Eunice Kennedy Shriver, the founder of the Special Olympics and winner of the 2002 NCAA Theodore Roosevelt Award, died Tuesday morning at age 88.

Shriver was the sister of President John F. Kennedy and a champion of the disabled.

In addition to the Teddy recognition, Shriver was selected in 2006 as part of the NCAA Centennial celebration as one of the Association’s 100 most influential individuals in its first century. She was listed ninth.

Shriver was the fifth of nine children born to Joseph P. and Rose Fitzgerald Kennedy. Besides President Kennedy, other siblings included Sen. Robert F. Kennedy and Sen. Edward M. Kennedy.

She demonstrated empathy for the disabled from an early age and used her influence to found the Special Olympics, which began as a summer camp at her home in 1962.

The Special Olympics now benefits 3.1 million people with mental disabilities. They participate in 228 programs in 170 nations.