In late July 2019, Nashville songwriter Leslie Satcher was in town as a performer at the Sandy Lee Songfest. Hours before she was to go on stage, she was rehearsing at the home of Joel Hopper, who hosted her and her husband during Songfest for eight years.
Inspired by a sign she saw in his house, Satcher set down her guitar and started writing a song. The title: “Every Day Counts.”
That title says a lot about how Joel Ray Hopper, who died unexpectedly early Thursday morning at his home here, lived his life…