An unrelenting optimist, DeVos is convinced that people can solve most of their problems by taking personal responsibility." That stake has made the DeVoses unbelievably rich. Asked what she could do about that, she said, "Whatever can be done will be done, and it will be done swiftly and surely. Thus began the huckster life of Rich DeVos, a boundlessly charismatic man who was defined by his remarkable ability to sell things. In September 2010, the Spectrum Health Foundation presented DeVos with its Art of Giving Award at its annual celebration of philanthropy. There wasnt yet a major concerted effort to enlist religious conservatives into politics. Family tree of Richard DEVOS. [16][39], The foundation has also given money to organizations that promote free-market economics, such as the Grand Rapids-based Acton Institute; the Heritage Foundation; and the Hudson Institute. [42] Betsy DeVos's husband, Richard Marvin "Dick" DeVos Jr., is a multi-billionaire heir to the Amway fortune who ran Amway's parent company, Alticor, from 1993 to 2002. Richard DeVos cofounded direct-selling giant Amway. Suzanne, also known as Cheri is the only daughter of Richard DeVos. He added that "This is the kind of school that I would have loved to have had if I was a kid. "We want to help develop human capital and leverage that capital to the greatest extent possible", she said, describing Kaiser's "practice and approach" as "practical, realistic and creative". Dick and Betsy were early investors in home goods retailer At Home and own as much as $5 million worth of stock in Elon Musks privately held SpaceX. It's a monopoly, a dead end. Dick DeVos ran the company from 1993 to 2002. In 2006, Richard and his wife, Helen, were recognized for their work and received the William E. Simon Prize for Philanthropic Leadership. Apart from being a successful entrepreneur, he has authored a total of three books: Compassionate Capitalism, Hope from My Heart: Ten Lessons for Life and Believe! Believing that every individual deserves the opportunity to succeed, we intentionally partner with programs and initiatives that increase access to economic mobility and build healthy places for people to live, work, learn, and play. Dick DeVos was the President of Amway from the year 1993 to 2002, he is married to Betsy DeVos, the US Secretary of Education. Job-killing taxes like the SBT (Single Business Tax) punish job makers for creating jobs, providing their employees with benefits, and investing in new technology. Together, Betsy DeVos, her husband and their four adult children are worth roughly $2 billion. DeVos left his positions as president and CEO of the Orlando Magic in January 1993 to rejoin Amway as its president, succeeding his father, Amway co-founder Rich DeVos. Bush: The Favorite Couple of the White House Staff, Aiko Herzig-Yoshinaga: The Activist Who Discovered the Truth About WWII Internment, William Goldman: The Writer Who Brought Watergate to the Screen, Louise Slaughter: The Congresswoman Who Continued the Legacy of Seneca Falls, Stan Lee: The Mind Behind Americas Superheroes, California's road to recovery runs through D.C. Republicans, Why New Jerseys ventilator guidelines may favor younger, whiter patients, Rhode Island ends specific restrictions on New Yorkers by making them national. [32], MSNBC reported in December 2012 that the Mackinac Public Policy Center, which had played a major role in the passage of right-to-work in Michigan, was funded mainly by the Charles G. Koch Foundation and the Dick and Betsy DeVos Foundation. [82] As expected, there was a 5050 tie on the final vote, with all Democrats and independents, along with two Republicans (Susan Collins and Lisa Murkowski), voting in opposition to DeVos, while the other fifty Republican senators voted in support of the confirmation, including Senator Jeff Sessions, who himself had been nominated by the Trump administration for the post of United States attorney general. In 2000, DeVos oversaw a significant corporate restructuring that created Alticor, the new parent company of predecessor Amway, as well as other subsidiary companies. If a particular business approach is not economically viable it will not be sustainable." "I still remember when it was in the basement of our home when I was growing up," he later said. Daughter-in-law Betsy DeVos chaired the Michigan Republican Party and now heads the Alliance for School Choice. [17] On January 31, following strong opposition to the nomination from Democrats, the Senate Committee on Health, Education, Labor and Pensions approved her nomination on a party-line vote, sending her nomination to the Senate floor. In the 1990s, the Family Research Councils downtown Washington headquarters was built entirely thanks to the financial backing of Rich & Helen DeVos and Edgar & Elsa Prince, the parents of the DeVos daughter-in-law