Diehard sports fans in Seattle can still hear the voice of Pete Gross echo off the cement walls of the Kingdome long after the man and the building have disappeared.
Gross was the play-by-play announcer on KIRO radio for the first 17 years of the team’s existence and was inducted into the Seahawks Ring of Honor in December of 1992, three days before he passed away after a long battle with cancer. His public struggle inspired the construction of the Pete Gross House, a 69-unit housing complex that provides living space for families of patients undergoing treatment at the Fred Hutchinson Cancer Research Center.
His broadcast partner Steve Raible took over the play-by-play duties for the radio broadcasts and continues to use the same touchdown call coined by Gross almost 40 years ago: “Touchdown Seahawks!”
Before he became the Voice of the Seahawks, Gross was in the booth for football and basketball games for the University of Washington and was courtside for the televised games of the Seattle Supersonics for 12 years, beginning in 1976.
Football fans and grateful families continue to share their memories of the legendary broadcaster on the web’s newest social media website, LifeStory.com. The site (www. lifestory.com) was launched in July as the personal mission of Mike Rowell, the founder and CEO of Efinancial in Bellevue. There is no charge to post on LifeStory.com or to invite family and friends through Facebook and email. Fans who remember Seahawks games with Jim Zorn and Steve Largent are welcome to share their memories of Pete Gross on LifeStory.com by searching the website.
“Our goal is to showcase the amazing stories left behind by those who have passed,” said Rowell. “These stories will empower people to live their lives with purpose and passion.”
Editor’s Note: press time Northwest Prime Time received the sad news that longtime Washington Huskies football coach Don James died at home on October 20 at age 80 of pancreatic cancer. According to the Huskies Football website, “Don James and his unparalleled legacy will live forever at Washington…he will always be beloved as Washington’s ‘Dawgfather’ as much for what he did for his players OFF the field.”
