DAR is a non-political service organization that promotes historic preservation, education, and patriotism
(The following press release was provided verbatim by Towamencin DAR)
The Towamencin Chapter Daughters of the American Revolution (DAR) was honored to present its Community Service Award to Dale Hoppe at the chapter’s February meeting. The award recognizes Hoppe’s extraordinary dedication to preserving historical records and supporting genealogical research through her long-standing volunteer work.
Over the past 11 years, Hoppe has devoted well over 2,000 hours to photographing and transcribing gravestones in cemeteries across the region and beyond. According to preliminary records from Find-A-Grave, she has uploaded more than 32,000 photographs and completed over 12,000 gravestone transcriptions. These records are made freely available online and are widely used by individuals researching family histories.
Hoppe explained that her work often begins with visits to local cemeteries, where she carefully photographs headstones and records inscriptions. When traveling to other states, she makes a point of seeking out additional cemeteries to document. In some cases, she must clear weeds or brush debris from aging stones to ensure the inscriptions are legible. The collected images and information are then uploaded to the Find-A-Grave website to create memorials that may include birth and death dates, locations, and biographical details. Hoppe noted that the project is supported entirely by volunteers from around the world and serves as a valuable resource for genealogists.
As older tombstones continue to deteriorate due to weather conditions and the materials from which they were made, Hoppe’s work plays a vital role in preserving historical information that might otherwise be lost. Through her dedication and attention to detail, she has made a lasting contribution to the documentation of local and national history, making her a deserving recipient of the Towamencin Chapter’s Community Service Award.
Towamencin Chapter, NSDAR is located in Lansdale, PA. DAR is a non-political service organization that promotes historic preservation, education, and patriotism, and is open to any woman 18 years or older who can prove lineal, bloodline descent from an ancestor who aided in achieving American independence. For more information about becoming a member, please contact [email protected]
