Arthur J. "Jay" Lafave

Arthur J. ("Jay") Lafave, Jr., passed away February 4th, 2026 at the age of 92.

Jay loved this life, but if pushed, would say he loved three things in particular: his wife and family, lifelong learning, and IMG, the company he devoted his career to building. He was a minority owner of IMG from the early 1960s until 2004, and still an employee at the time of his death.

Jay was born Arthur Joseph Lafave, Jr. to Arthur J. Lafave and Florence Lillian Carr Lafave on March 28, 1933 in Cleveland, Ohio. His father hailed from North Adams, MA, and was a traveling salesman, having sold encyclopedias, then bibles, then comic strips. His mother, born in Kirkton, Ontario and raised in Los Angeles, was a Broadway actress and model at the time she met her future husband.

As a child, Jay traveled the length and breadth of the country several times. He was especially fond of time spent crisscrossing the country, before highways, in the rumble seat of the family's green Cadillac convertible, and traveling the rails from Chicago to LA on the "Super Chief," a cross-country passenger train.

Jay's father syndicated comic strips, which required travel to small newspapers across the country to convince editors that they didn't just want the comics he had to sell, they needed the comics to sell more newspapers – a valuable lesson for a future salesman. When staying in hotels in New York City in the mid to late 1930s, a young Jay was convinced the well-dressed doormen with epaulettes on their shoulders must be generals, so he never failed to salute them on his way in or out of the hotel.

Each spring, the family moved to Cleveland, and then by summer to southern California to stay with Jay's maternal grandparents in LA and Palm Springs.

The family finally set down stakes in Shaker Heights, Ohio. There, Jay attended Malvern School and University School.

Jay graduated from University School in 1951, Williams College in 1955, and Yale Law School in 1958.

While a sophomore at Williams, Jay proposed to his high school sweetheart, Carolyn Bone, and they were married in the summer between his sophomore and junior years. Their first year was spent in a log cabin in The Hopper, a forested fold in the shadow of Mount Greylock. Their second year at Williams, they moved into the "Barracks" in town with other married students, where they started their family of 6 children.

Following Yale, Jay practiced in Portland, Oregon with the law firm of Black & Apicella from 1958 through 1960, then moved back to Cleveland, Ohio, to join the law firm of Arter & Hadden.

While at Arter & Hadden, Jay began to work with Mark McCormack to represent a portfolio of golf clients, including Arnold Palmer. Within a few years, Jay gradually moved away from Arter & Hadden to help build what would come to be known as IMG, an athlete representation firm that would grow into a colossal sports, television, and events management company, and the leading company of its kind in the world. While Jay was based in IMG's Cleveland office, and helped build key components of the early business, he became responsible for the growth of the company's business in Japan in 1970. He went on to become IMG's Chief Financial Officer in 1980, and was named Vice Chairman in 2001.

Along with the McCormack family, Jay sold his interest in IMG in November 2004 to Forstmann Little, though Jay continued at IMG with the title of Vice Chairman (retired). After the sale of IMG, Jay continued as Chairman of MAI Wealth (formerly McCormack Advisors International), a Cleveland-based wealth management company he helped found. MAI Wealth was sold to BC Investments in 2007.

In addition to his career with IMG and MAI, over the years Jay served as a trustee of the Cleveland Musical Arts Association, Cleveland Institute of Music, and as a member of the Corporate Council of the Cleveland Museum of Art.

Jay's story would not be complete without mentioning his great love of sailing. Jay was proud to serve on the board of Tartan Marine along with his friend Charlie Britton, and played a role in the development of the "T-10" sailboat designed specifically for racing. Some of his favorite times in later life were spent sailing and motorboating on Lake Erie and beyond.

Jay is predeceased by his beloved wife Carolyn; he is survived by children Arthur J. Lafave, III (Rebecca), Charles Christopher Lafave (Victoria), Lisa Joyce Lafave, Anne Lafave Mauck (Andrew), William Howard Lafave, and Evelyn Lafave McCarthy (Patrick). He has 12 grandchildren: James Nicholas (Danielle), Peter Sherman, and Claire Huntley Lafave; Jarvie Joseph and Giles Jay Lafave; Charles Parker and Ian Alexander Mauck; Benjamin Carr and Madelynne Bryce Lafave; Catherine Elodie, Florence Anne, and Holly Grace McCarthy. And he was blessed with one great grandchild, Luca Alexander Lafave. He has a brother, Richard (Gloria) living in Richardson, TX whom he spoke with several times a week.

Rest in Peace Dad. Your work is done, your journey complete. You ran a good race, and accomplished so much. So many people around the world benefitted from your gifts and achievements. We will love and respect you till the end of time.

A reception will be held for Jay at The Country Club in Pepper Pike, OH on Friday, February 20th from 3-6 pm. Family, friends, and colleagues are welcome to attend. The family requests that in lieu of flowers, gifts be made either to University Hospitals in Cleveland, OH, Williams College in Williamstown, MA, or University School in Hunting Valley, OH.

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Jay's family would like to thank his dedicated team of doctors and nurses, including Dr. James Coviello, the good doctors and nurses at University Hospitals, his private nurses and home aides who worked miracles throughout the years, John Baran, and Jean Bonness. We couldn't have asked for more competence, care and compassion. Thank you all from the bottom of our hearts.