Roger, I agree that it's tricky to explain, but I think it is connected to the way in which the adjective that forms the adverb can be used. We can (but don't ask me why) say "a happy event", but we can't say "a regretful event" - it would have to be "a regrettable event". In the same way, I don't think we could say "a hopeful event", but unfortunately the word "hopeable" doen't exist, so we would have to say something like "a hoped-for event", although it's hard to see how that could be made into an adverb.
But I remain convinced that if the English Language, and the whole of English Literature, didn't feel the need to misuse this word until the last few decades, then it is simply slipshod usage rather than an indispensable modification of the language. After all, new words can always be invented as required; there is no need to blur the meaning of existing ones.
And in my acceptance of your kind invitation to dinner, I defy you to state with certainty in which sense the word "hopefully" is used.
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