In a statement, Thomas H Lee's family said they were "extremely saddened" by the 78-year-old's death. A statement by family friend and spokesman Michael Sitrick said: "While the world knew him as one of the pioneers in the private equity business and a successful businessman, we knew him as a devoted husband, father, grandfather, sibling, friend and philanthropist who always put others' needs before his own. He is survived by his wife, Ann Tenenbaum, and his five children