Donate Join/Renew

Donate Join/
Renew

Oral Histories

The SFA oral history program documents life stories from the American South. Collecting these stories, we honor the people whose labor defines the region. If you would like to contribute to SFA’s oral history collections, please send your ideas for oral history along with your CV or Resume and a portfolio of prior oral history work to info@southernfoodways.org.

< Back to Oral History project: Arkansas Cottage Bakers

< Back to Oral History project: Southern Baking

ORAL HISTORY

Tyler Hopwood

Hopwood Breads

Tyler Hopwood spent most of his early years in St. Louis, Missouri. A chance meeting on a dating app with his boyfriend, Chris Adams, set in motion a chain of events that would eventually land Hopwood in Arkansas. Although he had studied and planned to pursue a career in cosmetology, it was only when he started baking bread as a form of stress relief during the COVID-19 pandemic that he decided his professional calling might lie elsewhere.

Like many younger bakers, Hopwood found both early instruction and inspiration through digital channels—notably, Proof Bread’s YouTube channel. However, after finding his own voice in the kitchen, he began to expand beyond those recipes and improve on those recipes. Since January 2023, Hopwood has baked full-time for his cottage baking operation, Hopwood Breads.

Date of interview:
2023-06-21

Interviewer:
Jordan P. Hickey

Photographer:
Arshia Khan

Download Transcript

Other Project Interviews

Interview

Mai Warshafsky

Mai Warshafsky is the owner of Café Warshafsky, a thriving Southern-based business with customers across the country.

Interview

Melanie Daniels

Melanie Daniels is a third-generation Certified Master Baker and owner of Mickey's Pastry Shop in Goldsboro, NC.

Interview

Tie Whittaker

Tie Whittaker has been a professional pastry chef for thirteen years and is based in Clayton, NC.

Interview

Pamela Hill

Pamela Hill is co-owner of Makeda’s Homemade Cookies in Memphis, TN.

Interview

Justin Burke

Justin Burke is a pastry chef, recipe developer, and food writer in Davidson, NC.

Interview

Joye B. Moore

Joye B. Moore is owner of Joyebell’s Sweet Potato Pies in Richmond, Virginia.

Interview

Natasha Gaskill

Natasha Gaskill is a pastry chef in Savannah, Georgia.

Interview

Charlie Wade

Charlie Wade is founder of Deep Roots Milling in Nelson, County, Virginia.

Interview

Evva Hanes

Evva Hanes owns Mrs. Hanes’ Moravian Cookies in Clemmons, NC.

Interview

Meredith McMillan

Meredith McMillan is the former owner of Merry Cheese Crisps in Birmingham, Alabama.

Interview

Ashley Ramirez

Ashley Ramirez owns Mason Dixon Bakery in Huntsville, Alabama.

Interview

Laura Hester

Laura Hester is the former owner of Red Gingham Gourmet in Florence, Alabama.

Interview

Ben and Ryan Ray

Ben and Ryan Ray own Millie Ray and Sons in Birmingham, Alabama.

Interview

Amanda Arafat

Amanda Arafat’s bakery, Amanda Makes, specializes in Middle Eastern fare in Fayetteville, Arkansas. It has grown with the popularity of the Big Gay Market, which Amanda co-founded.

Interview

Megan Chadwick

Megan Chadwick runs Sweet Crumb Bakery from her home kitchen in Bryant, Arkansas.

Interview

Monica Chatterton

Monica Chatterton bakes at Flake Baby, a cottage bakery focused on cakes.

Interview

Annie Clapper

Anne Clapper began baking sourdough bread after watching a television show, and the skill supported her family during COVID-19.

Interview

Jennifer Hill-Green and Ashanti Parker

Based out of North Little Rock, Daisy Pastry Shoppe is run by the mother-daughter team of Jennifer Hill-Green and Ashanti Parker.

Interview

Hannah Lavender

After working many years in a bakery owned by others, in 2017 Hannah Lavender decided to open her own cottage bakery specializing in wedding cakes.

Interview

Faith DeLeon Alston

Elegant Treats Bakery offers 66 flavor variations of chewies, which range from orange cranberry to snickerdoodle and cookies-and-cream.

