Johnson County barbecue legend Hayward Spears, Sr., the founder of Hayward’s Pit BBQ in Overland Park, has died.
- According to an obituary, Hayward died Oct. 2 at his Leawood home. He was 88.
Background: Spears’ namesake restaurant atop a hill at 11051 Antioch Road in Overland Park was a lasting presence in the county.
- He established the restaurant in 1972 as a way to continue his own family tradition of barbecue in Arkansas, where he grew up.
- He was also active in the community and was cited many times for his achievements, according to his obituary.
- Spears was a board member of the Overland Park Chamber of Commerce and the foundation board of the Johnson County Community College.
- He also served on the Overland Park Convention and Visitors Bureau.
- He was recognized in 1985 and 1990 for top barbecue in Kansas City, and in 1992 was named Minority Entrepreneur of the Year by Ernst & Young and Merrill Lynch.
Bigger picture: Born in Hope, Ark., in 1934, Spears’s community involvement was inspired by his father, Albert Spears, Sr., who was the first Black person to vote in Hempstead County, Ark., the obituary said.
- Hayward marched with his father for voting rights of Black citizens.
The restaurant: After a 42-year run, Spears’s restaurant was sold in 2014 to Eric Sweeney, who as a teenager worked loading wood into Hayward’s pit.
- It was then moved, first to a location in Old Town Lenexa and later to its current spot at 10901 W. 75th Street in Shawnee.
Remembering Hayward Spears
The family has set up a donation page in lieu of flowers, with funds going to Generating Income for Tomorrow, a Kansas City nonprofit providing grants to Black-owned businesses.
- There will be two visitations – one on Friday, Oct. 14, from 4-7 p.m. at Thatcher’s Funeral CHapel, 1520 N. Fifth Street in Kansas City Kan. and the other on Saturday, Oct. 15, 9-11 a.m. at Metropolitan Baptist Temple, 853 Washington Blvd. also in Kansas City, Kan.
- Funeral service will follow at 11 a.m. at Metropolitan Baptist Temple after the Saturday visitation.
Roxie Hammill is a freelance journalist who reports frequently for the Post and other Kansas City area publications. You can reach her at roxieham@gmail.com.
