Maurice Lazarus

Maurice Lazarus, who pursued two successful careers, one in his family ' s department store business and another as a founder of one of the nation ' s first HMOs, died May 4. He was 88.

Mr. Lazarus, whose family founded Federated Department Stores, had lung cancer and died at his home in Cambridge, Mass., said his wife, Nell.

After retiring from retail, Mr. Lazarus was among the founders of the Harvard Community Health Plan, now Harvard Pilgrim Health Care.

A 1937 graduate of Harvard, Mr. Lazarus was a member of the university ' s board of overseers and director of the Harvard Alumni Association.

Born June 27, 1915, in Columbus, Ohio, Mr. Lazarus worked at Lazarus Department Store, the family business his great-grandfather established.

It was during his time there that his father, Fred Lazarus Jr., co-founded Federated Department Stores with other regional department stores, including Filene ' s and Bloomingdale ' s. Federated became a national retail giant.