‘Coach’ Dominick Grosso dies Grosso was source of love and laughter for many

Dominick Grosso, 77, known not only in Glen Cove but across Long Island simply as Coach, was laid to rest at St. Charles Cemetery in Farmingdale on Feb. 3. He died on Jan. 28, having had Stage 4 Hodgkin’s lymphoma. Late last month he was admitted to Glen Cove Hospital for a lung infection, and after about a week he was transferred to Long Island Jewish Hospital, in New Hyde Park, where he died. 

“Unfortunately, he had a variety of other illnesses, [so] if things weren’t attacking one part of his body, they were attacking another,” said former Glen Cove Mayor Reggie Spinello, Grosso’s brother-in-law. “A lot of people never realized how sick he was.”

Grosso was a Vietnam veteran, and worked in New York City’s Department of Sanitation until his retirement. His son, Derek, described him as a people person who would chat with anyone he met, from sanitation workers to grocery clerks, and who was always looking for a good laugh.  

“He was a big presence,” Derek said. “. . . He was boisterous. He had a lot of things to say. But he wasn’t, like, intimidating.”

Last summer, Derek took two weeks off from work to take his father and mother, Diana, to Atlantic City. Gambling was a favorite pastime of Dominick’s, and especially poker, so he enjoyed spending hours at the casinos with his son. Diana Grosso said that was the highlight of the vacation for her husband. It was the last time Derek spent time with him outside a hospital. 

Grosso was born in Brooklyn and raised in Queens. After he married Diana, whose family has lived in Glen Cove for generations, he made the city his home, and became known for his involvement in the community. 

As a coach for Glen Cove Junior Baseball and Softball since the 1980s, Grosso made an impact on many players’ lives. According to those who knew him, he loved being a mentor to the athletes. At his funeral, some of his former players described him as a second father. 

 “I couldn’t believe how many of them were there to pay their respects,” Spinello said. “He had a way with these kids of being firm, yet gentle at the same time. He made them all feel they were the most important person on the whole team.”

Throughout Spinello’s mayoralty, Grosso lent his support. And, Derek said, City Council members got his father’s help, too, because he knew what was going on in Glen Cove, and kept them informed. “He would coach them,” Derek said. 

Diana took care of her husband every day, their son said, taking him to doctors’ appointments and managing his medications. “He would never want to be away from my mom for, like, a second,” Derek said. “It was really cute and special.” 

The Grossos had two other sons, Darin and Dustin, and four grandchildren. Dominick, Derek said, taught his sons that the most important things in life were love, laughter, family and connecting with people. “He was always there,” Derek said. “He did what he needed to do to get us to where we needed to be, whether that was through high school, college, careers. He was my buddy.”