Tradition of giving at Thanksgiving for Seattle couple

A husband and wife sat in the dining room of their Eastlake home for Thanksgiving nine years ago, staring at the leftover turkey, mashed potatoes and pumpkin pie.

Let's plate the leftovers and bring them to the two homeless guys in front of 7-Eleven, the couple decided.

So Michael Grabham and Patti Dunn did just that and noticed the homeless men were also shivering.

As the couple drove home to bring back socks and gloves, the wife turned to her husband: "'This would be a good thing to do every year.' "

Thus began a new Thanksgiving tradition for the couple, who have since spent thousands of dollars buying coats, backpacks and sleeping bags.

Every Thanksgiving, they drive around Pioneer Square and downtown street corners, passing out bags of clothes to the men and women who sleep on benches and alleys.

Their project has gotten so big that this Thanksgiving, the couple teamed up with Real Change, a homeless-advocacy group for help handing out hundreds of new coats, duffel bags and beanie hats in front of City Hall.

It has been a while since "Real Change has partnered with private citizens from Seattle," said Real Change spokeswoman Revel Smith. "Together we were able to serve an even larger group of people."

Grabham and Dunn had enlisted other help, too, collecting winter coats and donations from friends.

On Thursday, about 100 people, mostly men, had lined up before the couple arrived around 11:30 a.m.

When Grabham and Dunn appeared, with piles of coats and sleeping bags in hand, some of those waiting started to yell out:

"I need a raincoat!"

"You got a XXL?"

"Gloves, man. Gloves."

Walter Washington, who turns 63 today, needed a pair of boots. "A nice pair, that would make my day."

Washington said he's disabled and has been homeless on and off for several years.

Terrence Jones, from Oklahoma City, 36, needed a backpack, "the most important thing in this city" for someone living on the streets, he said. "It's hard to carry stuff under your arms. It gets tiring. You know what I'm saying?"

At noon, as the couple and volunteers from Real Change began to hand out the winter clothes and supplies, dozens of homeless men rushed to the front of the line.

Jones got pushed further back, wondering if he would ever get the backpack he waited all morning for.

Police came to restore order. Jones got his backpack and a black duffle bag.

So it went, with people yelling out for what they need and some tugging at Grabham's shirt. He looked stressed until a homeless Vietnam vet whispered, "I want to thank you."

Grabham cracked a smile. "See, that is why we do it."

Grabham, 46, who owns a carpentry business, and his wife, 45, a personal trainer, spend countless hours checking Fred Meyer, Costco and other stores, looking for the best deal on sleeping bags, coats and especially socks.

They handed out 300 pairs of socks on Thanksgiving. These guys have so little, that "it doesn't take much to make a difference," Grabham said.

Tan Vinh: 206-515-5656 or tvinh@seattletimes.com