Hunter Kelly, whose battle with a nervous system disease inspired the charitable works of his Hall of Fame quarterback father, Jim Kelly, died yesterday. He was 8.
Hunter died at Women & Children's Hospital of Buffalo, Hunter's Hope Foundation spokesman John Dudek said. The cause was respiratory failure.
"He has been struggling for a while," Dudek said.
Born in 1997, Hunter Kelly was given no more than two years to live after being diagnosed with Krabbe disease, a rare inherited degenerative disorder of the central and peripheral nervous systems. The incurable disease hinders development of the myelin sheath, a fatty covering that protects the brain's nerve fibers.
The Hunter's Hope Foundation, established in 1997 by Kelly and his wife, Jill, has raised more than $6 million for research.
Kelly led the Buffalo Bills to an unprecedented four AFC titles in the early 1990s. He paid tribute to Hunter in his Hall of Fame acceptance speech in 2002.
"It has been written throughout my career that toughness is my trademark," Kelly said. "Well, the toughest person I've ever met in my life is my hero, my soldier, my son, Hunter."
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