William Modell, the chairman of Modell's sporting goods passed away on February, 14, 2008, at age 86*.

Currently, Modell's has 136 stores in eight states. William Modell is worthy of mention on this site because his son Michael struggled with the Crohn's disease from age 13, until he passed away in 2001, at age 48:

He [Michael Modell] battled Crohn's disease every day of his life not for himself alone, but for every man, woman, and child who struggles with inflammatory bowel disease.
(from Michael Modell's obituary)

His son's experience with the disease led William Modell to donate money toward helping those with inflammatory bowel disease--he was a founder of the Crohn's and Colitis Foundation of America.

We appreciate his sentiment in founding the CCFA.

* sources: new york times (william modell), new york times (michael modell)