In the early ’90s, a plan was publicly going around the city of Grand Rapids about the potential construction of a convention center just north of the downtown area. The news of this plan did not sit well with the incoming CEO of Amway Co, Dick DeVos. He quickly began to lobby against the idea. Dick DeVos was worried that the arena would end up being a negative for the city and the people due to the fact that many similar projects failed across the state. Some of these include the Pontiac Silverdome and the Palace of Auburn Hills, to name a few.
Due to his commitment to not have this project completed, Dick DeVos would end up creating the Grand Action Group. This group was developed and runner by some of the city’s top business figures. In fact, for many years, Grand Action has been credited as being the driving force to many major developments around the city. Projects such as the DeVos Place Convention Center and many more would go on to change the landscape of the city for years to come.
As the heirs to two very large family fortunes, Dick and Betsy DeVos have spent much of their lives seeking change within institutions and the policies that run those institutions. They have been able to accomplish some of their goals by becoming large contributors to prominent GOP members across the state.
Perhaps Betsy DeVos’s most successful achievement came a few years back when she was able to expand the charter school system within the state. In 2012. Dick DeVos also found a major win when he was able to convert a predominantly union state into a right to work haven.
However, Betsy and Dick DeVos’s attempts to sway public opinion reach farther than the politics they like to involve themselves in. Through their family foundation, the couple has been able to donate millions towards various leadership programs, human services, and a few churches. Perhaps their largest contribution came in 2006 when the city was looking to build a children’s hospital wing of the Spectrum Health system. The couple would donate an astonishing 12.5 million towards the construction, which would later go on to be named after his mother, Helen DeVos.
Not all of their plans have been successful; many setbacks have been felt by both Dick and Betsy DeVos. However, this has not halted their goal of education reform one bit. In fact, today, the couple has been able to take their message of education reform on the road. Because of the DeVos family, over 24 states, including the District of Columbia, have some form of voucher program in place.
