Grill of their dreams

[News Bot]

Jacob Green’s barbequing talents are challenging his prowess for sacking the quarterback during his record-setting 12-season career with the Seahawks. The former Pro Bowl defense end and member of the Seahawks’ Ring of Honor stole the show – or auction – at an event Saturday night to benefit the Puget Sound affiliate of the Susan [...]

The mean bbq (Photos by Alan Alabastro)


Jacob Green’s barbequing talents are challenging his prowess for sacking the quarterback during his record-setting 12-season career with the Seahawks.

The former Pro Bowl defense end and member of the Seahawks’ Ring of Honor stole the show – or auction – at an event Saturday night to benefit the Puget Sound affiliate of the Susan G. Komen for the Cure foundation. Two attendees bid $45,000 each to have Green work his grill magic, and spin a few tales of the Seahawks’ early days, for parties of 20 at the home of Tom and Jeanne Walker in Bellevue. Joining Green will be his sous chef, Elisabeth James.

“It’s something to be proud of,” Green said, agreeing that “humbling,” “surprising” and even “cool” also described the experience of sitting in the audience and hearing the sizzling bids for his barbecue.

The winning bidders with Jacob Green (Photo by Alan Alabastro)


The Grace Notes event at Seattle’s Fairmont Olympic Hotel raised $830,000 for the Komen project. Green’s barbecues were the highest-grossing items in the auction. Over the past five years, the culinary combo of Green and James has helped raise more than $420,000 in the fight against breast cancer.

“Granted, the barbecue is probably pretty good,” Green said. “But I think a lot of people do it because of the connection with Komen and with me.”

One of the “side dishes” is the fact that the Walkers live along Lake Washington, so there’s also a boat cruise included in the package.

“We have a great time,” Green said. “So it’s something to be proud of.”

Green started offering the barbecue adventures as an auction item at the golf tournament he sponsors to benefit the Fred Hutchinson Cancer Research Center. The first time it was included in the Komen event he was hoping to raise $10,000.

“I wasn’t even in attendance at the auction,” he said. “Then they called me and said $25,000. I’m going, ‘Wow.’ Then they called me back and said it’s now $30,000. It ended up at $40,000. I couldn’t believe it.”

The unbelievable has ended up being the norm – much like the feats Green produced on the football field.

He registered a franchise-record 116 sacks for the Seahawks and led the team in that category nine times – including 1983, when he had a career-high 16 sacks. The team’s first-round draft choice in 1980, Green played his final season for the Seahawks in 1991 and was inducted into the Ring of Honor at Qwest Field in 1995.

Source: Seahawks.com