William Luttmer Hoppe, resident of Kirkland Village, Bethlehem, passed away peacefully on June 22, 2026. Bill was born in St. Louis, Missouri, on February 11, 1936, to Louis C. and Helen (Luttmer) Hoppe. He was the youngest of Helen’s five children. Helen died in 1937, and Bill was raised by his father and his father’s second wife, Hilda (Moehlenbrock) Hoppe. Bill cultivated inner strength from his earliest years, after losing his mother before his second birthday and losing two siblings in separate tragedies while still a teenager. His confidence with pen and paper in hand allowed him to enjoy school with his friends while quietly committing to building a future with faith, hope, and love. He graduated from St. Louis Country Day School and Harvard University, where he obtained a BA in English. Bill joined Bethlehem Steel in 1957 as a member of the Loop management training program, and he met Patricia “Pat” Foust in 1962. He and Pat married in 1963, and they remained lifelong partners and residents of Bethlehem as Bill worked thirty-six years for the Steel before retiring in 1993.

In a life of long-term commitments, Bill was publicly admired for strategic planning and privately loved for his story-telling and sense of humor. At the Steel, he rose to manager of economic studies in the planning department in 1977. In 1984, he was appointed special assistant to the chairman, and in 1987, he became responsible for developing strategies to advance steel industry interests by means of government programs and trade and business associations. As a long-time member of First Presbyterian Church of Bethlehem, Bill served as Elder and Stephen Minister, and he was instrumental in the initial planning of Kirkland Village. Later he was a dedicated volunteer for ShareCare Faith in Action and an active member of Overcomers Outreach.

Over fifty-nine years of marriage, Bill devoted himself to Pat, and they devoted themselves to their daughter Margat and son Bruce. Family time was always a priority, especially around the dinner table, where Bill entertained with the quintessentially dry “Hoppe sense of humor.” Family vacations were also precious occasions. The long drives to St. Petersburg Beach and Yellowstone National Park — and the fun times with grandparents, aunts, uncles, and cousins — will never be forgotten. After Margat and Bruce were grown, visiting family remained a priority. For as long as mobility allowed, Bill and Pat made regular trips in the US and abroad to spend time with their loved ones.

And who could forget Bill’s letters? As a freshman in college, he started writing home weekly. The letters continued for thirty years. Then, upon the death of his father-in-law, another dedicated letter writer, Bill expanded his habitual reporting to reach dozens of homes across the extended Foust-Hoppe family for another decade.

Fresh air, exercise, and time with friends were important to Bill. Chores such as stacking firewood and washing the car were enjoyable times outdoors, made even better by a St. Louis Cardinals game on the radio. Doubles tennis–aka “smash and bash” — with cherished friends at Saucon Valley Country Club was “Dad’s therapy” each week for over four decades. Duplicate bridge, poker, and Rotary were also ways to spend time with people who mattered to him.

A notoriously picky eater as a young adult, Bill came to love Pat’s cooking. As his tastes expanded, he started grilling salmon and chicken–and even baking cookies — for his family. In his final years, he returned to his picky roots, deciding that nothing beats a bowl of Frosted Flakes for breakfast, or a grilled cheese sandwich for dinner.

Bill was predeceased by beloved wife Pat, older sisters Mildred and Marian, and older brothers Louis and Kenneth. Surviving are younger brother Carl of Marina del Rey, California, son Bruce of Arlington, Massachusetts, daughter Margat and son-in-law Charles Werner of Tagertschi, Switzerland, and grandchildren Markus, Peter, Jacob, Hanna, and Benjamin.