How You Can Help Cancer Fighters in Connecticut and Beyond

If you have a heart for cancer patients, and you live in or near Connecticut, you might find you’re just the right person to knit for PatPat’s Hats

When someone takes their 2 1/2-year-old son to the doctor for a “boo-boo” on his head and a bout of vomiting, they’re probably not expecting a cancer diagnosis.

But that’s precisely what happened after Patrick Raymond’s mother took her son to the pediatrician, who advised her to take him to the ER. Sadly, an MRI discovered 3 masses on Patrick’s brain. After they were removed the next day, the masses were tested and found to be cancerous.

Patrick began chemotherapy 3 weeks later, after recovering from his surgery. About 6 1/2 months after he finished his chemotherapy treatments, the following month showed him to be completely cancer-free!

Gratitude and Paying It Forward

Patrick’s grateful family, in particular the “family knitter” Aunt Betsy, longed to find a way to “pay it forward” to the hospital that had treated Patrick.

In January of 2012, a few months after Patrick’s chemotherapy began, they donated 650 hats to the cancer center at Yale New Haven Hospital. Aunt Betsy knitted many of these hats; others were collected by the family.

From that initial collection and donation, the Raymond family decided to continue to show their gratitude and pay forward their good fortune. They created an organization called PatPat’s Hats (named, of course, after young Patrick).

The knitters, crocheters, and sewists behind PatPat’s Hats continue to offer hats to Yale New Haven to this day, in order to help their fellow cancer fighters and survivors with warmth and comfort.

Not surprisingly, they are always looking for more hatmakers to give a hand!

For more ideas as to how you can knit for cancer fighters and survivors, click here.

How You Can Help PatPat’s Hats

Obviously, if you’re a knitter or crocheter, you can help by making hats! PatPat’s Hats has a page on their website with many links to knitting, crochet, and sewing patterns for appropriate hats.

PatPat’s Hats will also take new storebought hats, so if you have any friends who would love to help but don’t make hats, you can encourage them to purchase and donate hats.

Any questions? You can contact PatPat’s Hats via their Contact Us page. You’ll also find their shipping address and guidelines on their home page here.

If you love to knit hats, live in or near Connecticut, or feel passionate about helping people who are fighting cancer, PatPat’s Hats may be the knitting charity for you!