From Car to Crockpot: the Ferndale woman who lives in a Seahawks house

Sure, you have your Seahawks jersey, your Seahawks hat, maybe a Seahawks bumper sticker on your car, but I’m pretty certain Ferndale’s Debbie Gwaltney has got you all topped when it comes to displaying your Seahawks spirit.

“I had to have my house re-sided last summer, so we decided to have it painted Seahawk Blue.” Debbie says. “Once I got going I wanted a lime green front door. Then it just kind of spun out of control. I had our garage door wrapped with a big 12th Man. Went out and bought a bench and painted it lime green.”

In front of the house, lies her Seahawks themed yard.

“I totally redid the landscaping and I went with the green theme and any blue plants I could find.”

To complete the tableau, Debbie has her Hawks themed car parked in the driveway of her Hawk home.

“We decided to wrap our car too. I got a new car and I had it Seahawk wrapped.”

But if you think the fanaticism stops at the front door, you’d be wrong.

“When you first walk into our house, it’s the big Seahawk pool table room and it’s painted accordingly with wolf gray, lime green and a Seahawk blue throughout. Memorabilia everywhere. Then you walk into our kitchen, right down to the Seahawk Crock-Pot, Seahawk Keurig machine. I mean, it’s Seahawked out. Our family room is the same, we have Seahawk artwork everywhere. Then our main bathroom is painted Seahawk blue and it has Seahawk memorabilia everywhere.”

It’s pretty safe to say that Debbie is not a fair weather fan.

“I started going in 1976, when I was a little girl. My grandparents had season tickets from day one, for many, many years. I am a Seahawk fan and I will be the rest of my life.”

Debbie loves the game, but she also loves the players. And that sentiment was amplified when the team gifted her son the family’s most special piece of memorabilia.

“Last summer my older son was at Children’s Hospital having major surgery and the Seahawks got him a game-used ball and the majority of the team signed it. It’s the most special memorabilia for my son because he couldn’t be here for training camp and he was undergoing major surgery. And that was the year they ended up winning the Super Bowl so it’s just huge.”

The thing is, Debbie didn’t even ask the team for the ball.

“They were asking where my son was because I always bring my boys to training camp and we’ve been doing this for years. And I said, ‘Actually he’s over at Children’s Hospital right now.’ So they said, ‘Wait a minute,’ they went and got him a game ball and they said, ‘Tell him to get better.’ The team is just, they’ve got the biggest heart, and they love kids. Russell spends so much time over at Children’s so it’s just really sweet and thoughtful.”

Debbie says her house has become a bit of a tourist attraction, and she absolutely loves it.

“When I pull into the neighborhood, and pull in in my Seahawk car to the Seahawk house, I just beam. I have big smiles. The cool thing about this is just watching people and their reaction. Anytime they come through the neighborhood and see the house, they honk, they smile. Or in the car, people honk and thumbs up. If I can spread joy to other people, to spread smiles, it makes me happy.”

Of course, the thing that would make her happiest of all? If the team came by for some Seahawks Crock-Pot chili.

“I’ve invited many of them. I’ve said I’d like to have a block party. Wouldn’t that be fun? It’d be awesome.”