Growing memorials honor young employee found dead at North Seattle beer garden

SEATTLE — Memorials are growing outside popular beer garden The Growler Guys in North Seattle, as friends and family honor the life of a young employee found dead at the business Saturday morning.

Seattle police said coworkers found the victim’s body with apparent fatal gunshot wounds inside The Growler Guys around 9 a.m. Saturday. Authorities have not publicly identified the victim yet. He was in his 20s.

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The young man’s death has shocked and shaken the surrounding North Seattle community.

Dozens of family members, friends, and regular customers surrounded the taped-off homicide scene for hours throughout the day Saturday. Several people who knew the victim described him as a friend to all, a family man, and a stand-out employee to his boss, Kelly Dole.

“He was a part of my community at The Growler Guys,” Dole said. “It’s been a joy just to see them together day after day, and for him to lose his life this way is just a shame and such a loss.”

The victim was also a close friend of Dole’s son for years.

The Growler Guys is closed for the time being, but many people stopped by on Sunday to drop off flowers, cards, or to stop to take a moment and reflect.

A note left at the corner of NE 85th St. and 20th Ave. NE was written by a family that had the victim serve them at The Growler Guys. “While we were only lucky enough to know you for one evening,” the note reads, “I know there are many, many more lives you have made a lasting impact on.”

Left next to the note was a child’s apple juice box. Coworkers of the victim said he always gave kids free apple juice.

“Don’t tell my boss,” they said the victim would say with a smile.

He really was important to the guests and always had a smile, Dole said of his young employee. He had worked at The Growler Guys for about a year.

The victim was killed sometime between Friday night and Saturday morning, and police are still investigating a possible motive and suspect. So far, no arrests have been made.

People living nearby, who wanted to remain anonymous, said they didn’t hear any gunshots but called the death shocking: “Well, my heart breaks. My first thought is that it’s a tragedy,” one man said.

Anyone with information or surveillance video in the surrounding Lake City area should contact Seattle police or 911 immediately.

Dole said he hopes justice is served to offer a small piece of closure to the victim’s grieving family.

“My heart goes out to his mom and his dad, his brother and other family members,” Dole said. “It’s just so tragic.”