William “Bill” Modell, chairman of the board of Modell’s Sporting Goods, died February 14, 2008, in New York.  He was 86 years old. 
 
Mr. Modell was born May 13, 1921, in Manhattan Beach, New York, to Henry and Rose Modell. He attended Peeksville Military Academy and New York University and married his devoted wife Shelby on March 21, 1948.


Under his leadership, Modell’s Sporting Goods grew from four stores to 136 full-line stores in New York’s tri-state area, New England, Pennsylvania, Maryland, Virginia, and Washington, D.C. 


Bill began his legendary career in business at the age of nine when he sold produce door to door in his neighborhood.  He went on to become a retail icon, launching Modell’s Shopper’s World, the first discount department store chain in the country, which he later sold to Home Depot.

As a public servant, Bill was appointed a member of the Negotiating Committee for the Panama Canal Treaty under President Jimmy Carter.  He was New York City’s Commissioner of Public Affairs for Mayor Abe Beame.  He also was a founding patron of the Metropolitan Opera House and Lincoln Center for the Performing Arts, a member of the Friars Club and a member of the New York City 100 Year Association.


His indefatigable commitment to Modell’s Sporting Goods was only matched by his unswerving commitment to philanthropy. 


Mr. Modell was the founder of the American Digestive Disease Society; co-founder of the Jeffrey Modell Foundation for Immunological Research and Hewlett House, a resource center for breast cancer survivors, and a founder of Gilda’s Club New York and Worldwide, a cause to which he was especially dedicated.  Of the many honors and awards that Bill received, he was above all proud to be a recipient of the Gilda’s Club Magic Award and CCFA’s Lifetime Achievement Award.  For 40 years, Bill worked hard to find a cure for Crohn’s disease – a disease which claimed his son Michael’s life in 2001. 
 
As a national co-founder of the Crohn’s & Colitis Foundation of America and founder of CCFA’s Long Island Chapter and the Gold Coast Chapter, he raised millions of dollars for medical research.  The center of Bill Modell’s life was his family whom he deeply loved. 
 
He is survived by his wife Shelby, their children Leslie and Mitchell, daughters-in-law Abby and Robin, sister and brother-in-law Doris and Norman Tipograph, and nine grandchildren.


William D. Modell, a brilliant businessman and a great humanitarian, will be missed by all those who were privileged to know and love him.