Richard DeVos Sr.
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| Richard DeVos Sr. | |
 | |
| Basic facts | |
| Organization: | Amway |
| Role: | Co-founder |
| Location: | Grand Rapids, Mich. |
| Affiliation: | Republican |
| Education: | Calvin College |
Richard DeVos Sr. was the co-founder of Amway and a donor to a number of conservative causes in Michigan and nationally. DeVos was also the owner of the Orlando Magic, an NBA basketball franchise in Orlando, Fla. As of November 2015, DeVos' estimated net worth was $6 billion.[1] He passed away on September 6, 2018.[2]
Career
Richard DeVos founded Amway, a multilevel marketing venture, in 1959 with his friend Jay Van Andel. The two began the company as a way to work for themselves, DeVos said: "We were just two guys from Ada, Michigan, USA who wanted to have a business of our own. We were two kids (it still feels like that sometimes) who were hungry for success and who wanted to give others the chance to be in business for themselves, too."[3]
DeVos was a conservative Christian who grew up "in a strong Christian tradition." He gave to a number of Christian organizations, including the Grand Rapids Christian schools that he was educated in as a child.[4] DeVos was also a prominent donor to a few groups working to outlaw same-sex marriage in Florida and nationwide. He donated $100,000 to a group called Florida4Marriage in 2008 and $450,000 to Focus on the Family.[5] In a 2009 interview, DeVos articulated his opposition to same-sex marriage: "Marriage is a sacred document, OK? A sacred sacrament in the church and in the world. Don't mess with it. Go do something else. I deal with a lot of wonderful gay people. I hire a lot of them. I use a lot of them. I respect them. They're terrific. I am good friends with them. But you live your life the way you want to live and I'll live mine and I won't stick my nose in yours. But don't keep trying to change things. That's all."[6]
DeVos was also a prominent donor in West Michigan. A major donation from the DeVos family and Amway in 1977 and 1978 contributed to a major overhaul of the symphony's performance space, which was renamed DeVos Hall in honor of Richard and his wife Helen. These donations were followed by a $5 million donation to the symphony foundation in 2002.[7][4] As of October 2015, the DeVos family had donated a lifetime total of $1.2 billion to philanthropic causes.[8]
Top influencers by state
Influencers in American politics are power players who help get candidates elected, put through policy proposals, cause ideological changes, and affect popular perceptions. They can take on many forms: politicians, lobbyists, advisors, donors, corporations, industry groups, labor unions, single-issue organizations, nonprofits, to name a few.
In 2015, Ballotpedia identified Richard DeVos Sr. as a top influencer by state. We identified top influencers across the country through several means, including the following:
- Local knowledge of our professional staff
- Surveys of activists, thought leaders and journalists from across the country and political spectrum
- Outreach to political journalists in each state who helped refine our lists
Recent news
The link below is to the most recent stories in a Google news search for the terms 'Richard DeVos'. These results are automatically generated from Google. Ballotpedia does not curate or endorse these articles.
See also
External links
Footnotes
- ↑ Forbes, "Richard DeVos," accessed November 17, 2015
- ↑ CNN Money, "Amway co-founder Richard DeVos dies at 92," September 6, 2018
- ↑ Amway, "Rich DeVos and Jay Van Andel," accessed November 17, 2015
- ↑ 4.0 4.1 Learning to Give, "Helen DeVos," accessed November 17, 2015
- ↑ MLive Media Group, "Rich DeVos' comments about gay marriage prove a magnet for controversy," May 20, 2009
- ↑ MLive Media Group, "At 83, Amway co-founder Richard DeVos prepares company's third generation, addresses church, gay-marriage concerns," May 19, 2009
- ↑ DeVos Performance Hall, "History," accessed November 17, 2015
- ↑ MLive Media Group, "$1.2B in donations puts DeVos family on Forbes top philanthropy list," October 1, 2015
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