Golden Gate Wing Guest Speaker Archive

Presentation Date: February 23, 2017

Peter Hopkinson, First Lieutenant, USMC 1954-1958

Peter was born in 1932 in New York City.  His father was an industrial executive; his mother was a housewife.  He had three older sisters. He completed high school at St. Paul’s School in Concord, NH, entered Princeton University, NJ in 1950, and graduated with a Bachelor of Arts in 1954.

 

Expecting an early draft notice, Peter enlisted in the Marines, completed Marine Infantry Officer Candidate training in Quantico, VA, and progressed through pilot training at Pensacola, FL, Corpus Christi, TX, and El Toro, CA.  He requested assignment to fighters and was sent to his first permanent duty station at Atsugi, Japan.  Upon return to the States, he became an instructor pilot helping “Weekend Warrior” reserve pilots to maintain their flying proficiency at Floyd Bennett Field in New York City.

 

Military aircraft types flown: SNJ, TV-2, F9F-2, -3, -5, -7; FJ4, and F3D-2M.

 

After separation from active duty in August 1958, he re-entered Princeton, majored in Architecture, and graduated with a Master of Fine Arts in 1960.

 

Peter lived and worked in San Francisco from 1960–1970.

 

In 1971, Peter married Natasha.  They lived in Washington, DC  1970-1972, Boston 1972-2000, New York 2000-2013, and returned to San Francisco in 2013.   They have two sons, one grandson, and three granddaughters.

 

Peter’s professional career included:

-- Skidmore, Owings and Merrill

-- Vice President, Principal Architect at AECOM in Boston and New York

-- Past President: Boston Society of Architects, 1983

-- Elected to College of Fellows, American Institute of Architects, 1987

 

Peter and Natasha reside in San Francisco.