Christopher Thomas “Chris” Kaag, the Marine veteran, adaptive-sports advocate and founder of the IM ABLE Foundation, died on September 30, 2026, at the age of 50.
Kaag, of Wyomissing, Pennsylvania, died at Reading Hospital following what his official obituary described as a lifelong battle with adrenomyeloneuropathy, commonly known as AMN, a degenerative neurological condition. His wife, Gretchen, and son, Carter, were by his side.
For nearly two decades, Kaag used his own experience with disability to encourage thousands of others to remain active, challenge perceived limitations and pursue opportunities through adaptive recreation.
His IM ABLE Foundation became a significant part of that mission, providing adaptive equipment, fitness opportunities and support to people living with physical, cognitive, mental and behavioral challenges.
Chris Kaag’s Obituary Confirms His Passing
Christopher Thomas Kaag died on Wednesday, September 30, 2026.
He was 50 years old.
His obituary, published through Edward J. Kuhn Funeral Home and WFMZ-TV, confirms that he died at Reading Hospital surrounded by his wife and son.
Kaag was born on September 11, 1976, in Cherry Point, North Carolina.
He was the son of the late Thomas Kaag and LuAnn Coniglio-Snyder.
Although his life eventually became closely associated with Berks County, Pennsylvania, his story included military service, athletics, entrepreneurship and decades of disability advocacy.
Chris Kaag’s Cause of Death
Kaag’s official obituary states that he died following a lifelong battle with adrenomyeloneuropathy, or AMN.
AMN is the degenerative nerve condition that changed the course of his life while he was serving in the United States Marine Corps.
The obituary does not provide a separate medical examiner determination or detailed immediate medical mechanism of death.
It is therefore most accurate to say that Kaag died after living for decades with AMN, rather than adding medical details that his family has not publicly disclosed.
His Life Changed at 21
Kaag was only 21 and serving in the U.S. Marine Corps when he was diagnosed with AMN in 1997.
According to the IM ABLE Foundation, he was treated at Walter Reed National Military Medical Center after symptoms emerged during his military service.
The condition eventually affected his ability to walk and brought his Marine Corps career to an early end.
Pennsylvania lawmakers later highlighted that history when the state House recognized Kaag and the IM ABLE Foundation in 2012.
Rather than allowing the diagnosis to define what his life could become, Kaag transformed the experience into a new mission.
A Proud United States Marine
Military service was deeply rooted in Kaag’s family.
His obituary states that he enlisted in the Marines while still a high school senior, following his father, grandfather and uncle into military service.
The discipline and determination developed during his time in the Corps became themes that followed him throughout his life.
Even after his medical retirement, Kaag continued to identify strongly with the Marine values of endurance, service and refusing to quit.
Those principles later became central to his approach to fitness and disability advocacy.
From Diagnosis to Adaptive Athlete
Kaag refused to allow declining mobility to end his athletic life.
His obituary documents a remarkable range of physical accomplishments after his diagnosis.
He competed in the Marine Corps Marathon and won the handcycle division, participated in the New York City Marathon, mountain biked in Moab, Utah, went scuba diving in the Cayman Islands and skied at Jack Frost Mountain.
He also repeatedly visited the Pinnacle overlook along Pennsylvania’s Appalachian Trail with friends and family.
These activities became demonstrations of the message he would later share with thousands of people: disability could require adaptation without eliminating adventure, competition or ambition.
Chris Kaag Founded Corps Fitness
In 2004, Kaag began building what became Corps Fitness.
His obituary describes the organization as far more than a traditional gym.
It became a place where people prepared for military service, improved their physical conditioning and developed confidence through demanding workouts.
Kaag’s military background remained evident in the organization’s philosophy, but his approach also emphasized community.
The people who trained with him often became part of the larger support network that later surrounded his adaptive-sports work.
The Beginning of the IM ABLE Foundation
Kaag initially raised money for the Myelin Project, an organization supporting research and families affected by conditions including AMN.
In 2004, he organized the Got the Nerve? Triathlon, creating an opportunity for athletes with disabilities to compete alongside able-bodied participants.
That work eventually evolved.
In 2007, Kaag established the IM ABLE Foundation as a nonprofit devoted to helping people with disabilities become physically active and recognize what remained possible in their lives.
IM ABLE Became His Defining Mission
The IM ABLE Foundation’s mission is to remove obstacles preventing people with disabilities from participating in physical activity.
The organization provides adaptive-equipment grants, resources, fitness opportunities and encouragement while seeking to change attitudes about the capabilities of people living with disabilities.
Under Kaag’s leadership, thousands of people participated in programs or received support.
His official obituary credits his generosity with helping establish programs including Adaptive Equipment Grants, IM STRONG, IM FIT and Operation Lead from the Front.
Kaag served as IM ABLE’s President and CEO for more than 15 years.
Founder Emeritus and Chief Motivational Officer
In later years, Kaag moved away from the day-to-day CEO position but remained central to IM ABLE’s identity.
The foundation’s current leadership page lists Alex Pilkington as CEO and identifies Chris Kaag as Founder Emeritus.
Kaag also served as the organization’s Chief Motivational Officer.
In 2025, the foundation named him Adaptive Motivator of the Year during its annual IM ABLE Bash.
It was a fitting recognition for a man whose personal story had become one of the organization’s most powerful examples of resilience.
A Life Filled With Recognition
Kaag received numerous honors during his career.
His official obituary lists achievements including:
- Induction into the Central Chapter of the Pennsylvania Sports Hall of Fame as a Courageous Athlete in 2008.
- The Penn State Alumni Achievement Award in 2009.
