Herman Sarkowsky (June 9, 1925 – November 2, 2014) was a Seattle, Washington, United States businessman, philanthropist, thoroughbred breeder, and former sports executive.
He was a co-founder of two Pacific Northwest sports franchises, the Portland Trail Blazers and the Seattle Seahawks.
[4][5][6] In 1970, an investment group consisting of Sarkowsky, Larry Weinberg of Beverly Hills, California, and Robert Schmertz of Lakewood, New Jersey paid US$3.7 million and was awarded an expansion NBA franchise in the city of Portland, Oregon.
[7] At the same time that Sarkowsky was owner of the Trail Blazers, he was also attempting to establish a football team in his adopted hometown of Seattle.
In 1972, he and Ned Skinner formed an organization called Seattle Professional Football, which was created to bring an NFL franchise to the city.
He was a generous donor to the University of Washington, his alma mater, and sat on the board of the UW School of Medicine.