Betsy. Dutton, it contains a foreword by former President Gerald R. Ford. It is one of five non-profit organizations established and operated by the DeVos family; the others, all founded by siblings of Richard DeVos Jr., include the Dick and Betsy DeVos Foundation; the Daniel and Pamella DeVos Foundation; Cheri DeVos' CDV5 Foundation; and the Douglas and Maria DeVos Foundation. Published by E.P. Growing up during the Great Depression, he credited his lifetime of success and happiness to the presence of a strong, caring, faith-based, values-oriented family. DeVos was unable to provide any actual examples of improvement, but stated there were "pockets" where schools had done better than public schools. [31], A Reuters article published in December 2012 noted that the Michigan right-to-work campaign had "gathered momentum" thanks to the involvement of DeVos and "Ronald Weiser, former chairman of the Michigan Republican Party and ambassador to Slovakia under President George W. 1959. They bought the manufacturing and distribution rights for Frisk, an organic cleaner, developed by an Ohio scientist and renamed it as Liquid Organic Cleaner or LOC. [138] Hours after her resignation, Senator Elizabeth Warren later called her the worst Secretary of Education on Twitter, saying she never done anything to help students, and saying she would rather quit than invoke the 25th Amendment to remove Trump from office. He was educated at Calvin College and is a member of the Sigma Phi Epsilon Fraternity. Add it all up and Betsy and her husbands slice of the family fortune totals about $2 billion, though its hard to tell how much, if any, of that wealth has already been transferred to their four children and eight grandchildren. [51][54][55] In November 2019, Truth In Advertising filed complaints[56] against Neurocore with the Food and Drug Administration for unapproved medical devices[57] and the Federal Trade Commission for deceptive marketing. In all, she has disclosed that her share of these outside holdingswhich do not include Amway or the Magicare worth at least $335 million. "[7], When the DeVos family acquired the National Basketball Association's Orlando Magic basketball franchise in 1991, DeVos's father, Richard DeVos became president and CEO of the team. [174] She has chaired the boards of Choices for Children, and Great Lakes Education Project (GLEP). "[44], DeVos is the author of the 1998 book Rediscovering American Values. It was your social activity. DeVos is survived by his four adult children: Suzanne "Cheri" DeVos, Richard "Dick," Daniel G. and Douglas L. DeVos. 3. The son of Amway co-founder Richard DeVos, he served as CEO of the multi-level marketing company from 1993 to 2002. Education Department officials declined requests for information about the deployment of marshals or the current tasks of the Secretary's displaced security team normally assigned to her. Latest News. For DeVos, the American way meant a country that embraced the free-enterprise system, exalted God and held true to conservative Christian principles (This country was built on a religious heritage, he wrote in Believe!, and wed better get back to it.). [156][157] The couple donated $22.5million in 2010 to continue the endeavor, which was given in the name of the DeVos Institute of Arts Management. [172][173], Her other activities on behalf of public-school reform have included membership on the boards of directors of the Advocates for School Choice, the American Education Reform Council, and the Education Freedom Fund. This page was last edited on 15 December 2022, at 20:35. In 1949, they formed a business called Ja-Ri, naming it after their initials, which they turned into a dealership for Nutrilite Products, after attending a company seminar on direct sales success, in Chicago. 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. Although Amway has come under scrutiny and criticism by several government organizations, the conglomerate recorded sales of $8.8 billion in 2018. DeVos explained that "Some time ago Windquest brought on a specialist in alternative energy. [47], DeVos and her husband were producers for a Broadway run of the stage play Scandalous: The Life and Trials of Aimee Semple McPherson, in 2012, based on the life of the famous evangelist and featuring a book and lyrics written by Kathie Lee Gifford. "It's fascinating how many aviators there are who have already expressed a desire to be involved with this program and to bring the aviation component to it. The Windquest Group is a privately held investment management firm with holdings in technology, manufacturing, and other sectors. [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. According to BetsyDeVos.com, her official website, DeVos is a grandmother, with four children and five grandchildren. 