Beards & Broads Restaurant and Entertainment is a family restaurant, co-owned by brother-in-laws Jay Roderick and Kyle McQuillian. Established in 2019, they opened their 2nd location here in Broadway last year. The name is, as Jay says, a ”punny one”. The name does NOT mean what probably first comes to mind! It is taken from the 2 types of axes- bearded and broad- that are used in axe throwing competitions. Axe throwing is one of the games featured in the restaurant, along with their mobile axe throwing trailer that is available for parties. The partners have another Beards & Broads in Harrisonburg, and also own Your Pie in Penn Laird. You can check their online presence for schedules and menus.
A family friendly gathering spot, the Beards & Broads co-owners are committed to giving back to the community, and are well known for their fundraising efforts, and generosity. On a recent Sunday in June, the community had a chance to give back to them.
Kyle’s family recently received some devastating news concerning their 4 year old son, Mathew, who was recently diagnosed with leukemia. Mathew, better known as Maty, is also autistic and non-verbal. The pressure on the family has been immense. Along with running the business with his brother-in-law, Jay, Kyle has to be there to support his family- Ashley Roderick, and their sons, Maty, and older son, Lukan.
Maty’s diagnosis slowed down their restaurant business a bit, because family always comes first. The restaurant does have a first rate staff, who were able to pitch in when needed.
The community has rallied around the family, when learning the news of Maty’s illness.
Randy’s Hardware hosted a very successful bake sale on a recent June weekend, spearheaded by Jenny Hill-Brown. Jenny also ran several raffles to help benefit the family. Brenda Whitmore’s granddaughters decided to set up a lemonade stand in front of J&B’s Country Store, during a June 10th Saturday Open House, and the 2 little girls, Emma Chandler and Madalen Smith, really hustled to donate to Maty’s medical needs. The passersby and customers stepped up, buying lemonade or just filling the donation jar.
On June 11, Beards & Broads hosted a Cure Maty Day and the community again supported them. Whether donating their services leading up to and on the day, donating raffle items, or just giving their time- Cure Maty Day was a success! Let’s Bouncz Inflatables LLC donated a bouncy house, Richard Turner was there with his Fat Boyz BBQ & More truck, Maty t-shirts were available for purchase. There was a dime toss, balloon animals, face painting, karaoke, musical entertainment, and a room full of great donated raffle prizes from local businesses and friends. You can go on Beards & Broads Facebook page to hear Jay list all the area businesses who participated. The day started off with a cornhole tournament. Even though it was a very hot day, that didn’t stop the crowds from turning out to help Maty.
It was heartwarming to see the outpouring of support from people.
Maty’s leukemia is the first childhood cancer case in their family. The family is so grateful for the community support. Beards & Broads co-owner, Maty’s Uncle Jay, says, “Calling the Shenandoah Valley home is huge. The turnout and volunteers meant so much. The camaraderie and love was amazing, and Maty was able to come out that day, being cleared by his doctors. It was the first day he was able to come out and interact with people, and it was awesome – he didn’t want to leave.” According to the family, although Maty’s treatment is ongoing, the doctors appear optimistic that Maty will reach remission. Prayers and continued support for the family are greatly appreciated.
Jay and his family are working on what Jay is calling a Resource bible or manual, to help other people in their own battle to combat childhood cancer. They were scrambling to find out all the information they could to best fight this battle for Maty. With all the information they have garnered, Jay, Ashly, and Kyle want to be able to pass their findings, information, and connections, on to anyone who may, unfortunately, find themselves in the same situation. Falling into the abyss of a cancer diagnosis can make a family feel helpless, and at times, lost, trying to find all the help that is out there. Whether it be something as simple as how to start a meal train or where is the best cancer specialist in the area, they hope to compile all they have found into a manual to help others.
If you would like to help Maty in his battle, drop by Beards & Broads, have dinner, play some games, chat with Kyle and Jay. Supporting a local business helps them stay in business, and in turn, allows them to continue to help others in need. It does take a village, and Broadway and the surrounding towns definitely stepped up to the plate for Maty.
It was heartwarming to see the outpouring of support from people. Maty’s leukemia is the first childhood cancer case in their family. The family is so grateful for the community support. Beards & Broads co-owner, Maty’s Uncle Jay, says, “Calling the Shenandoah Valley home is huge. The turnout and volunteers meant so much. The camaraderie and love was amazing, and Maty was able to come out that day, being cleared by his doctors. It was the first day he was able to come out and interact with people, and it was awesome – he didn’t want to leave.”
According to the family, although Maty’s treatment is ongoing, the doctors appear optimistic that Maty will reach remission. Prayers and continued support for the family are greatly appreciated.
Jay and his family are working on what Jay is calling a Resource bible or manual, to help other people in their own battle to combat childhood cancer. They were scrambling to find out all the information they could to best fight this battle for Maty. With all the information they have garnered, Jay, Ashly, and Kyle want to be able to pass their findings, information, and connections on to anyone who may, unfortunately, find themselves in the same situation. Falling into the abyss of a cancer diagnosis can make a family feel helpless, and at times, lost, trying to find all the help that is out there. Whether it be something as simple as how to start a meal train or where is the best cancer specialist in the area, they hope to compile all they have found into a manual to help others.
If you would like to help Maty in his battle, drop by Beards & Broads, have dinner, play some games, chat with Kyle and Jay. Supporting a local business helps them stay in business, and in turn, allows them to continue to help others in need. It does take a village, and Broadway and the surrounding towns definitely stepped up to the plate for Maty.
Find Beards & Broads on Facebook.
175 N. Central St, Broadway, VA
540-830-9658
