He was born on March 4, 1926 inGrand Rapids, Michigan. [14][23] She is of Dutch ancestry. [128], On May 10, 2017, DeVos gave a commencement speech at BethuneCookman University, a historically black college, and during her speech a majority of the students booed DeVos, with about half of them standing up and turning their backs to her. Family spokesman Nick Wasmiller says DeVos died at his Ada, Michigan, home due to complications from an infection. Richard is the son of Simon Cornelius DeVos and Ethel Ruth Dekker. The DeVoses own a sportsplex in Florida, a baseball stadium in Michigan and a resort in the Bahamas. In an opinion editorial, the Chicago Tribune wrote that "DeVos has helped lead the national battle to expand education opportunities for children". The latter reflects his feelings after successfully undergoing a heart transplant operation in the United Kingdom in 1997 after being turned down for a transplant in the United States because of his age and diabetes. The Foundation supports strategic projects and initiatives that impact the community, empower individuals to reach their full potential, and catalyze change. The stone-clad home in the center of the photo is being built on Superior Street. The article noted that debates between DeVos and Granholm had "done little to help either's cause, though they did have an effect on the polls," with support for both candidates dropping and the number of undecided voters increasing. [140], The Dick & Betsy DeVos Family Foundation was launched in 1989. In 2008, All Children Matter was fined $5.2million in Ohio for illegally laundering money into political campaign funds. [60][61] Rebecca Mead of The New Yorker questioned the efficacy of Michigan's charter school system, which DeVos has supported. He attended Calvin College and upon graduating, served in the US Army Air Corps during the Second World War. When the Children's Scholarship Fund provided $7.5 million to the Education Freedom Fund, the DeVos matched the grant, and their foundation covers all of the administrative costs of the organization. [18] Later on February 1, 2017, two Republican U.S. senators, Susan Collins from Maine and Lisa Murkowski from Alaska, came out against the confirmation (despite supporting DeVos in committee when both of them voted to move her nomination to the floor),[79] bringing the predicted confirmation vote on DeVos to 5050 if all Democrats and independents voted as expected, meaning Vice President Mike Pence would have to break the tie. That share is worth an estimated $1.3 billion. "[44], DeVos is the author of the 1998 book Rediscovering American Values. [100], In a May 2017 House of Representatives committee hearing, Rep. Katherine Clark, said an Indiana private school which takes publicly funded vouchers maintains it is entitled to deny admission to LGBTQ students or those coming from families with "homosexual or bisexual activity." The 13,000-square-foot home is being built for a total of at least $12.7 million, Crain's reported in March 2016, combining the land cost of $2.75 million and the value stated on the construction permits: $9.98 million. They worked on an airplane charter business, a sailing venture and even tried to run a hamburger stand, before they were introduced to Nutrilite. In 1984, he became one of Amway's vice presidents, with overall responsibility for the company's operations in 18 countries. [94] Two years later, Venable joined an anti-Trump group, the Republican Political Alliance for Integrity and Reform (REPAIR), which is led by former White House officials. [109] On July 12, 2020, she said "there's nothing in the data that suggests that kids being in school is in any way dangerous to them", an assertion that public health experts disputed. Over the next two decades, both the DeVos family and Amway would become among the rights biggest financial backers, pouring millions into Republican campaigns and conservative causes. "My family is the largest single contributor of soft money to the national Republican Party. He is married to Betsy DeVos and they have four children together, Ryan, Richard, Andrea and Elisabeth. [102], On June 6, 2017, DeVos said states' rights would determine private schools being allocated funds by the federal government during an appearance before members of a House appropriations committee. He co-authored Believe! with Charles Paul Conn. [54], DeVos and his wife have homes in Grand Rapids and Ada, Michigan. He helped his distributors along the way with guidelines and best practices, but he mostly saw himself as a cheerleader for people to realize their own capabilities and to expand their ideas of what is possible, all while undergirded by specific political and spiritual ideas he saw as fundamental to the American way.. Public records show it's owned by an entity connected to members of the billionaire Michigan-based DeVos family, whose patriarch, Richard DeVos, is a co-founder of Amway. Staying current is easy with Crain's news delivered straight to your inbox, free of charge. DeVos and his wife became co-chairs of the Education Freedom Fund in 1993. 1-877-812-1590. DeVos Children Dick DeVos, Daniel DeVos, Doug DeVos and Suzanne DeVos. [18] On February 7, 2017, she was confirmed by the Senate by a 5150 margin, with Vice President Mike Pence breaking the tie in favor of her nomination. Dick DeVos is President of the Dick and Betsy DeVos Foundation, a Grand Rapids-area foundation that has donated millions of dollars to civic, artistic, religious, educational, community and free-market economic organizations since 1990. He was involved in the family business, Amway, even as a child. He made major donations to organizations like the Christian Freedom Foundation (which he chaired) and Third Century Publishers, which put out a guidebook instructing conservative Christians on how to win elections and help America become as it was when first foundeda Christian Republic. Then came the presidency of Gerald Ford, Grand Rapids longtime representative in Congress and a personal friend of DeVos. E-mail oureditor In 2012, Forbes magazine listed him as the 60th wealthiest person in the United States, and the 205th . Daniel was born in 1959 and is a businessman and sports executive. 