Volunteer Highlight: Diane Crawley (Russellville, KY)

For years, Diane Crawley spent her evenings knitting for others.

Chemo caps. Lap blankets. Children’s hats. Handmade items created quietly and lovingly for people she would likely never meet.

When someone in her local craft group shared a link to Knitted Knockers, Diane immediately knew she wanted to help.

“I have always made donation knitting,” Diane shared. “If I can help someone by knitting in the evening, all is good.”

Living in Kentucky, Diane began making knitted knockers and donating them wherever she could, first sending them to Bellingham, Washington, and later donating through Knashville Knockers in Tennessee. Along the way, she introduced Knitted Knockers to her local library craft group, Gathering of Yarn at the Logan County Public Library.

At the time, she never imagined that one day she would become a recipient herself.

A Diagnosis That Changed Everything

Years after first becoming a volunteer, Diane was diagnosed with triple negative breast cancer.

“I knew once I got the diagnosis of triple negative, a DMX was in my future,” she shared.

Facing a double mastectomy was emotional and overwhelming, but Diane approached it with honesty, courage, and humor.

“At 67 I was fine with flat, and I had read the joy from others who were recipients of wearing knitted knockers,” she said. “My daughter and I picked out bright colors for me to make for myself.”

Even during treatment, Diane continued knitting when she could.

“Though I could not knit much during my treatments, I managed to get a few done.”

Making her own knockers brought a completely different perspective.

“It was quite an emotional journey facing knitting my own bright pink knockers,” Diane said. “The first time wearing them was tough. Much harder for me than expected.”

She kept moving forward.

“Like everyone else on this journey, I pushed past it. Felt lucky to be able to make my own.”

Learning What Knitted Knockers Truly Mean

For years, Diane had made knitted knockers while imagining the women who would receive them. Now, she understood the experience personally.

“When I knit a knocker, I always tried to think of the wearer,” she explained. Hoping “that they can feel the care and respect I feel for them.”

“When I became a recipient, that feeling was enhanced. I understood what it means to have these and be a proud wearer. Post DMX life is easier with knockers.”

Like many Knitted Knockers recipients, Diane discovered that the lightweight comfort made a tremendous difference in everyday life.

“The joy is, no one knows I am wearing them,” she shared.

That freedom led to unexpected moments of joy.

“One day, I just jumped into the lake with them on. How fun is that?! They aren’t swimmers, but held up great.”

She now laughs at the realities of life after surgery.

“Now, I just joke about having to ‘go put my boobs on,’” Diane said. “Sometimes I don’t take my time, and they are not even, or one is drooped and another is too high. My wonderful husband just smiles and says I need adjusting.”

Knitting Creates Connection

Throughout her Knitted Knockers journey, Diane has formed meaningful connections with people she would never have met otherwise.

During a family vacation, she worked on knockers while sitting with relatives.

“My daughter’s mother-in-law asked what I was making,” Diane recalled. “After explaining, she got teary-eyed and mentioned a dear friend had just been diagnosed and would I consider making a pair.”

“By the end of our trip, she left with a pair to give to her friend. What a great feeling that was.”

On another vacation, Diane met a woman from England while knitting outside during a tour stop.

“She got on the website immediately and was so happy to learn about this and couldn’t wait to get started.”

Perhaps the most meaningful connection came in the middle of Diane’s own cancer journey.

The Knitted Knocker That Led to Her Oncologist

One day at her library craft group, Diane was knitting a knitted knocker when a young man walked in carrying a beginner knitting kit.

“He asked, ‘Who is going to teach me to knit?’” Diane remembered.

As they talked, he asked what she was making. Diane explained Knitted Knockers, and the young man shared that he had also undergone a double mastectomy as part of his own cancer journey.

Weeks later, shortly after receiving her biopsy results, Diane returned to the craft group.

“That week, he was the only one who joined me,” she shared. “Quietly, I told him that I  too, had breast cancer. He was the first person, other than my husband, I had told.”

“It was so hard, and I started to cry. Then he began to cry. I had known him for five weeks, and we were holding hands and crying in the library.”

That conversation would lead Diane to the oncologist who later guided her treatment.

“He told me it’s a rough road, but I would be fine, and shared the name of his oncologist. (She truly is amazing.)

“We were both in the place where we needed each other.”

Giving Back to the Clinic That Helped Her

Today, Diane continues knitting knitted knockers with an even deeper understanding of the women who receive them.

“I now donate to the clinic that treated me,” she shared.

For Diane, Knitted Knockers represents more than a handmade item.

“They are such a gift to have.”

For anyone considering volunteering, her encouragement is simple:

“Most crafters I know are very giving people,” Diane said. “It’s such a worthwhile project and so easy to travel with.”

To recipients, she offers reassurance and humor:

“They have nothing to lose by trying them (except maybe the silicone prosthetics. Hahaha).”

A Proud Wearer

Diane’s story beautifully reflects the heart of Knitted Knockers: compassion shared person to person, stitch by stitch.

What began as volunteer knitting became comfort during her own cancer journey and eventually transformed into an even deeper mission of helping others.

“I understood what it means to have these and be a proud wearer.”