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Shirley Kronquist taught herself how to knit in high school. Now 92 years old and living at The Springs Living’s Lake Oswego location, Kronquist uses her lifelong hobby to knit blankets for newborns at Oregon Health and Science University.
Harnessing their knitting abilities to craft for a cause, Kronquist and other Springs residents knit baby blankets—and a matching hat—Tuesdays on the facility’s fourth floor. Kronquist tells WW that the crew is always looking for new members.
“It’s wonderful. I love it,” she says of her work.
The Springs Living is a network of retirement homes across the Pacific Northwest. The Lake Oswego building opened in 2020, and since its inception, OHSU has collaborated with the seniors, providing them with yarn and distributing their craft.
Joan Corbett, 88, another Springs knitter, estimates that hundreds of blankets have been knitted since the group started. The group’s size each week varies significantly. Sometimes there are three people in attendance, other times nearly a dozen. Some seniors knit in the comfort of their own apartment, but the collective effort leaves budding families with handmade gifts.
Regardless where they’re made, the allotted time for fiber arts brings The Springs residents companionship.
“We enjoy knitting anyway, so we chitchat together and just have a good time,” Corbett says. “We feel doing something useful is rewarding.”
OHSU will honor the Lake Oswego knitting group on July 17 with a luncheon hosted by the Oregon Golf Club. Volunteers will ride to the luncheon in style on The Springs’ bus.
“We produce some really beautiful baby blankets for OHSU. And it’s a lot of fun,” Corbett says. “I hope that makes a difference.”