24 on its 2015 list of America's top givers. "[25], A November 3, 2006, article noted that DeVos's plan for turning around Michigan's "economic stagnancy and increasing unemployment" was called the TurnAround Plan. Also the DeVos family has contributed much to Northwood University in Midland, Michigan. He also led the Council for National Policy, a powerful and secretive organization meant to bolster the political influence of conservative Christians. He is married to Pamella Roland DeVos and the couple has three children together, Casey, Sydney and Cole. In 1991 Richard DeVos shelled out $85 million to buy the NBA's Orlando Magic. Many of those security personnel are former Secret Service agents who have worked at the department for many years. [166] Until November 2016,[167] she headed the All Children Matter PAC which she and her husband founded in 2003 to promote school vouchers, tax credits to businesses that give private school scholarships, and candidates who support these causes. The DeVos family is one of Michigan's wealthiest. DeVos' children are now grown adults. [88][89], DeVos said that on the basis of her first few days in the job, she had concerns that some Education Department employees were sympathetic to the Obama administration. ", In answer to the question of why it was a charter school, DeVos explained that "Charter schools are available to everyone. A charter school is a public school and therefore there's no tuition. [185], DeVos has been played by Kate McKinnon on Saturday Night Live multiple times, including satirizing DeVos's 60 Minutes interview in March 2018. [139], DeVos was listed for many years on IRS form Form 990s as the foundation's vice president (hitherto called the Edgar and Elsa Prince Foundation). They continued to run the dealership and by 1958, the duo had managed to build a network of more than five thousand distributors. Target and Solo Cup are opening huge warehouses in the southwest suburbs, Widow of Richard Duchossois selling Inverness home, State Farm posts record $6.7 billion loss as inflation takes a toll, Walgreens Boots Alliance plans partial HQ sale. Marshals Service said after a threat evaluation was conducted in February that DeVos would be given additional security, projecting a cost of $7.8million between February and September 2017. My own particular thing has always been salesmanship, DeVos, who died in September at the age of 92, wrote in Believe!, his 1975 combination self-help book, ideological treatise and memoir. Dick is the eldest son of Richard DeVos, who co-founded Amway in 1959, and grew it from a meager soap factory into a multinational colossus with $9.5 billion in annual sales, enlisting his. The study would "use DNA fingerprinting technology pioneered recently at Michigan State University to identify specific sources of E. coli in different areas of the lake. "[45][26] She also stated in the op-ed, "We expect to foster a conservative governing philosophy consisting of limited government and respect for traditional American virtues We expect a return on our investment; we expect a good and honest government. "[22] Her resignation took effect on January 8, 2021, twelve days before her term would have ended with the inauguration of Joe Biden as president. Richard DeVos parents were poor immigrants from the Netherlands. [164], DeVos is known as "a fierce proponent of school vouchers" that would allow students to attend private schools with public funding. Marshals Service, rather than Education Department employees, began providing security for her. He is an Honorary Trustee of the Gerald R. Ford Presidential Foundation. Richard Marvin DeVos Sr. was an American businessman and philanthropist who co-founded the direct selling product empire, Amway, along with his school-time buddy, Jay Van Andel. [26][160] Rick works for the Windquest Group[193] as a consultant on urban development, and is the founder of Grand Rapids' ArtPrize festival. [146][148], In 2016, the Foundation reported $14.3million in donations to over 100 organizations including the X Prize Foundation, Mars Hill Bible Church, American Enterprise Institute. [86] He cast his tie-breaking vote in favor of DeVos to officially confirm her as education secretary. [4][146][155], DeVos was appointed by President George W. Bush to the board of directors of the Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts in 2004, and served until 2010. The couple agreed to sell off dozens of other holdings when Betsy was tapped to lead the education department, including investments in student lender SoFi and a company that sells laundry machines to college campuses. Had his confirmation vote been earlier than hers, he would have been forced to resign from the Senate, therefore losing a vital vote for the Republicans on the confirmation. [16], On November 23, 2016, then-President-elect Donald Trump announced that he would nominate DeVos to serve as Secretary of Education in his administration. She has served as chair of the board of the Alliance for School Choice and the Acton Institute and headed the All Children Matter PAC. Those efforts culminated in Betsy DeVos, Richs daughter-in-law and Dicks wife, being appointed secretary of education by President Donald Trumpanother indefatigable salesman, but one who lacks the mooring in religious and political beliefs that defined DeVos life. During the Great Depression, he sold freshly farmed vegetables door to door in Grand Rapids, Michigan. [120] The organization held a meeting on March 28 and a gathering of school shooting survivors and families on April 17. On this Wikipedia the language links are at the top of the page across from the article title. The word huckster doesnt usually carry positive overtones. 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