Those who worked with Chuck Chronis to pull off decades of free Thanksgiving meals for people in need will remember the former Vancouver restaurateur for his big heart. Chronis died Dec. 4; he was 83 years old.
Chronis and his wife, Sandy, owned Chronis’ Restaurant and Lounge at the corner of Main and Ninth streets — though it had multiple locations over the years — from 1968 until their retirement in 2015.
It was there that Chronis and Rich Melnick, now a retired judge, threw open the doors to anyone who wanted to join them for a free Thanksgiving meal, beginning in the early 1980s. Some who dined with them couldn’t afford a feast of their own, while others came out for the company if they were new to town or had nowhere else to go.
“We thought there was a need for it, and it felt like the right thing to do,” Melnick said.
Each Thanksgiving, they fed hundreds of people, and Chronis often drove around to advertise the meals to people he saw experiencing homelessness.
Although the restaurant closed its doors upon the owners’ retirement, Melnick said they didn’t want it to be the end of their event.
For the next few years, they made a few hundred sandwiches and drove around handing them out to people. Chronis also remained involved for another year after Beaches proprietor Mark Matthias offered to host the meal at his other restaurant, WareHouse ’23.
Melnick said Chronis was an avid sports fan, particularly when it came to the University of Washington Huskies.
Through the decades of memories they shared, Melnick said what he’ll remember most about Chronis was his sense of humor and big heart.
Sandy Chronis died Nov. 1. The couple are survived by five children and several grandchildren.