Interview

Chasity & Nathaniel “Nate” Brown

Daddy's Girls Bakery sells a variety of baked treats and ice cream, but their most popular menu item is the chewie.

Interview

Emma Cromedy

Emma Cromedy's first foray into baking was with her Easy Bake Oven, and this Charleston, SC, native, has been baking ever since.

Interview

Denise Ravenel

Denise Ravenel makes chewies for family and friends in her home kitchen.

Interview

Sarah Reyburn

Born in Boston, Sarah Reyburn became interested in cooking and baking as a young adult, and came to Patrick County in 2012.

Interview

Chelsea Raby

Chelsea Raby is a baker and co-owner of Patrick County’s fine dining restaurant, Pickle & Ash.

Interview

Kayla Orr

Kayla Orr bakes scones, biscuits, cookies, and more from home and runs Primitive Coffee, her coffee shop and market in Meadows of Dan.

Interview

Michele Bell

Michele Bell is a baker based in Patrick County, VA, specializing in pear honey and her signature chocolate cake.

Interview

Livia Alves

Livia Alves navigates Brazilian, Indian, and Southern flavors as she runs a bakery from her home in Mebane, NC.

Interview

Emmersyn, Maddie, and Joy East

Emmersyn and Maddie East, along with their mother Joy, sell products at several venues, including the Rise & Shine Market, a 4-H youth enterprise.

Interview

Julia, Hadley, and Karen Bledsoe

Sisters Julia and Hadley Bledsoe make and sell acetate bookmarks, cookies, mini-bundt cakes, flavored lemonade, and beeswax candles at the summer 4H-affiliated Rise & Shine Market.

Interview

Ken Belcher and Connie Goode

Ken Belcher and Connie Belcher Goode draw on family tradition as they organize apple butter and fried apple pie fundraisers in Woolwine, VA.

Interview

Dawn Orsak

A fifth generation Texan, who traces her ancestry to Moravia, Dawn Orsak dedicates much of her time to the study and preservation of Czech-Texan culinary history.

Interview

Denise Mazal

A Czech-born baker, Denise Mazal is the former owner of acclaimed restaurant Little Gretel.

Interview

Vatsana Souvannavong

Vatsana Souvannavong is the owner of Koala Kolache in Cypress, TX.

Interview

Lydia Faust

Lydia Faust is an accomplished baker and co-founder of the Caldwell Kolache Festival.

Interview

Lawrence Faldyn

Lawrence is the owner of Lukas Bakery in La Grange, TX.

Interview

Teresa James

Teresa James is the third-generation owner of the rest stop Hruska’s Bakery and Store.

Interview

Amelis Paz-Kerlin

Born in Venezuela, Amelis Paz-Kerlin is the owner of Kerlaches in Austin, TX.

Interview

Carla Briggs

Carla Briggs runs Viola’s Heritage Breads in her hometown of New Orleans, LA.

Interview

Huong Tran

Huong Tran is co-founder of Dong Phuong Bakery in New Orleans East.

Interview

Linh Garza

Linh Garza is President of Dong Phuong Bakery in New Orleans East, Louisiana.

Interview

Isaac Fort

Isaac Fort is the pastry chef at Poupart’s in Lafayette, Louisiana.

Interview

Norma Castillo

Norma Castillo is the founder of Norma’s International Foods, a popular Latin grocery store in Kenner, Louisiana, with a sister location, Norma’s Sweets Bakery, in New Orleans.

Interview

José Castillo

José Castillo is one of the owner-operators of Norma’s Sweets Bakery in New Orleans.

Interview

Kirby Jones

Kirby Jones owns and operates La Vie En Rose Café in New Orleans’ Lower Garden District.

Interview

Shane Castille

Shane Castille is the owner/operator of Thee Heavenly Doughnut in Baton Rouge, a local chain founded by his wife Kara and her mother, Catherine Estillete.

Interview

Moeko Glynn

Moeko Glynn operates Maru Bread Company, a bakery specializing in sourdough, out of her home in Baton Rouge, Louisiana.

Let’s Stay in Touch

Sign up for the SFA newsletter to have the latest content
delivered directly to your inbox.