Seahawk, superfans, visit Carnation senior center during 12 Days of Goodness

Carnation seniors showed off their Seahawks pride on Wednesday, Dec. 21, as Robbie Tobeck, a Seahawk from 2000 to 2006, came out to Sno-Valley Senior Center as part of the 12 Days of Goodness program.

The Sno-Valley Senior Center combined its holiday lunch with the program to create a holiday/football themed event. Participants wore their Seahawks gear and were able to meet Tobeck.

The 12 Days of Goodness program was started by Suzanne Perkins Newman, founder of Answers for Elders, an organization that provides resources on senior care for adult family caregivers. The program partners with the NFL Alumni Association to bring out former Seattle Seahawks players to speak with seniors during the holidays.

“It all came from a realization that I’ve had in the elder care industry, that 60 percent of seniors are without regular visitors. Most of them sit alone every day, no one shows up. They become the forgotten members of society,” she said. “I wanted to do something about it, especially during the holidays. So about three years ago we started putting together the program with the Seahawks.”

As a lifelong Seahawks fan, Perkins Newman wanted to tap into the “12th man” fan culture to bring some more excitement to the program. She said that, along with the 12 Days of Goodness being a play on the song “The 12 Days of Christmas,” the program begins on Dec. 12, the 12th day of the 12th month, for the thematic tie-in to the holiday season and the Seahawks fan culture.

Kira Avery, program coordinator at the Sno-Valley Senior Center, said she heard about the opportunity to host this event through parent organization, Sound Generations.

“I looked up the organization and saw how much they do for seniors,” Avery said. “It just so happened that this aligned with our holiday lunch.”

With more than 20 Seahawks alumni participating in this year’s event, Perkins Newman said she has seen steady growth in the program. In addition to live events, like the holiday lunch, 12 Days of Goodness also has some of the football players participate in the Meals on Wheels programs, delivering food to seniors who can’t leave their homes.

“Every year we’ve grown the program, this year we are doing 27 events in 12 days,” she said. “We have this year about 24 Seahawks alumni participating plus a lot of the super fans are involved.”

Robbie Tobeck, the former Seahawks center, said he chose to come out to Carnation because he used to take his children to Remlinger Farm when they were young. He jumped at the chance to come back and meet the community.

“One of the nice things the Seahawks do is that there are a lot of community events that they are a part of,” Tobeck said. “They send one or two of us Seahawk alumni around to talk to groups like this during this time of the year. It’s a lot of fun, it gives you opportunities to do stuff in the community and let people know you appreciate the support that you received while you were playing football.”

“It’s good to give some of that back and tell people thank you.”

Wilson the 12th Pony draws a lot of attention from smartphone cameras as holiday lunch attendees stand up to get a good picture. (Evan Pappas/Staff Photo)

Tosha Young meets Wilson the 12th Pony. (Evan Pappas/Staff Photo)

Jennifer Berg, asks former Seahawk Robbie Tobeck, a question at the holiday lunch. (Evan Pappas/Staff Photo)

Evan Pappas/Staff Photo Jo Takeyama, Janet Kautz and Carol Kautz pose with the Seahawks Rooster, Nick Goins at the Sno-Valley Senior Center 12 Days of Goodness lunch Sept. 21.

Event sponsors, senior center staff, and attendees, from left, Marlee Drew, Dan Drew, John Moore, Mairi Brooks, Terry Beedle, Mike Ethredge and Caroline Kogan. (Evan Pappas/Staff Photo)