JL;DR SUMMARY Michael Haft, a former Marine and co-founder of Compass Coffee, has navigated a unique journey from military service to running a burgeoning coffee business in Washington, D.C. Amid the pandemic, Haft leveraged creative problem-solving by repurposing coffee shop staff for roastery construction and pivoting sales strategies, including e-commerce and grocery partnerships. A way out west there was a fella, fella I want to tell you about, fella by the name of Jeff Lebowski. At least, that was the handle his lovin' parents gave him, but he never had much use for it himself. This Lebowski, he called himself the Dude. Now, Dude, that's a name no one would self-apply where I come from. But then, there was a lot about the Dude that didn't make a whole lot of sense to me. And a lot about where he lived, likewise. But then again, maybe that's why I found the place s'durned innarestin'.