Salukis in Business — Larry Grossman
Owner, Spy Coffees — B.S. 1995, Educational Leadership and Administration — College of Education and Human Services
When SIU Carbondale alumnus and U.S. Navy Officer (Retired) Larry Grossman, enlisted in the Navy after high school, he had no idea he would end up jumping out of helicopters to rescue people, or that he would end up running his own coffee company, SPY COFFEES.
Grossman said he started he started SPY COFFEES so the brave men and women serving in the armed forces could have a really good cup of coffee to start their day.
“Because I was in the military and government for over 33 years I drank coffee all over the world, and one day I realized that I could make a better cup of coffee than what I was drinking. I know what it is like to work 20-hour days in and out of war zones and need a good cup of coffee,” Grossman said.
Grossman graduated from North Miami Beach High School in 1985. After graduating, he took the summer off and worked as a lifeguard, before deciding to join the Navy to earn money for college.
“A friend convinced me to join, saying that they would give you money for college if you enlisted for three years. We joined together and I went a different route into Navy Special Operations and he became an airplane mechanic. He stayed three years and I stayed 22 years,” Grossman said.
At the time Grossman figured that since he was a swimmer, joining the Navy would be a perfect fit. He followed that passion and became a Navy Special Operations Aviation Rescue Swimmer (AIRR) and Navy Diver from Helicopter Anti-Submarine Squadron Seven (HS-7).
In 1988, he found out just how strong a swimmer he was when the U.S. submarine USS Bonefish exploded while submerged during exercises with guided-missile frigate USS Carr about 160 miles off the coast of Florida.
According to reports of the incident and newspaper accounts at the time, Grossman, then a Petty Officer Third Class “with total disregard for his own safety,” jumped from an H-3 helicopter into the ocean and spent more than three hours rescuing stricken sailors.
He was credited with personally saving 19 lives and later received the Navy and Marine Corps Medal for Heroism. This medal is the highest non-combat decoration awarded for heroism by the United States Department of the Navy and is higher than a Bronze Star in the Navy Order of Precedence.
So what do you do after exhibiting that level of bravery and heroism? Grossman decided to earn a bachelor’s degree through Southern Illinois University’s off-campus degree program.
“During my enlisted years I thought a lot about pursuing my dream of going to college and becoming a Naval Officer. In order to do that, I needed a college degree, so in 1990, when my friends told me about the SIU off-campus program, I decided to apply,” Grossman said.
Once accepted, Grossman added classwork to his day-to-day work as a rescue swimmer and Navy diver. He was able to attend classes on base at Naval Air Station Jacksonville, where he worked during the week to earn his associate’s degree, and spent his weekends working toward his bachelor’s degree.
“My coursework was a vigorous two years of study crammed into one year. My instructors would fly in from SIU every other weekend and teach courses eight hours on Saturday and eight hours on Sunday,” Grossman said.
After his graduation in 1995, Grossman was transferred to Japan, so it wasn’t until 1997 that he earned a slot at Navy Officer Candidate School (OCS) and began his officer training.
“I missed putting on a flight suit and jumping out of helicopters to swim in shark-infested oceans in 35-degree water, and getting stung by jellyfish while thrown into razor-sharp coral in rough seas, but I wanted to put my education to good use,” Grossman said with a laugh.
Once he made it through OCS, Grossman spent the next decade as a Naval Officer, before retiring from the military. After retirement he worked as a consultant for a year, before heading back to work for the Department of Defense, where he is currently a Defense Liaison Officer assigned to Bangkok, Thailand.
Grossman said SIU Carbondale helped him to fulfill his dream of becoming a Naval Officer and which led the way to his continued service to the U.S. Government.
“I highly recommend SIU Carbondale’s off-campus degree programs to all of the servicemen and servicewomen who want to jump start their careers. Whether they want to stay in the military or not, SIU will help them pursue their dreams come true and make their lives a little better,” Grossman said.
So what does he do in his spare time? He roasts coffee. Or rather, he runs SPY COFFEES, LLC., which amounts to just about the same thing.
He also donates his coffee to service men and women in war zones, and donates part of every purchase to the Wounded Warrior Project, and named the company in tribute to the people involved in the intelligence community who provide the necessary intelligence needed for policy makers and war fighters to formulate plans to stop terrorism around the world.
Coffee connoisseurs will also appreciate that SPY COFFEES roasts 100% Arabica Beans in to three gourmet blends: Spy Master, Agent Blend, and Double Agent, which can be purchased, along with SPY COFFEES merchandise, on Amazon, Etsy, or from Grossman’s website.
Grossman currently lives in Bangkok, Thailand, where he serves as a Defense Liaison Officer, Attache, for the U.S. Department of Defense.
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For those interested in purchasing SPY COFFEES, Grossman has created a lifetime 20% off coupon for all Salukis, alumni, and staff. When you make a purchase, just enter “Saluki” in the coupon code at checkout.
“Salukis in Business” celebrates the our Saluki Alumni who have taken the risk to go into business for themselves. If you’d like to be the focus of this weekly feature, or nominate someone you think we should feature, please email us at: alumni@siu.edu.
