Growing up, June Knott never had a family to call her own, so she built one — and at 94, she’s still inviting others in

June Knott has worked the front desk at Providence St. Joseph Hospital for 32 years, greeting patients, guiding them where they need to go and carrying volunteer applications in her pocket. At a recent Legacy Society lunch, she brought a guest and convinced them to volunteer too. “At the ripe old age of 94, I don’t have as much energy,” she says. She’s not slowing down much.

What makes her story remarkable is where it began. June was a foster child, shifted from home to home throughout her childhood. Without a steady parental presence, she says, “I really looked for those people in life that I wanted to grow up and be like.” She found those role models — and became one.

She built something that she didn’t have as a foster child: a family tradition of service. When her granddaughter, Jill, was young, June encouraged her to go into medicine and offered to put her through nursing school. Jill took her up on it. She volunteered in the hospital ICU while studying and now works as an RN in Grants Pass, Oregon.

Doug, June’s husband, also volunteered at the hospital before passing away 14 years ago — after receiving excellent care at Providence St. Joseph. Those experiences shaped how June thinks about giving back.

She has included Providence in her will, alongside her church and a local homeless mission. “Give to things that are meaningful to you,” she says. “Give whatever you can afford. Because it’s helpful. Basically you’re not going to take the money with you — so let’s at least donate a little bit to Providence.”

Legacy isn’t something you inherit. It’s something you create — and at 94, June Knott is still proving it.