Few people work harder or care more passionately about the growth of Grand Valley State University than Richard M. DeVos.
To honor his work, the University has carved his name in stone above the entrances to its new 286,000-square-foot building downtown, and today, the Richard M. DeVos Center will be dedicated.
A member of the Board of Control from 1975 to 1982 and chairman of fund-raising campaigns that have doubled the size of the University, DeVos also serves as an unofficial Best Friend of GVSU, a person the University can count on as a spokesman, a cheerleader, or when needed, a mover and shaker who makes good things happen.
It is not an idle question to ask why a much-sought-after billionaire would agree to sit on the board of what was, in the 70's, a cash-strapped, little-known college. Shortly after he joined, things got worse - a national recession and state budget cuts. The young college not only pulled itself out of trouble, it started setting records for growth that continue today.
DeVos then turned his energy to building wide community support for an endowment fund - a crucial step if GVSU was to expand and enhance its programs. DeVos believed and preached that West Michigan was going to see tremendous growth and that education would be the key to sustaining that growth. He knew GVSU couldn't wait for its young alumni to grow old enough and rich enough to create that fund. With his example, encouragement, and charisma, DeVos, who is the current President of the Grand Valley University Foundation, helped create a fund that today stands at $40 million and is supported by the work and generosity of thousands of people.
After all that, it seems to miss the point to talk about the first-and-only thing on people's minds: How much did he give? Specifically, The Richard and Helen DeVos Foundation gave $7.75 million of the $16 million in private funds raised for the new building on GVSU's downtown campus. (The State of Michigan provided $38 million in public funds.)
Today's dedication opens a new chapter in the University's growth, filled with potential, abounding in opportunity, and accessible to anyone in West Michigan willing to take up the challenge.
