing enlistees for the war, young Richard hitchhiked from Ohio to California to enlist, only to be turned away as he was underage by several years. Returning to Dayton, he supported himself as a trumpeter in his popular local band. Although small in stature, he soon became a star athlete and team captain at football powerhouse Stivers High School.

Richard attended Cedarville College (Ohio) and Chaffey College (California), Sinclair College (Ohio) and also the University of Dayton, depending on scholarship availability, his work, and his finances. Along his path he had career offers from Hollywood, leaders of industry, and a large funeral home in Memphis. However, his heart pointed him to health care, and he enrolled in the Southern College of Optometry in Memphis, Tennessee where he earned his Doctor of Optometry degree with Honors in 1952.

Newly married to Patricia Louise (Vance) Hopping and with their infant son, Dr. Hopping returned to Dayton, Ohio. In line with his vision of how future optometry should provide care, he chose an uncommon setting for his solo optometric practice and opened in a professional medical building called The Doctors Building. Early on he embraced all aspects of optometric care including primary care, vision therapy, low vision and contact lenses. Early on he was also employed by the U.S. Veterans Administration and is recognized as the first optometrist in the country to be on staff of the V.A. (1953-57) where he proved the essential value of optometric care for our nation’s veterans. Later, he provided volunteer service as a doctor in the Subnormal Vision (Low Vision) Clinic of Goodwill Industries in Dayton (1957-73).

Dr. Hopping quickly became active in the Miami Valley Optometric Society and was tapped for leadership in the Ohio Optometric Association serving in all chairs including President (1964-65). He was elected to the Board of the American Optometric Association (1966) and served on the Board until 1973, including President (1971-72).

Richard Hopping served on over 150 professional and community Boards. His love and service to his profession was seldom equaled. Significantly, he proposed and worked to pass the AOA motion creating the historic Airlie House Conference on the Role of Optometry in Health Care (1969). As Planning Chair and the Keynote Speaker, this event laid groundwork for integrating Optometry into the U.S. healthcare system and helped focus the profession to expand optometric scope of practice. It was a fundamental precursor to the diagnostic and therapeutic legislative scope gains for optometry over the following decades. He was also Planning Chair and Moderator of the AOA Future Conference (1974-75), Chair of Section on Primary Care AAO (1978-79), Chair of the future focused Optometric Education Georgetown Summits (1992), Chair of the Conference on Scope of Optometric Practice, as well as Chair of the Conference on Financing Optometric Education (1993). Over twenty years after leading the Arlie House Conference, he continued to promote scope expansion as Chair of the AOA Scope of Practice Conference, (1992).

After completing his service on the AOA Board, Dr Hopping became the first President of the Southern California College of Optometry, formerly the Los Angeles College of Optometry where he inspired thousands of future optometrists and leaders. During his 24-year innovative tenure (1973-97) he led SCCO to the forefront in optometric clinical education and reinforced optometry’s place as a leading primary health care provider. He greatly expanded training into new clinical settings and developed a then unmatched extensive outreach educational clinical program. He did this while taking the College from bankruptcy concerns to one of the largest endowments in the country for a U.S. school or college.

Among his numerous leadership roles he was Chairman, Advisory Research Council, AOF (1976-83); President, Association of Schools and Colleges of Optometry (ASCO) (1983-85); Founding Member (1983), Distinguished Practitioner, and Chair of the National Academy of Practice in Optometry (1985-89); Chair, Professional Enhancement Advisory Program (PEP) (1982-90); Chair, Industry Relation Committee, AOA (1982-95); National spokesperson, ABC’s of Eyecare, Better Vision Institute (1988-2000); chief coordinator and consultant, Pathways in Optometry, AOA and Allergan, Inc. (1989-95); Chairman, Georgetown Conference, Summit on Optometric Education Conference Series, AOA and ASCO, (1991-95); Chair, Centennial Advisory Committee, AOA (1996-2000), and active member of dozens of committees and commissions serving his communities, state and nation.

His unselfish involvement in his community was extensive and varied in both charitable and service groups. He consistently volunteered his service and leadership to a myriad of organizations including: Illuminating Engineering Society (Tennessee and Ohio), local and national Retinitis Pigmentosa International, Museum of Natural History (Dayton), Big Brothers Association, Optimist Club, Boy Scouts Boards and Campaigns (Ohio and California), St Jude’s Hospitable Board (California), President of the local PTA (Dayton), Orange County Performing Arts Center Founding member, YMCA & YWCA local Chairs (Ohio an California), Community Chest and Red Cross Campaigns (Ohio and California), various roles in his church, Cerebral Palsy Board of Directors (Ohio), United Way, National Society for the Prevention of Blindness (Ohio), and Headstart Screenings (Ohio).

Among the prestigious honors bestowed upon Dr. Hopping over the years are: Optometrist of the Year Award, Ohio Optometric Assn (1962) and California Optometric Assn (1988); Doctor of Ocular Science, (Hon.), Southern College of Optometry (1972); and Doctor of Ocular Science, (Hon.) State University of New York (1995), Distinguished Achievement Award, American Public Health Association, Vision Care Section (1984); National Optometrist of the Year, AOA (1988); Dr. Raymond I. Myers Award, AOSA (1990); Eminent Service Award, AAO (1991); Distinguished Service Award, AOA (1993); Leo Award of Excellence in Global Eye Care, National Eye Research Foundation (1995); Directors Choice Award, Optical Laboratories Association (1995); Doctor of Science, (Hon.), Professional Distinction Award SCCO (1997); Lifetime Achievement Award, Southern College of Optometry (1997); Paul Yarwood Memorial Award COA (1997); and the People of Vision Award, Prevent Blindness America (1997). Unsurprisingly, he was an early inductee in the Optometry Hall of Fame (2003).

Richard Hopping was a true visionary and inspirational leader. One of his favorite quotes is attributed to Sir Isaac Newton “If I have seen further, it is because I have stood on the shoulders of giants”. Dr Hopping honored those rare giants before him who led the way. Undoubtably, Richard Hopping became one of those few giants in our time.

Richard is preceded in death by his wife of 73 years Patricia Louise (Vance) Hopping, his parents, his brother Jack Hopping. He is survived by his 3 children: Ronald Lee Hopping, O.D. (Desiree, O.D.), Debra Lynn Hopping Davis (Tom), and Jerrold Alan Hopping (Rennie), 9 grandchildren (Reed Hopping O.D., Grant Hopping M.D., Brett Davis, Tricia Davis Dunton, Julie Davis Jenkins, Lauren Davis Kirk, Major Tyler Hopping USMC, Austin Hopping, and Morgan Hopping), 18 great-grandchildren.

Services will be held 1 PM Friday, August 29, at McAulay & Wallace Mortuary, Fullerton, California. There will be a private interment earlier that day.

If so inclined, gifts may be made in his memory to the Southern California College of Optometry MBKU, the Southern College of Optometry, Optometry Cares American Optometric Association, or a charity of your choice.