Leak & Sons carries on after sudden loss of Spencer Leak Jr.: 'It's devastating'

CHICAGO - A death in the family did not stop Leak & Sons Funeral Homes from their mission – serving the grieving while they are in sorrow too.

"It's devastating. Spencer is just a such a kind individual to everyone he meets. We're a business. We are… We're getting through. My dad is still with us, and he's still running things and I'm helping with the day-to-day. We're still in business, but this is a major loss to us. Such a major loss to us," said Stacy Leak, Spencer Leak’s youngest brother. 

The backstory:

Spencer Leak Jr. was the boss at Leak & Sons.

He died suddenly Sunday, leaving behind a wife, daughter and son who had just started working full-time for the funeral home.

Spencer was close to Reverend Jesse Jackson and his children. He also had a direct line to Martin Luther King Jr. – his grandfather drove King around Chicago.

Friends say Spencer’s greatest gift was the way he treated everyone with importance.

Fr. Michael Pfleger has known the Leak family for decades. He said Spencer was, "An amazing son, an amazing husband, amazing father, and an amazing community leader. One of the things that I always loved about Spencer was his his professionalism. But his spirit in dealing with people, he was always so caring and so kind."

Stacy admits he punched something and broke his hand when he learned of Spencer’s death.

But the Leak family remains committed to being of service, as Spencer was.

"Absolutely. Still serving others. And it's just tough now because we, we need service. And this is we're so used to serving others. And at this particular point in time, we actually need service. And it's just a different place that I've never been in before this, you know, in such a long time," Stacy said. 

RELATED: Spencer Leak Jr., longtime leader of Leak & Sons Funeral Homes, dies at 56

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