PHOTO COURTESY OF BRAVE BEAN COFFEE CO.

After a 13-year stint in the Air Force, Milo Speranzo is on a mission to teach people — especially military service members — about great coffee.

My dad, a 76-year-old Army veteran who putters around town in a World War II Jeep, was eager to learn.

When we visited Brave Bean Coffee Co.’s new command post in the North Shore’s Pop District, he ordered a cappuccino, slurped it down like it was his duty and gleefully started swapping yarns with his brother-in-arms — who is my age.

The ever-smiling Speranzo occasionally got a word in about coffee.

And that’s Brave Bean’s other mission: to give veterans a place to bond with each other over quality cups of joe. Hell, Speranzo will even teach them how to roast it or get in touch with their inner barista.

The Pitcairn native didn’t know a thing about coffee until 1997, when he was deployed to Colombia, South America, one of the largest coffee-growing regions in the world. He drank the stuff around-the-clock. Some of his buddies even ate the grounds.

PHOTO COURTESY OF BRAVE BEAN COFFEE CO.

When he retired from the Air Force he worked in the Washington, D.C. tech industry, but returned to his hometown to work remotely during the pandemic. He opened the Vault Coffeehouse and roastery in March 2023. Located in a former Pitcairn bank, it gave a boost to the struggling Broadway Boulevard business district, but Speranzo wanted to take it a step further.

Last year, he reconnected with Ray Ramey, a former colleague. With Speranzo’s nerd-level knowledge of beans and Ramey’s business sense, they rebranded the company to highlight local vets and raise money for the installation of a neighborhood Honor Roll dedicated to post-Vietnam era service members. They hope to have it erected on Nov. 11, Veterans Day.

Speranzo and Ramey asked my dad to be the first one featured on Brave Bean’s new wall on the North Shore, which opened on Jan. 4. He was so excited and amped up on caffeine, he was nearly ejected from his chair.

In addition to Vertical Take Off Dark Roast, First Responder Medium Roast and Sergeant’s Sip Espresso Roast, Brave Bean makes a mean decaf called Twilight Tonic. Speranzo says all of the ethically sourced, single-origin beans are rated 90 or above on the Specialty Coffee Association quality scale.

The products are available at both cafes, as well as online and wholesale. You can even go commando and buy green beans to roast at home.

My dad and I split an enormous blueberry muffin, but probably should’ve bypassed the sugar content for the veggie-forward grub from Pure Greens in the cooler. Brave Bean works with the nearby Wounded Warrior Project on fundraisers and outings and is seeking partnerships with other veterans organizations and veteran-owned shops and eateries. Speranzo has already shared his story (and coffee!) with the Veterans Breakfast Club.

Speranzo says he’s looking forward to offering Vietnamese Robusta beans, which have twice the caffeine.

I can picture my Robusto-fueled father proudly fidgeting in front of Brave Bean’s Veterans Spotlight wall retelling Army tales with machine gunfire rapidity.

I think we’ll opt for the decaf next time.

North Side, 20 E. General Robinson St.
Pitcairn, 550 Broadway Blvd.

Restore 22

Restore 22 also wants to use coffee to bridge the gap between civilians and vets.

The nonprofit is close to its goal of opening a brick-and-mortar cafe thanks to ongoing public support and a $30,000 grant from the Allegheny County Airport Authority Charitable Foundation.

While they search for a perfect location, preferably in Coraopolis, a borough located on the bus line that has an American Legion and Veterans of Foreign Wars halls, they’re keeping their fingers crossed to open by Veterans Day.

In the meantime, Restore 22 will host pop-up coffee shops at Christ Church at Grove Farm in Ohio Township on the first and third Tuesday of every month from 8:30 to 10:30 a.m. You’ll occasionally find them at VFW Post 7714 in Oakdale.

Starting Feb. 1, the organization will host a quarterly game night at Taitan Game Shop, a veteran-owned business in Coraopolis. Bowlapalooza, a fundraiser to benefit local vets, will be held on Feb. 23 from 2 to 4 p.m. at Neville Island’s Paradise Island Bowl. Registration ends Feb. 7.

If you don’t feel like braving the cold weather, the Restore 22 Coffee Roadshow is a podcast meant to inform, inspire, strengthen and engage the veteran community and their supporters. It’s available on Rumble, Spotify and Apple Podcasts.

Over and out.