Along with the company Chairman Steve Van Andel, Doug DeVos oversees its daily operations. [112] Asked by CBS 60 Minutes reporter Lesley Stahl about her repeal of Obama administration guidelines for colleges dealing with reports of sexual assaults, she said her concern was for men falsely accused of such assaults. [67] Several media outlets reported that DeVos appeared to have plagiarized quotes from an Obama administration official in written answers submitted to the Senate committee. Among Donald Trumps historically rich cabinet members, Betsy DeVos is the richest. [15] He became a billionaire who was listed as the 60th wealthiest person in the United States by Forbes magazine in 2012, with a net worth estimate of $5.4 billion as of 2018. He was born on March 4, 1926 inGrand Rapids, Michigan. Dan DeVos could not be reached for comment, and messages left with DP Fox, an RDV executive and Roland's publicity person received no replies. [26][160] Rick works for the Windquest Group[193] as a consultant on urban development, and is the founder of Grand Rapids' ArtPrize festival. But for more than two years, the extent of her finances has been a mystery. Dick DeVos was the President of Amway from the year 1993 to 2002, he is married to Betsy DeVos, the US Secretary of Education. Having tried his hand at several businesses, before earning his first million in the home care, beauty, and health industry, he always believed that his hard work would pay off one day. [23] [24] Edgar was the founder of Prince Corporation, an automobile parts supplier based in Holland, Michigan. The family spokesperson would only say that the second and third generation DeVoses actively participate in family committees and businesses, and hopefully the fourth generation will one day too.. [95], In February 2017, DeVos released a statement calling historically black colleges "real pioneers when it comes to school choice", causing controversy as some pointed out the schools originated after segregation laws prevented African-Americans from attending others. "Survivors, victims of a lack of due process, and campus administrators have all told me that the current approach does a disservice to everyone involved," said DeVos. He is a businessman and a politician by profession. DeVos announced that she would step down from the company's board but would retain her investment in the company, valued at $5million to $25million. An unrelenting optimist, DeVos is convinced that people can solve most of their problems by taking personal responsibility." However, she testified under oath in the Senate Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions Committee hearing, in response to Senator Maggie Hassan's questions, that she had nothing to do with the contributions made by her mother's foundation to conservative advocacy groups including Focus on the Family and the Family Research Council. In 2016, Meek told Crain's that the house will be 13,145 square feet with a glass and stone contemporary-styled exterior. 1959. [27] The DeVoses were known in their philanthropy for contributing to education, health care, arts and historic causes like Mount Vernon, and conservative think tanks such as The Heritage Foundation and AEI. Born In: Grand Rapids, Michigan, United States, place of death: Ada Township, Michigan, United States, See the events in life of Richard M. DeVos in Chronological Order. The Green Machine is produced by the ElectraTherm Company and distributed by Windquest in collaboration with Pro Services. [178], DeVos has been an advocate for the Detroit charter school system. Please try again. During the Great Depression, he sold freshly farmed vegetables door to door in Grand Rapids, Michigan. [165] According to The New York Times, it "is hard to find anyone more passionate about the idea of steering public dollars away from traditional public schools than Betsy DeVos". And it meant a country where personal responsibility and belief in yourself were two sides of the same coin. [124][125][126], Subsequent to the incident, the U.S. He was 92. Rich DeVos was interviewed for the Gerald R. Ford Oral History Project on August 21 . DeVos is the co-founder of Amway and also owner of the Orlando Magic National Basketball Association franchise. One of his daughters-in-law, Betsy DeVos, is the U.S. secretary of education. Under his leadership, the company opened numerous new markets and tripled foreign sales to exceed domestic sales for the first time in company history. ADA, Mich. (AP) Billionaire Richard DeVos, co-founder of direct-selling giant Amway, owner of the Orlando Magic and father-in-law of Education Secretary Betsy DeVos, died Thursday. The show ran for three weeks, closing in December 2012[48] after receiving negative reviews. Not for nothing was the company named Amway. The Windquest Group is a privately held investment management firm with holdings in technology, manufacturing, and other sectors. He was 92. In 1999, they created a company Alticor, which would act as the parent firm to all their businesses. [142][146][147][149][150], With respect to educational-focused donations, the foundation from 1999 to 2014 supported private Christian schools (at least $8.6million), charter schools ($5.2million), and public schools ($59,750). https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dTaXg5BwtxA, https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7q3JLIFRjT0. . In 1959after numerous ventures into entrepreneurshipthey started a new business together in the basements of their homes. [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. [24] He was a dedicated opponent of same-sex marriage. If a particular business