Gordon Gund

Gordon Gund (born October 15, 1939) is an American businessman and professional sports owner. He is the CEO of Gund Investment Corporation. He is the former co-owner of the San Jose Sharks (National Hockey League) and former principal owner of the Cleveland Cavaliers (National Basketball Association) and is currently a minority owner of the Cavaliers. Gund lost his sight to retinitis pigmentosa and was a co-founder of Foundation Fighting Blindness.

A native of Cleveland, Ohio, Gund is a member of one of the city's prominent families. His father George Gund II was president and chairman of Cleveland Trust when it was Ohio's largest bank. Gund II was famous for hiding his wealth from his family and hiding his philanthropy. His sister, Agnes is a well known philanthropist in her own right.

Gordon Gund and his wife, Llura, reside in Princeton, New Jersey; they have two children. Gund has also owned a large home on the north shore of Nantucket since 1978.

Gordon Gund attended Harvard University, where he majored in physical sciences and sociology and played ice hockey. He served in the United States Navy, becoming department head on two destroyers. He then started a banking career, specializing in corporate finance. He gradually began going blind in the 1960s due to retinitis pigmentosa. By 1970, Gund was totally blind. In 1971, Gund co-founded the Retinitis Pigmentosa Foundation (now known as The Foundation Fighting Blindness) which supports research to find cures and treatments for retinal degenerative diseases. The blindness did not prevent him from being active in business and philanthropy. Gund is the former President of the Board of Trustees of his alma mater, Groton School in Groton, Massachusetts. He has honorary doctorates from Gothenburg University in Sweden, University of Maryland, Baltimore, Whittier College and the University of Vermont. He serves as director of the Kellogg Company of Battle Creek, Michigan, and of Corning Incorporated in Corning, New York. Gund remains active as chairman of the board of directors of The Foundation Fighting Blindness.

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