Spencer Leak Jr., a longtime funeral director on Chicago’s South Side, died Sunday at 56. While his family waits for answers about the cause, grieving families and friends have flooded them with calls, messages, and food—returning care to a man who spent decad
When Spencer Leak Jr. was found unresponsive at his home in Flossmoor on Sunday morning, his family was left with the kind of silence that follows a life cut short—and the unanswered questions that come with it.
Donna Leak said her husband, 56, had been sick in recent days. She said he went to an urgent-care center a few days before his death and was recovering at home from what was described as a gastrointestinal virus. She said paramedics took him to a hospital in Olympia Fields, but he couldn’t be revived.
“He died peacefully in his sleep,” Donna Leak said. “But we are a strong family, a close family, and we’re holding ourselves together, staying prayed up and staying thankful to God for the time we had.” She said the family is still waiting for answers on the cause of death.
For decades, Spencer Leak Jr. comforted thousands of grieving families through Leak & Sons Funeral Homes, an institution on the South Side. Since his unexpected death. his family has heard from many of those people—an avalanche of calls. texts. social media messages. hot meals. and sweet treats. Those messages carry gratitude, and the ache of loss that brought them to him in the first place.
“We’re so appreciative, especially considering the family’s role has been to comfort so many other families for so many years, the support we’re receiving, it’s nourishing to our souls,” Donna Leak said. “And it’s helping us to stay focused and grounded.”
Among the many who reached out was Nykea Pippion, who said Spencer Leak Jr. was there for her after her 23-year-old son. Xavier Joy. was fatally shot in 2017 by someone trying to steal his cell phone on the South Side. Pippion said Joy attended Whitney Young High School and Morehouse College. and that he was back in Chicago doing volunteer work when he was killed.
His father, Ra Joy, was Chris Kennedy’s gubernatorial running mate in 2018.
“I can’t even put into words,” Pippion said. “He genuinely cared for my son like it was his son. and I was his sister.” She said there were many media people and elected officials at the service. but Spencer Leak made sure she was taken care of—providing water. making sure she could walk to the restroom or step outside for air. and staying present in ways she said she hadn’t expected.
Pippion said Leak coordinated a New Orleans style jazz funeral for Joy. with a brass band and a parade leading down the street from the University of Chicago’s Rockefeller Chapel. where the services were held. She said Leak personally stayed involved throughout the day even though the crowd was enormous—more than 2. 000 people—and that he made sure Joy’s sendoff was “meticulously executed.”.
Afterward, Pippion said, he followed up with her through text messages, checking in “randomly” to see whether she was doing all right.
That kind of care was rooted in how Spencer Leak Jr. entered the family business: he started working at the funeral home when he was just 12 years old. His grandfather, A.R. Leak, had begun the business in 1933, and Donna Leak said he learned under his father, Spencer Leak Sr.
Donna Leak said being a funeral director was “a calling” for him—something “not everyone can do.” She described the work as daily comfort for families dealing with their worst day, and said God seemed to keep the passion from draining out.
In recent years, she said, he took on handling calls with people who couldn’t afford a funeral for a loved one but knew they could come to the Leak family to work something out.
Stacy Leak, his brother, said their family’s motto, passed down from A.R. Leak, was to make sure that if an African American family didn’t have the means to bury loved ones, they could come to Leak family funeral homes “and get a respectable burial.”
Leaking grief into a different kind of energy has long been part of the story his family tells about him. Stacy Leak described Spencer Leak Jr. as someone who filled his life with joy even while living around hurt and death.
He occasionally held birthday parties for himself at the downtown Hyatt Regency. Last year, when he turned 55, more than 4,000 people came. Guests were asked to donate a winter coat for someone less fortunate.
Stacy Leak said Spencer Leak Jr. also held an annual barbecue at his house in Flossmoor, and loved attending the Chosen Few house music festival.
“When you see so much hurt and pain and death, you want to celebrate life,” his brother said.
He loved classic cars, too. Stacy Leak said an old burgundy Cadillac was among his favorites.
With three Leak family funeral homes—located at 7838 S. Cottage Grove Ave. as well as in Matteson and Country Club Hills—he worked seven-day weeks and took calls at all hours. Still. his family said he made time for his daughter’s dance recitals and his son’s football games. often in the black suit and gold tie he wore to work.
He also loved beach vacations in the Bahamas and spoiling his dog, Lambo. Stacy Leak said that last year, when Lambo was attacked by a coyote, Spencer Leak Jr. posted videos on Facebook about the misadventure. He expressed how happy he was that she survived and how thankful he was for his brother’s help in searching for her at night near their home.
“He was just so caring and kind,” Stacy Leak said.
Funeral services for Spencer Leak Jr. were still being arranged. In the meantime, his family is left doing what they have always done best—holding people through the worst moments of their lives—while also trying to hold themselves together as the community returns care to them.
Spencer Leak Jr. Leak & Sons Funeral Homes Flossmoor Olympia Fields South Side Chicago funeral director community condolences Xavier Joy Donna Leak Stacy Leak Whitney Young High School Morehouse College