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. By the late 1990s, the family was the largest single contributor of soft money to the Republican Party, Betsy DeVos wrote in a 1997 op-ed. "[37] He told a reporter for the Grand Rapids Press: "If you're the kind of person who can't help but look up when you hear a plane overhead, then you're exactly the kind of person who will love this school.I have just a joy of flying.The world is such a different place when you can see it from 5,000 feet. "[4], In a talk given in Washington, D.C., in January 2013, under the auspices of the Heritage Foundation, DeVos discussed the passage of so-called "Right to Work" legislation in Michigan. [181], In a written response to a question about charter school performance posed during DeVos's confirmation hearing by Senator Patty Murray (D-WA), asking "why do you think their performance is so poor? [26][160] Rick works for the Windquest Group[193] as a consultant on urban development, and is the founder of Grand Rapids' ArtPrize festival. The DeVos Family Foundation (DVFF) is a collaborative effort between the familys second and third generations to maintain this philosophy of investing in things that truly matter. "[30], In a December 2012 article in The New York Times, Nicholas Confessore and Monica Davey reported that after President Obama's re-election, DeVos "began dialing up state lawmakers in Lansing," telling them that it was time to pass a right-to-work law. [11] He became interested in the team after an unsuccessful effort to acquire a Major League Baseball expansion franchise for Orlando. [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. [86] He cast his tie-breaking vote in favor of DeVos to officially confirm her as education secretary. What began as two buddies selling an all-purpose cleaner door-to-door quickly grew into an army of independent salespeople hawking vitamins, soaps and other household goods to friends and familyand, controversially, earning money by signing others up as distributors too. The Griffins are a part of American Hockey League now and are owned by Richards son Dan. [1] Betsy was a founding board member of the James Madison Center for Free Speech which the DeVos family funded and whose "sole goal was to end all legal restrictions on money in politics. Ahead of the 1980 election, radio host Paul Harvey, whose show was sponsored by Amway for many years, floated Rich DeVos as a potential candidate for president. We have the lowest personal income growth, the lowest business start-ups in the country. Also surviving are 16 grandchildren and eight great-grandchildren. It was impossible. [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. It sort of has to do with being poor by choice.). 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." In that fiscal year, Alticor reported sales of $4.5 billion, primarily through its more than 3.5 million part-time sales force and its complementary e-commerce channel. Associated Press. [54], DeVos and his wife have homes in Grand Rapids and Ada, Michigan. In his talk, he explained how the legislation was passed, praising Michigan's business community, certain legislators, and Mackinac Center for Public Policy for their role in its passage, and noting that it was important to propose the legislation at the right time, to give it the right name, to be prepared for backlash, and to bring it to a vote quickly. DeVos Children - Dick DeVos, Daniel DeVos, Doug DeVos and Suzanne DeVos The couple had a total of four children, three sons and a daughter. [194][195][196], Betsy DeVos's brother, Erik Prince, a former U.S. Navy SEAL officer, is the founder of Blackwater USA, a private military services contractor.[23][197][198]. [6] DeVos is a graduate of the Forest Hills public school system. Van Wesep and married Richard in the year 1953. 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. ", During her first visit to a public university on April 6, 2017, DeVos was confronted by around 30 protestors. campaign committee, which sponsored a ballot-initiative that would have amended the Michigan constitution to allow vouchers and tuition tax credits for private K-12 education. She has stated that education is "a closed system, a closed industry, a closed market. The thing about hucksterism, though, is that there are limits to what you can say while being an effective salesperson. DeVos was born in Grand Rapids, Michigan. [140], The Dick & Betsy DeVos Family Foundation was launched in 1989. [68][69] DeVos drew widespread media attention during the confirmation hearings for suggesting that guns might have a place in some schools due to a threat from grizzly bears. [15], He sat on the board of trustees of Northwood University and has been president of the Council for National Policy. As boys, he and his brother Doug were "tapped as mini-hosts", assigned to greet attendees at Amway's annual conventions, and they "helped out with everything from clearing plates during gatherings to ferrying guests to play tennis or waterski. 