Crocheting to spread love, say thanks

Browns Valley woman, 88, has made and gifted 63 blankets the last few years 

By Carol Stender

Kitty Johnson is one prolific crocheter.

The 88-year-old Browns Valley Health Care Center resident has completed 63 blankets over the past three years. Some were given to family and the rest to workers at the care center.

“Every blanket is given freely,” she said. “It’s my way of saying thank you for helping me.”

She orders and pays for the yarn online by herself. Kitty is particular of the type of yarn she uses. It must be “I Love This Yarn,” she said.

Kitty Johnson is a prolific crocheter. She crocheted 63 blankets over the last three years. Some were gifted to relatives and others were given as a thank you to staff members at Browns Valley Health Care Center where she has been a resident for the past three years. 

The skeins are stored in a couple dressers in her room. Those who receive a blanket must answer two questions: What color do they prefer and what pattern do they want for the 40-by-60 inch blanket.

No two blankets are the same even if some pick the same pattern. She may crochet some squares that make up the blanket a solid color and place it amongst the other squares.

“I don’t like to make every one of them the same,” Kitty said.

She also volunteered to make a blanket for a raffle at the care center. It was a sought-after piece, she said.

And she loves doing it.

If she’s not reading or conversing with family on FaceTime or Facebook, Kitty can be found in her recliner crocheting.

Even though her mother, Fern, crocheted, Kitty did not learn the craft from her. A landlady taught her the skills.

As Kitty took out her latest project, her hands and fingers in constant motion as she moved the crochet hook and yarn, she talked about her life and her travels.

She described her mother as a very busy woman who was stern.

“She had to be with all 13 of us,” Kitty said.

Her father, Charles, gave each of his children nicknames. Her brother Harvey was named Harv, Lilian was Lill, Leonard was Lardy and even though her given name was Kathleen, her nickname was Kitty.

“I got that name because I had scratched and bit,” she said.

For the record, she doesn’t do that anymore. 

Kitty Johnson’s hands are in constant motion as she crochets the blocks that will be put together in a blanket. Those who receive a blanket from her must answer what color and pattern they prefer. While some may pick the same pattern, Kitty may crochet some blocks a solid color, mixing it in with the other blocks therefore no one receives the same blanket as another. The 88 year old resident of the Browns Valley Health Care Center orders the yarn herself online.  Contributed photo

She was born in Marshfield, Wisc., and, at age four, moved with the family to Illinois. She attended a one-room schoolhouse with four of her siblings. It was a two and a half mile trek from home. Kitty left school earlier than her siblings because of her age and grade and walked home by herself. She didn’t like school, she said.

Kitty and her family crisscross the country moving from Illinois to Washington state and back again. She became the family baker after several successful attempts at cakes and breads. It was another skill that served her well later in life.

She did a lot of babysitting and house cleaning over the years before she got what she calls her “first real job” working for Admiral Corporation in 1954. She made TVs and met her first husband there. They moved to Washington state where, in 1959, she got her “lessons” in crocheting.

Kitty enjoyed creating arm and headrests and doilies. She made shawls for all her sisters and sister-in-laws and also made 12 Barbie doll dresses.

They moved to Florida where her brother helped build Cape Canaveral. She worked for United Controls making circuit boards for the Polaris Missile Guidance System.

After her first marriage ended, Kitty moved to Illinois and was a waitress. She met a gentleman who cared for an elderly lady. When he died from cancer, Kitty took over the woman’s care and met her second husband, a pharmacist, at the drug store.

Her husband, Thomas Johnson, was originally from Wheaton. They moved there in 1976 and had a son, Mark, and daughter, Julie.

Kitty, an enterprising woman, started her own cake business and, when Mark married, she went to the Twin Cities where the ceremony and reception would take place, and baked the cake. The final creation was a three-tiered cake with two side cakes decorated in emerald green frosting and 126 emerald roses.

Kitty turns 89 in January and plans to keep on crocheting as long as she can. Contributed photo

The recipe for the frosting came from her sister. It takes a cup of Crisco, a half cup of flour, a teaspoon of vanilla, three-fourths cup of water and two pounds of powdered sugar.

“It’s not sweet and you can refrigerate it for a while,” she said.

She is a true Green Bay Packers fan and enjoys the jiving back and forth with Vikings fans.

Each summer, groups of youth come to the community from across the country to work where needed. When they come to the care center, the youth visit with Kitty who tells stories of her youth and shares her crochet talents. 

Her son, Mark, lives in Green Bay and her daughter, Julie, lives in Browns Valley. She enjoys the connections through social media and in-person visits with her daughter, grandchildren and now, great-grandchildren.

It is hard to keep up with Kitty, who turns 89 in January. She embraces technology, engages in conversation that is rich with her life experiences and all the while, she crochets. Kitty knits the stories of life, of family and of friendship.