Ned Strain
(June 22, 1941 - September 18, 2006)

Ned Strain, 65, of Wilmette, died suddenly on September 18 of a massive heart attack in

St. Francis Hospital, Evanston.

Mr. Strain was born on June 22, 1941 in Cedar Rapids, Iowa. He earned a B.B.A. from
the University of Iowa and an M.B.A. from the University of Chicago and was the manager
 and associate director of the National YMCA Employee Benefits Plan. The Plan provides
health, life and disability coverage to over 15,000 YMCA employees and their dependents.
His long career in the insurance and benefits field included stints at Zurich-America, Coopers
& Lybrand and American General/Acordia.

"Ned joined the YMCA in 1993 after serving as a consultant for 10 years. Words cannot
express how much his wit, wisdom and compassion will be missed. He was a truly wonderful
man and he loved the YMCA deeply," said Steve Gustavson, president of the National YMCA
Employee Benefits Plan.

Locally, Mr. Strain and his wife, Tani, served as Co- commodores of the Lake Michigan Hunter
Sailing Association, a group of about 150 members who share a passion for sailing the Great
Lakes. Their Hunter boat is called Family Therapy, after Mrs. Strain’s profession, as a family
therapist in Highland Park.

Mr. Strain was a fellow of the International Society of Certified Employee Benefit Specialists
and a founding past president of the Chicago chapter. He was a popular speaker at the association’s
national conferences and taught courses nationwide on health plan benefit basics.

“Ned Strain was well known throughout the employee benefits industry and he will be dearly
missed by professional colleagues throughout the country. He was fortunate and grateful to serve
as Manager and Associate Director of the National YMCA Employee Benefits Plan, applying his
lifelong professional calling to an organization whose mission he so believed in. But at his core,
Ned was inspired and defined by his role as a husband, father, grandfather and friend. His
infectious smile and laugh, his passion and caring spirit, and his sense of humor will be forever
remembered by all those he touched,” said Thomas P. DeRoche, Director of Educational
Programs for the International Foundation of Employee Benefit Plans in Brookfield, Wisconsin.

Mr. Strain had a passion for life and believed in living it to the fullest. He loved to laugh and tell
jokes to his large group of friends. For over 15 years he was a member of the New Warriors, also
called the ManKind Project, a national organization which helps men connect to one another and
be comfortable with their feelings.

“Ned was the type of person who, in any situation, could touch people’s lives. He had a engaging
personality and unique sense of humor that endeared him to people. It was hard not to have fun
when you were in his presence,” said Jean Rounds, an Evanston resident and longtime friend.

In addition to his wife, he is survived by daughter Tasha Fletcher (Jack) of Las Vegas, daughter
Erinn Strain of Chicago and grandson Cassidy Gurske, age 7, and a brother, Jeff Strain of
Pleasant Hill, Tennessee.

A visitation is planned on Sunday, September 24 from 4:00 p.m. until 8:00 p.m. at the Donnellan
Family Funeral Home, 10045 Skokie Blvd, Skokie, Ill. The family will hold a celebration of Ned’s
life at 11 AM on Monday, September 25, in the Grand Ballroom of the Hotel Orrington, 1710
Orrington Ave. in downtown Evanston, Ill.

Memorials may be made to the Ned W. Strain Memorial Fund, YMCA usa-World Service,
101 N. Wacker Dr, 15th Floor, Chicago, IL. 60606 or www.YMCAworldservice.org.