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. [5] Donations [ edit] 351 richest person in the world, with a net worth of approximately US$5.4billion. "I . [7] This was preceded by two heart-bypass operations in 1983 and 1992. DeVos and his wife have four children: Richard Marvin (Rick) III, Elisabeth (Elissa), Andrea, and Ryan, and eight grandchildren. ", "Betsy DeVos and the twilight of public education", "Betsy DeVos, Trump's Education Pick, Has Steered Money From Public Schools", "Mitt Romney op-ed: Betsy DeVos a smart choice for education secretary", "Betsy DeVos' senate confirmation delayed amid concerns over her political donations", "Betsy DeVos, Trump's pick for education secretary, open to defunding public schools", "Betsy DeVos's Education Hearing Erupts into Partisan Debate", "DeVos May Have Used Official's Remarks Without Attribution", "Betsy DeVos appears to have plagiarized quotes for Senate questionnaire", "Senate confirms Betsy DeVos as Education secretary as Pence breaks 5050 tie", "Education Secretary Betsy DeVos Has Already Affected Public Education", "Betsy DeVos squeaks through as Education secretary after Pence casts first-ever tie-breaking vote", "Watch Colbert, Kimmel, Corden Mock Betsy DeVos' Grizzly Bear Fears", "With lightning speed, Betsy DeVos became a target of late-night comics", "Anti-Devos calls jam Senate phone lines", "Progressives launch last-minute push against Betsy DeVos, and conservatives counter with online ad campaign", "Vote on DeVos looms as Democrats raise more concerns", "Senate panel OKs DeVos despite 2 GOP senators' concerns", "Two GOP senators to vote 'no' on Betsy DeVos", "Senate advances DeVos's nomination, setting her up for final vote", "Democrats plan all-night protest ahead of DeVos vote", "Betsy DeVos confirmed: Trump education pick stumbles over finishing line after Mike Pence casts tie-breaking vote", "Republicans need Jeff Sessions to stay in the Senate just a little longer", "Vice President Mike Pence breaks Senate tie to confirm Betsy DeVos as US education secretary", "DeVos Confirmed as Education Secretary, Pence Casts Historic Tie-Breaking Vote", "Senate confirms DeVos as secretary of education", Betsy DeVos being guarded by U.S. Richard Marvin DeVos Jr. (born October 21, 1955) is an American businessman and author. He expressed concern "that some of the new products in the marketplace are either too dependent on tax incentives or subsidies" and not genuinely "viable and competitive". Staying current is easy with Crain's news delivered straight to your inbox, free of charge. [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. [20] As of October 27, 2006, the DeVos campaign had spent $39 million, of which nearly $35 million was DeVos's own money. In a section of River North where most of the homes are ornate neo-classical mansions, a new one nearing completion stands out for its hard-edged contemporary look. "I remember the offices being down there and people working down there." Industrialist, Businessman. DeVos planned to create "a pro-jobs tax structure while supporting small business growth to increase jobs," and described his credentials as follows: "I've made tough decisions, I've turned around a struggling business, and I've helped an entire city turn around. [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." [11][12][13] Their father is billionaire industrialist Edgar Prince, founder of the Prince Corporation. Bray's conclusion was that "the DeVos ads are striking home with their message: that the Michigan economy is in a shambles, that Granholm has failed to develop a strategy to resurrect the state and that a hard-nosed businessman who owes nothing to anybody is just the guy to sort things out. Constitution. [136][137] She was the second cabinet member to resign following the insurrection, the first being Secretary of Transportation Elaine Chao. It makes him the 259th richest in the world and 91th in the United States. [93], In October 2018, it was announced that DeVos's chief of staff, Josh Venable, would be replaced by Nate Bailey, who at that time was DeVos's chief of communications. But the makings of the movement were therethe sexual revolution, the Supreme Courts Roe v. Wade ruling, the pornography wars, the white backlash to desegregation, the backlash to the womens lib movement, the rise of the silent majority.. [23][192] Dick's father, Richard Marvin DeVos Sr., co-founded Amway and was the owner of the Orlando Magic NBA basketball team. [51] Democratic senators raised concerns about a potential conflict of interest and questioned whether she and her family members would "benefit financially from actions" she could take as the U.S. Secretary of Education. 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