BOMBER MEMORIAL

LAWRENCE CHARLES "LARRY" GROSS ^SR. ~ Class of 1965
February 28, 1946 - January 27, 2025



Larry saw no strangers, only friends he hadn’t yet met. Lawrence (Larry) Charles Gross, 78, of West Richland, died at home surrounded by his immediate family after almost a yearlong battle with metastatic small cell bladder carcinoma on January 27, 2025.

Born in Olympia, Larry was adopted as an infant by Charles Neno and Eva Spengler Gross of Richland. Charlie and Eve moved to Richland in 1943 to work on the Manhattan Project. Larry grew up on Harris Street in Richland, enjoying the river, motorcycles, and spending time with friends.

At Columbia High School (now Richland High) he was a javelin thrower on the track team, and their relay team held the school record for the 4×100 “Fat man” relay (throwers relay) for many years. He graduated with the Class of 1965.

After high school, Larry enlisted in the Air Force as a mechanic. He served as a Staff Sergeant, jet aircraft specialist. He served at Luke, Glasgow, and McCord Air Force Bases in the U.S., as well as Bien Hoa and Phu Cat in Vietnam where he worked on F-100 Super Sabre jets. He was honorably discharged in December of 1968.

Larry met Sandra (Sandi) Kay Szendre ('67) at Zip's in Richland while Larry was on leave from the Air Force. They were married on March 30, 1968, at the First Baptist Church in Richland, by Pastor Moore.

After the military, he worked as an HVAC technician for 13 years keeping the Tri-City community comfortable in their homes. This experience led him to HVAC, mechanical, and electrical work at Hanford including supervising crafts, writing jobs, scheduling, and planning for another 30 years including some short-term jobs with Total Energy Management and Energy Northwest.

Larry and Sandi adopted their first son, Larry ^Jr., in May of 1970 and their second son, James, when he was about 18 months old in August of 1977.

Through the years he was a church youth leader, soccer coach, 3rd and 4th grade AWANA leader and Trustee at First Baptist Church in Richland.

Once his sons married and had children, he was the devoted “All-in” Papa for his grandkids, traveling across the country with Sandi to visit them. Many trips included sporting events, college visits, or birthdays in places like Pullman, Seattle, Texas, Oklahoma, Ohio, Arizona, Oregon, and Montana. His grandkids adored him.

Recently, Larry enjoyed spending time with his two new great-grandchildren, even though his battle with cancer made it challenging. His face would light up whenever he was around them.

Sandi’s extended family who live around the Tri-Cities were very close to Larry. He may have been an only child, but he had many brothers and sisters through the Szendre family. They shared many family events together celebrating holidays, birthdays, and time at the river or pool.

Larry was an avid water skier growing up on the Columbia River and taught many family members and friends to slalom ski. His most recent attempt at water skiing was when he was about 75 years old.

He had several pets over the years, including an Australian Shepherd dog and several cats, one was a kitten he rescued from a trash bin. His most recent side kick is Aussie, an Australian Shephard Poodle mix. Aussie followed Larry everywhere and helped with all of the outdoor chores.

Larry had many friends in high school that are still close friends today and made friends wherever he went over the years. Family has always said there were never any strangers to Larry, just friends he hadn’t yet met. Larry loved the Lord and knew God had a place prepared for him in heaven. He became a Christian in March 1968 through the sharing of the Gospel by Sandi and others at First Baptist Church. He would share this hope in Christ with his friends and those around him directly as well as through unconditional acts of service modeled after Christ’s love. Many people have shared testimonies of coming to know the Lord through Larry’s influence.

For over 50 years, Larry and Sandi attended First Baptist Church in Richland before joining Bethel Church in recent years.

He was always helping friends and family, or just anyone he met who needed help with anything for their home or vehicle. He had so many friends that if there was anything he needed to complete a project, he knew who to call. All his friends were there when he needed something. They were always willing to help, and it was usually because he was helping someone else.

Larry’s hobbies were ultimately helping others, but he enjoyed mechanical things including helping restore a 1967 GTO with his son Larry ^Jr., owning and working on a 1969 GTO, 1938 Ford Hotrod, several motorcycles, and most recently a 1965 17’ Tollycraft boat.

Larry will be remembered for his unconditional servant heart, his “can-do” attitude, and willingness to dive into a project without regard for what’s next because he knew he could figure it out. His grandkids will always remember his funny witty comments, new words he would just make up on the fly, and his passion for an athletic event if his grandkids were playing. After a visit, he never wanted to say goodbye but would always say, “Glad you got to see me” so he could induce a chuckle.

At Christmas he always read the Christmas story. This past Christmas the whole family was at his house, and he read it one last time. When he was done, it was hard to hear as he got emotional, but he said, “This family has something special” which was in reference to God’s love and the love the family has for each other.

Larry was preceded in death by his parents, Charlie and Eve Gross; infant granddaughter and daughter to James, Alexis Jae-Noelle Gross; and dear great-nephew, Cole Grad.

Larry leaves behind his wife. Sandi; sons, Larry ^Jr. (Kate) and James (Rusty) and their families; including nine grandchildren and two great grandchildren. He also leaves behind so many brothers-in-law and sisters-in-law, nieces and nephews, great nieces and nephews, and great-great nieces and nephews and their families who all loved him so much.

A Celebration of Life for Larry including a service, dessert reception, and military honors will begin at 2:00 PM on Saturday, February 8, 2025, at Bethel Church located at 600 Shockley Road in Richland.

Because Larry was such a servant to others, charitable gifts will be used to reach members of the community in need for their home and vehicle maintenance needs. Please send donations noting “Larry Gross, our friend," to TEM Community Giving Foundation; 2521 Stevens Drive; Richland, WA 99354. Any amount is accepted, and the foundation is working with Larry’s family to distribute services to those in need.

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File put together by Shirley COLLINGS Haskins ('66).