PILOTS SUPPORTING PILOTS • HOLIDAY TRADITION • GIVING BACK
How a homemade pair of red-and-green shoulder boards became an aviation Christmas tradition—and a fundraiser carrying Captain John H. Knutson’s legacy forward.
2005
The tradition begins with ten handmade pairs.
$195,000+
Reported donated through the program.
Made in Wisconsin
A family-and-community aviation tradition.
The Pilot Behind the Tradition
Captain John Hartwell Knutson grew up on his family’s dairy farm in northern Wisconsin and graduated from Chetek High School in 1959. After learning to fly at Flying Cloud Airport near Minneapolis, he earned his commercial and flight-instructor credentials and was hired by North Central Airlines in February 1967.
His airline career took him from the Convair 440 and DC-3 to the Convair 580, DC-9 and eventually the Boeing 757. The names on the airplanes changed as North Central became part of Republic Airlines and later Northwest Airlines, but aviation remained central to his life. John was also a United States Army veteran, farmer, husband to Mary and father to Tim and Heidi. He died from stomach cancer on March 12, 1997, at age 56.
Years later, his family found a distinctly aviation way to keep his memory flying. The story was documented by John’s son Tim in a detailed 2023 Aero Crew News feature about Christmas Epaulets and Captain Knutson.
A pair of Christmas epaulets lasts a season. The tradition behind them has lasted for decades because pilots kept sharing it with other pilots.
Ten Pairs, $100 and an Idea That Stuck
In December 2005, Tim Knutson came home from a trip with a festive pair of epaulets—red with green stripes for the Christmas season. Mary Knutson, John’s widow and an experienced sewer and craftsperson, looked at them and realized she could make them herself. She produced ten pairs. Tim took them to work, sold them for $10 each and returned with $100.
Mary didn’t want to keep the money. Instead, she suggested giving it to the local Chetek scholarship foundation in John’s memory. That simple decision launched Christmas Epaulets in Memory of Captain John H. Knutson. Word spread through airline cockpits, pilot groups, unions, friends and eventually social media. What began at Mary’s kitchen table grew into a holiday tradition seen on flight decks around the country.
Still Made Locally, Still a Family Effort
Demand eventually outgrew Mary’s kitchen table, but the project stayed local. Several Wisconsin craftspeople have helped manufacture the epaulets over the years. Professional seamstress Melissa Bekkum took over production in 2023, continuing the tradition from her own home. The Knutson family and local Chetek-Weyerhaeuser students have remained involved in preparing, packaging and shipping orders.
A Christmas tradition with two missions
The program connects two parts of Captain Knutson’s life: his roots in Chetek and his military service. Proceeds support the Chetek-Weyerhaeuser Scholarship Foundation and the Gary Sinise Foundation’s Snowball Express, which supports families of fallen military heroes. The Christmas Epaulets program currently reports more than $195,000 donated through the effort.
Learn about the Gary Sinise Foundation’s work honoring families of fallen heroes →
A Tradition You Can See at 35,000 Feet
There are plenty of aviation-themed Christmas gifts. Christmas Epaulets are different because the story is the point. During the holiday season, pilots and crew members can swap their everyday shoulder boards for red-and-green ones that make passengers smile while quietly carrying Captain Knutson’s story—and the causes the program supports—onto another flight.
The idea has traveled well beyond one airline. Pilots sharing the tradition with other pilots is exactly how a ten-pair experiment became something recognizable across the aviation community. The epaulets have also been promoted at aviation events and through pilot organizations, keeping the fundraiser connected to the industry John spent his career serving.
What Christmas Epaulets Are Available?
The official program currently lists Captain Standard, Captain Velcro, Co-Pilot Standard, Co-Pilot Velcro, and a Flight Attendant / Flight Engineer Standard 2-Stripe version. Current pricing is $20 per pair.
- 1–4 pairs: $5.50 shipping and handling per order
- 5–12 pairs: $7.00 shipping and handling per order
- More than 12 pairs: free shipping and handling
- International orders are not currently accepted because of shipping costs
Pricing, availability and shipping policies can change, so confirm the latest details with the official program before ordering. Questions can be sent to Tim Knutson at [email protected].
Want a Pair? Buy Directly From the Program.
AirplaneTees does not sell Christmas Epaulets and does not receive the proceeds. We’re sharing the story because it deserves more attention. Order directly from the official Christmas Epaulets program so your purchase supports the fundraiser at its source.
Read the Full Knutson Family Story
If the history behind the stripes interests you, Tim Knutson’s feature in Aero Crew News tells the story in much greater depth—from John’s early flying career and family farm to the many Wisconsin craftspeople who helped the program grow.
Christmas Epaulets are a wonderfully aviation-specific reminder that a small idea can keep doing good long after the first flight. Every red-and-green pair carries a little holiday spirit, a pilot’s legacy and support for young people and military families along for the ride.