- Serving as Penn State Berks commencement speaker in 2010.
- Recognition through a Pennsylvania House of Representatives resolution in 2012.
- The American Red Cross Community Impact Hero Award in 2015.
- The Greater Reading Rising Star Award in 2015.
- PPL Foundation’s Bright Light Award in 2020.
- Induction into the Move United Sports Hall of Fame in 2022.
- Serving as Grand Marshal of the Wyomissing Memorial Day Parade in 2025.
- Recognition through BAYADA’s Salute to Service pinning ceremony in 2026.
Each honor reflected a different aspect of his work in adaptive sports, veterans’ advocacy and community service.
Chris Kaag Published His Memoir in 2026
In 2026, Kaag published his memoir, Don’t Quit on Me.
The title captured the philosophy that had defined much of his adult life.
From his Marine Corps training through his AMN diagnosis and the creation of IM ABLE, perseverance remained a constant theme.
The book allowed Kaag to preserve his experiences and lessons in his own words before his death later that year.
Wife Gretchen and Son Carter Were Central to His Life
Kaag married Gretchen Reed on August 21, 2009.
Their son, Carter Thomas Kaag, was born on April 5, 2013.
His obituary makes clear that family occupied an especially important place in his life.
Gretchen and Carter were both with him at Reading Hospital when he died.
Beyond his public identity as an advocate, athlete and founder, he was also remembered simply as a husband and father.
Family Members Mourning Chris Kaag
In addition to Gretchen and Carter, Kaag’s obituary lists his mother, LuAnn Coniglio-Snyder, and stepmother Diane Kaag-Senior among his surviving relatives.
His siblings include Eric Kaag, Patrick Kaag, Corey Weidman, Kelley Eddinger, Emily Dougherty and Katie Roman.
His wider family, friends, Corps Fitness community and the thousands of individuals connected to IM ABLE now share in mourning his death.
Funeral Arrangements Announced
Public visitation for Chris Kaag is scheduled for Thursday, October 8, 2026, from 6 p.m. until 8 p.m. at Edward J. Kuhn Funeral Home in West Reading, Pennsylvania.
A second visitation will take place on Friday, October 9, from 10 a.m. until noon at Redner’s Event Center in Reading.
His funeral service is scheduled to begin there at noon and continue until approximately 1:30 p.m., followed by an additional gathering from 1:30 p.m. until 4 p.m.
IM ABLE’s Work Continues
One of the clearest measures of Kaag’s legacy is that the organization he founded is positioned to continue without him.
IM ABLE now has an established staff, leadership team and adaptive-fitness programs.
Its stated goal remains helping people with disabilities improve their quality of life through physical activity while changing assumptions about what disabled athletes can accomplish.
That continuation may become one of the most lasting tributes to Kaag’s work.
A Legacy Built on Refusing to Quit
Kaag’s story was never simply about overcoming a medical diagnosis.
He consistently acknowledged that his condition changed his life.
What distinguished his approach was his determination to adapt rather than abandon the things that gave his life purpose.
He turned personal adversity into programs that provided equipment to other athletes.
He transformed his own experience of disability into advocacy.
And he used his platform to challenge both disabled and able-bodied people to reconsider what they believed was possible.
What Has Been Confirmed
The following details have been publicly confirmed:
- Christopher Thomas Kaag died on September 30, 2026.
- He was 50 years old.
- He lived in Wyomissing, Pennsylvania.
- He died at Reading Hospital.
- His wife Gretchen and son Carter were with him.
- His obituary says he died following a lifelong battle with adrenomyeloneuropathy.
- He was diagnosed with AMN while serving in the U.S. Marine Corps.
- He founded Corps Fitness.
- He founded the IM ABLE Foundation in 2007.
- He served as IM ABLE’s President and CEO for more than 15 years.
- The foundation currently recognizes him as Founder Emeritus.
- His adaptive-sports accomplishments included competing in major marathons and outdoor activities.
- He was inducted into the Move United Sports Hall of Fame in 2022.
- He published Don’t Quit on Me in 2026.
- Funeral and visitation arrangements have been announced.
What Has Not Been Publicly Detailed
While Kaag’s obituary connects his death with his lifelong battle with AMN, publicly available information does not provide:
- A detailed immediate medical mechanism of death.
- A separate medical examiner finding.
- Extensive information about his final hospitalization.
- Private medical details from his final days.
Those matters should remain with his family unless they choose to share more.
Chris Kaag Remembered for Showing What Was Possible
Chris Kaag spent much of his adult life confronting a disease that steadily challenged his physical independence.
His response was to create opportunities for other people.
Through Corps Fitness, IM ABLE and years of adaptive competition, he demonstrated the philosophy that became inseparable from his name: circumstances may require adaptation, but they do not have to erase purpose.
His death at 50 brings an extraordinary chapter of that story to an end.
Yet the adaptive equipment placed in the hands of athletes, the programs operating through IM ABLE and the thousands of people influenced by his message remain.
For his wife Gretchen, son Carter, extended family and the IM ABLE community, the loss is deeply personal.
For the wider adaptive-sports community, Chris Kaag leaves a legacy built on service, perseverance and a refusal to allow a diagnosis to determine the limits of a life.
Disclaimer
This report is based primarily on the official obituary for Christopher Thomas Kaag published through Edward J. Kuhn Funeral Home and WFMZ-TV, along with information from the IM ABLE Foundation and established public records. Kaag died on September 30, 2026, at age 50, and his obituary states that his death followed a lifelong battle with adrenomyeloneuropathy. No additional medical details beyond those publicly released by his family and representatives have been inferred.