In November 2016, two retired U.S. Army colonels, Scott Hooper and K (Karolyn) Hooper, opened HOOP’s Antiques & Vintage Collectibles on Trade Street in downtown Tryon. By the time this happened they both had years of military experience and had traveled extensively. Col. K Hooper will be our guest, speaking on “Women in the Military” at the American Association of University Women meeting on Monday, Nov. 27 at 1:30 p.m. at the Tryon Presbyterian Church on Harmon Field Rd.

K Hooper grew up an Army brat on both sides of her family. She was born in Germany where she lived until the age of 9. She has one brother who lives in Washington State. The family moved to San Antonio, Texas where K graduated from high school. She graduated from the University of Colorado, Boulder with a BA in political science and an ROTC commission into the US Army Signal Corps. After attending the Officer Basic Course she was assigned to Fort Bragg. From there she moved on to attend the U.S. Marine Corps Command and Control Systems School in Quantico, Va. Her other assignments included travels to Fort Hood, Texas; Bosnia and Herzegovina and Hohenfels, Germany to mention a few, where she completed a master’s degree in human relations and requested and received a career field re-designation into Army human resources and a branch transfer into the Adjutant General’s Corps.

She has been deployed to Iraq and Afghanistan, was reassigned to the Pentagon and received a master of science degree in national resource strategy in June 2014. Col. Hooper’s final assignment was as the commander of the U.S. Army NATO Brigade, headquartered in Sembach, Germany. She retired after 23 years of active federal service effective December 2016. Her numerous awards and decorations include the Legion of Merit, the Bronze Star and the Meritorious Service Medal to name a few.

Having visited Asheville and the Tryon area several times in 2009 while at Fort Bragg, Scott and K had fallen in love with the area. In 2010, while serving overseas, K found a house online at Lake Adger. Calling Scott and telling him to “get on the internet!” they found the house of their dreams and opened HOOP’s Antiques & Vintage Collectibles last year.

AAUW meetings are on the fourth Monday from September – April at 1:30 p.m. at the Tryon Presbyterian Church on Harmon Field Rd in Tryon.

– submitted by Cathy Brettman