Angels among us: Duo creates keepsakes, 1 bead at a time

Daniel Krueger and Lucille Knopsnyder always have a handmade treasure stashed away in a pocket.

It might be a colorful beaded bracelet that Krueger, of Derry Township, crafted, complete with little angel wings. Or it might be a beaded angel figurine, something Knopsnyder, of Unity, has been making for decades.

They’re always on the hunt for the right recipient for their small tokens — maybe a person who needs a special thank-you, or someone who looks like they could use a pick-me-up. They usually find someone at the Unity Walmart, where they met while working and became friends.

“I’ve given thousands and thousands of these angels,” Knopsnyder said. “They’re out in other countries.”

Crafting the tokens has bonded the pair. So has shared loss — the spouses of Knopsnyder and Krueger died within a month of each other in 2014. Now, their friendship is focused on walking the aisles of their old workplace and picking out the right beads for their creations, along with a little banter and good-natured teasing.

“I don’t know what we’d do without each other,” Knopsnyder said.

The pair hands out their tokens during Shop with a Cop every December at the Unity Walmart. They walk among the local police officers who have gathered there to shop for holiday presents with children from around the area.

Krueger has dozens of styles and colors of beads organized in plastic boxes at his home. It takes some adept finger movements to get the tiny beads loaded onto a thin piece of elastic to create the bracelet. Knopsnyder helps out with the next step — a tiny dab of glue on the knot to make sure the elastic doesn’t slip.

“I enjoy it, it’s relaxing,” Krueger said while sitting at a small wooden table in his living room. “They’re simple to make.”

He works on them every day, sometimes for as long as five hours. Krueger also slides beads onto safety pins so Knopsnyder can assemble her angel figurines.

Then comes the next part — giving them all away. Krueger tends to leave those duties to his counterpart; it sometimes is too emotional for him.

“It makes their day,” Knopsnyder said. “What gets you is when you give them and people cry.”