approach is not economically viable it will not be sustainable." [122], In 2019, DeVos unsuccessfully attempted to cut federal funding for the Special Olympics from her department's budget, which she had also attempted to cut in her previous two annual budgets. "We are fortunate to have skilled scientists, committed conservationists and highly qualified academicians in West Michigan addressing this problem," DeVos told the Sentinel. While Granholm argued that jobs had been moved to China and India, DeVos pointed out that "Michigan jobs havegone to Ohio, Indiana, and other states with less punitive tax policies, and this governor fails to recognize that. Sway in State Contests", "U.S. Panel on AIDS, Citing Challenges, Ousts Staff Chief", "At 83, Amway co-founder Richard DeVos prepares company's third generation, addresses church, gay-marriage concerns", How MLive analyzed DeVos family's $90.9 million in annual donations, "M. and Helen DeVos Center for Entrepreneurship & Innovation", Richard DeVos Philanthropic Impact Reflected by Hope Campus, Sport Business About the DeVos Foundation, "Amway co-founder Richard DeVos dies at 92", Majority team owners in the National Basketball Association, https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Richard_DeVos&oldid=1135078359, Businesspeople from Grand Rapids, Michigan, Women's National Basketball Association executives, American members of the Christian Reformed Church in North America, United States Army Air Forces personnel of World War II, Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike License 3.0, This page was last edited on 22 January 2023, at 14:21. American businessman, co-founder of Amway along with Jay Van Andel, Born on March 04, 1926 Throughout his life, DeVos maintained that what Amway offered was not the guarantee of a quick buck, but an opportunity to realize the American dream through hard work. [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. This article is about Richard DeVos Sr. For his son Richard DeVos Jr., see, The Possible Dream, by Charles Paul Conn, page 6, President's Commission on the HIV Epidemic, Christian Reformed Church in North America, "DeVos gift to Grand Rapids Christian Schools relieves debt, puts schools on 'very stable financial ground', "Orlando Magic senior chairman Rich DeVos passes away at 92", "Magic, DeVos family plan to buy Orlando Solar Bears", "Nothing but the best for new arena: Look what your taxes helped buy", "National Constitution Center, Board of Trustees", "The Ultra-Rich, Ultra-Conservative DeVos Family", "Michigan Effort Shows G.O.P. Betsy, the daughter of auto parts magnate Edgar Prince and sister of Blackwater founder Erik. in Grand Rapids, Michigan, USA , United States (96 years), This form allows you to report an error or to submit additional information about this family tree: Richard DEVOS (1926), Copyright Wikipdia authors - This article is under licence CC BY-SA 3.0. He studied at the Grand Rapids Christian High School and this is where he met his friend and future business partner Jay Van Andel. They've got to go if we want to help manufacturing and bring jobs back to Michigan." [30] She has been a member and elder of Mars Hill Bible Church in Grand Rapids. [9] In 2014 he published his memoirs, titled Simply Rich. American businessman, co-founder of Amway along with Jay Van Andel. DeVos responded: "I believe states should continue to have flexibility in putting together programs "[101], CBS reporter Lesley Stahl questioned DeVos, in a March 2018 60 Minutes interview, about the documented failure of the DeVos programs to demonstrate a positive result, in Michigan, her home state: "Your argument that if you take funds away that the schools will get better is not working in Michigan where you had a huge impact and influence over the direction of the school system." now worth nearly $1.2 billion net of debt, they raked in money from at least 85 separate sources last year, which has been roughly estimated at $200 million. It was within a year of his wifes demise on 18 October 2017. https://www.thefamouspeople.com/profiles/richard-devos-49671.php. [87] This was the first tie decided by a vice president on any vote in the Senate since the George W. Bush administration. DeVos is known for her conservative political activism,[1] and particularly her support for school choice, school voucher programs, and charter schools. Click here to get the full experience on your screen. An account of the Grand Action project explains that while authorities in Detroit kept initiating "one master project after another" that was supposed to solve that city's problems, and that never did, Grand Rapids was different, because its "business leaders painstakingly set goals, aligned with government officials, generated support, and empowered key players." [133], In May 2019, the Education Department inspector general released a report concluding that DeVos had used personal email accounts to conduct government business and that she did not properly preserve these emails. [92], In mid-May 2018, The New York Times reported that under DeVos, the size of the team investigating abuses and fraud by for-profit colleges was reduced from about twelve members under the Obama administration to three, with their task also being scaled back to "processing student loan forgiveness applications and looking at smaller compliance cases". [98] In her first official appearance as Secretary on February 10, 2017, dozens of protesters showed up to prevent her appearance. Dan DeVos is a businessman in his own right, and he's most well known for his role as CEO of DP Fox. 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