Chik-Fil-A Founder passes away

[spuwho]

Truett Cathey, the founder of CFA passed away early this morning.

Per The Washington Post:

http://www.washingtonpost.com/local/obituaries/truett-cathy-founder-of-chik-fil-a-dies-at-93/2014/09/08/638db948-3768-11e4-9c9f-ebb47272e40e_story.html

By Laurence Arnold September 8 at 11:28 AM
S. Truett Cathy, who became a billionaire as the founder of Chick-fil-A Inc., the closely held fast-food franchise known for its "Eat Mor Chikin' " slogan and for staying closed on Sundays to reflect Mr. Cathy's Southern Baptist faith, died Sept. 8 at his home in suburban Clayton County, south of Atlanta. He was 93.

The company announced the death but did not cite a cause.

The chicken chain that Mr. Cathy started in Georgia in 1946 grew to more than 1,800 restaurants in 39 states and the nation's capital, according to the Atlanta-based company's Web site. Chick-fil-A is valued at about $5.5 billion, according to data compiled by Bloomberg. Cathy had a net worth of $1.9 billion, according to the Bloomberg Billionaires Index.

[The world according to Chick-fil-A founder Truett Cathy]

The prospect of an even bigger payday never persuaded Mr. Cathy, the longtime chairman and chief executive, to take his company public. Doing so, he said in a 1998 interview, would mean giving up family control of matters such as contributions to charity and remaining closed on Sundays.

"As a public company, I'm sure somebody would object to our generosity," he said.

Even as it expanded nationwide, Chick-fil-A remained a distinctly Southern institution, one that generated fierce loyalty among its customers. In 1982, the company adopted a two-sentence corporate mission: "To glorify God by being a faithful steward of all that is entrusted to us. To have a positive influence on all who come in contact with Chick-fil-A."

Mr. Cathy and his family drew notice for their philanthropy through their WinShape Foundation, which offers scholarships and funds foster homes. Their donations to religious organizations active in the debate over the definition of marriage landed the family, and Chick-fil-A, in the middle of an uproar during the 2012 U.S. elections.

In response to reports about the family's support for groups fighting legalization of gay marriage, Dan Cathy, who succeeded his father as chairman and chief executive, said: "Well, guilty as charged. We are very much supportive of the family, the biblical definition of the family unit," according to the Biblical Recorder, a newspaper for North Carolina Baptists.

Gay rights groups, which for years had pointed out that Chick-fil-A's charitable arm gives millions of dollars to Focus on the Family, the Eagle Forum, the Family Research Council and other organizations opposed to gay marriage, urged a boycott of the chain and kiss-ins at the restaurants. Former Boston mayor Thomas Menino sent a letter urging the company to back out of plans to locate in his city, and the Jim Henson Co. pulled its Muppet toys from kids' meals.

Opponents of gay marriage, including Rick Santorum, Sarah Palin, Billy and Franklin Graham and former Arkansas governor and talk-show host Mike Huckabee, voiced their support for the chain.

The company, responding to the outcry, issued a statement saying its policy is to "treat every person with honor, dignity, and respect — regardless of their belief, race, creed, sexual orientation, or gender."

[mtraininjax]

Atlanta reports said he was gravely ill for some time. Great man, great lessons in all that he did.

[Rob68]

Condolences to his family..and congradulation to the rest..free of one more white homophob christian millionaire. .its gonna take time for these bigots to die away.

[camarocane]

Condolences to his family..and congradulation to the rest..free of one more white homophob christian millionaire. .its gonna take time for these bigots to die away.

[Rob68]

dumb.  Freedom of speech doesn't signify that you agree with what is being said.

Sometimes I think that people seriously interpret the first amendment to mean Freedom to accept Fox News as the Gospel.

+1

[marty904]

dumb.  Freedom of speech doesn't signify that you agree with what is being said.

Sometimes I think that people seriously interpret the first amendment to mean Freedom to accept Fox News as the Gospel.

+1

[AuditoreEnterprise]

dumb.  Freedom of speech doesn't signify that you agree with what is being said.

Sometimes I think that people seriously interpret the first amendment to mean Freedom to accept Fox News as the Gospel.

lol

On a side note... Maybe they will actually start to open on sunday....

[JBTripper]

Mr. Cathy and his family drew notice for their philanthropy through their WinShape Foundation, which offers scholarships and funds foster homes.

But yeah, the important thing is what this guy did on his own time with his own money in advancing his own ideas of what he thinks marriage should be. He gave a lifetime of service and he will be remembered in death over a same-sex-marriage imbroglio that nobody anywhere would know anything at all about if not for an American media so hell-bent on painting all conservatives as racist, bigoted, homophobes in an election year. Disgusting.