Zackary Tutwiler is involved in Real Change for more than the income. He also does it to keep up with his activism. He’s been to dozens of rallies at City Hall and has gone to Olympia to lobby for housing measures.
He grew up in Seattle and has been a Real Change vendor since June 14, 2012. Yes, he remembers the date that exactly. He likes the freedom that selling the paper gives him, as well as the interpersonal interactions with customers.
“I connect with my community, and I make a difference, just with a simple good morning, good afternoon, good evening,” Tutwiler said. “Maybe turn somebody around who’s having a bad day.”
He has had other opportunities. He’s been a seasonal worker with UPS, but he said he followed his heart because he wanted to keep up his activism.
Life also offered Zackary another career choice: selling drugs. He had a run-in with the legal system in 1998. Just a few years ago, the attorney who represented him in court bought a paper from him, and, Tutwiler said, the man smiled and said, “Keep up the good work.”
Tutwiler sells Real Change on the corner of Second and Cherry. He’s looking forward to taking some courses in business management and “maybe opening up a community-service organization in Seattle, so I can give back to the community.”
Zackary Tutwiler’s badge number for Venmo payments is 12759.
Susan Storer Clark is a contributor and writing coach for Real Change. A former broadcast journalist, she is currently at work on her second novel.
Read more of the June 28-July 4, 2023 issue.