From the time he was growing up in Richmond, Wallace B. Trevillian Jr. was always involved with sports.

Even as he got older, the retired executive from Thalhimers department stores maintained an interest in athletics.

A black belt in karate and an avid golfer, Mr. Trevillian coached the boys basketball team at St. Paul's Catholic School for 10 years and was instrumental in organizing the Richmond Municipal Softball League, which he played in for 20 years.

He held the belief, which was first passed to him by his parents, that playing sports was a good way to keep people out of trouble, said daughter Sandra Owen of Richmond.

Mr. Trevillian, who retired as divisional vice president and controller of Thalhimers department stores after 31 years of service, died Sunday at his Richmond home after a brief illness. He was 75.

A graduate of the University of Richmond, Mr. Trevillian joined Thalhimers as an accountant in the late 1950s and worked his way through the company to become the divisional vice president who oversaw the company's accounting department. At the same time, he was also president of the Thalhimers Credit Union.

A good-natured man, Mr. Trevillian was friendly and got along well with his co-workers. He was very formal when talking to women, always using a courtesy title when addressing them, said John James, who worked with Mr. Trevillian.

A devout Catholic, Mr. Trevillian and his wife, Helen Darlington Trevillian, were invited to Vatican City in 1995 as part of a small group to attend a private audience and mass with Pope John Paul II. The group included the Most Rev. Walter F. Sullivan, then bishop of the Catholic Diocese of Richmond, and other Richmond Catholics.

For Mr. Trevillian, that was the biggest honor he ever received, his daughter said.

He also volunteered at St. Mary's Hospital as a coordinator of eucharistic ministers to make sure "sick people in the hospital could have communion or have somebody to say a prayer for them," his daughter said.

Mr. Trevillian was a Navy veteran and served on the destroyer U.S.S. O'Hare, as well as serving on the board of directors for the U.S. Navy League.

In addition to his wife and daughter, Mr. Trevillian's survivors include two other daughters, Donna Lowe and Mary Guthrie, both of Richmond; six grandchildren; and three great-grandchildren.

A Mass of Christian Burial will be held Wednesday at 10 a.m. at Our Lady of Lourdes Catholic Church, 8200 Woodman Road, in Henrico County. Burial will follow at Westhampton Memorial Park in Henrico.