Paul Sancya

Betsy DeVos: From West Michigan to Trump's Cabinet

When President-elect Donald Trump last month tapped Betsy DeVos to be Secretary of Education, the businesswoman and GOP political activist suddenly became a household name. People wanted to know who she was, what she stood for, and what plans she had for public education. The latter has stirred some controversy.

But in her hometown, DeVos has always been known as the link between two West Michigan business dynasties: The daughter of Holland industrialist Edgar Prince, who married Amway heir Dick DeVos. Here’s a look at her life in pictures.

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Top student

Betsy, short for Elisabeth Dee, was a honor roll student at Holland Chistian High School in the 1970s. She played percussion in the symphony instruments such as snare and tenor drums, cymbals, wood blocks, triangleand chimes. Betsy was also a member of the Ski and German clubs, on the swim team and a Dutch Dancer during Holland’s annual Tulip Time Festival in May, according to the school's 1975 yearbook.

(Courtesy | deVries Photography)

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High school swimmer

Betsy Prince's main sport in high school was swimming. She is pictured with her Holland Christian High School swim team. Betsy is in the front row, fifth from left. Her sister, Eileen Prince, is in the back row, second from the left.

(Courtesy | HCHS)

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1975 graduate

Betsy graduated from Holland Christian High School in June 1975. She is shown in this yearbook photo accepting a National Honor Society award. After high school, she attended Calvin College in Grand Rapids, where she was elected to student senate. While at college, she volunteered on Gerald Ford's presidential campaign as a "scatterblitzer," knocking on doors and doing grassroots campaigning in Indiana, Ohio and Wisconsin.

(Courtesy | HCHS)

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Courtesy | Betsy DeVos

'Wedding of the Century'

Some called it the “wedding of the century” when Betsy Prince, oldest daughter of Holland industrialist Edgar Prince, married Dick DeVos, the oldest son of Richard DeVos, co-founder of Ada-based Amway.

The wedding took place in flower-draped Grand Rapids church in February 1979. Prince, 21, graduated from Calvin College that same year. DeVos, 23, had already earned his business administration degree from Northwood University, and was working at Amway.

Dick DeVos told The Grand Rapids Press in 2006 he met Betsy in an Ada farmhouse, introduced by his roommate Bill Swets who was dating her at the time. When noticed the two had cooled, he asked his friend for Betsy's number. Swets remains a close friend of the couple, a spokesman said.

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Shandra Martinez | smartinez@mlive.com

Business ventures

In 1988, Dick DeVos leaves the family business and starts Windquest, a holding company for several businesses that he and Betsy currently lead together. He returned to Amway in 1993 after his father, Richard Sr., suffered a heart attack and eventually received a heart transplant. Dick DeVos stepped down as Amway president in 2002. He was succeeded by his youngest brother, Doug.

Windquest's businesses include The Stow Company, Reserve Wine and Foods, Boxed Water and Neurocore, in addition to investments in other firms.

Caption: Betsy and Dick DeVos watch as the top 10 finalists for ArtPrize 2012 are shown on a screen Sunday, Sept. 30, 2012 in Grand Rapids.

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(MLive file photo | Chris Clark)

A passion for politics

In 2003, Betsy DeVos is introduced as the new chair for the Michigan Republican party at the GOP convention held at the Grand Center in Grand Rapids.

Like her husband, Betsy has a passion for politics. Both were involved in GOP causes from their earliest days, as volunteers, fundraisers, party leaders, not to mention significant financial contributors. Betsy DeVos served as chairwoman of the Kent County Republican Party and the state Republican Party.

She served as Michigan Republican Party chairwoman from 1996-2000 and 2003-05.

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Dick DeVos runs for governor

When Dick DeVos ran for Michigan governor in 2006, reducing taxes and business regulation were the cornerstone of his economic recovery plan. He was adamant about eliminating the state's Single-Business Tax, or SBT, and replacing it with a simpler business tax. While DeVos lost to Jennifer Granholm, his campaign ideas came to pass under her successor, Rick Snyder.

Caption: Republican gubernatorial candidate Dick DeVos with his wife Betsy while addressing supporters gathered in a Lansing Hotel Ballroom after conceding the 2006 election to Jennifer Granholm.

(MLive file photo | Rex Larsen)

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Shandra Martinez | smartinez@mlive.com

Presidential appointment

Betsy DeVos served a six-year term on the Kennedy Center board in Washington, D.C., after President George W. Bush appointed her in 2004.

"Betsy was the best board member I ever had, " said Michael Kaiser, who stepped down last year as the organization's president. "She's smart and she does what she says she is going to do. She is a team player but also has ideas, and she's generous and she's hardworking. She's just perfect. She is what you want in a board member."

Betsy and her husband, Dick DeVos, are equally effusive in their praise of Kaiser's work teaching management practices to professional arts administrators. In 2010, they donated $22.5 million to his nonprofit organization, now called the DeVos Institute for the Arts Management at University of Maryland.

While the organization performs work in 82 countries, the DeVoses specifically asked Kaiser to have a presence in Grand Rapids. His organization mentors local arts organizations, including the Grand Rapids Symphony and Grand Rapids Ballet.

Caption: From left, Melissa DeVos, Betsy DeVos, and Dick DeVos attend the 2014 ArtPrize Awards ceremony at the Civic Theatre on Friday, Oct. 10, 2014. (MLive file photo | Emily Rose Bennett)

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MLive file photo | Darren Breen

Charter school advocate

Betsy DeVos' commitment to school choice extends beyond school voucher to support charter schools.

She and her husband, Dick, started the Great Lakes Education Project, a charter school advocacy group, that has given "at least $6.1 million directly to the Michigan Republican Party, about $752,200 to the Senate Republican Campaign Committee and about $1.1 million to the House Republican Campaign Committee," according to the nonpartisan group, Michigan Campaign Finance Network.

Great Lakes Education Project supported a 2011 law that lifted Michigan’s cap on charter schools. Under the law, the number of authorized charter schools was raised to 300 through 2012 and 500 through 2014, after which the cap was lifted.

In 2010, Dick and Betsy started West Michigan Aviation Academy, a successful charter school housed at the Gerald R. Ford International Airport.

Caption: Dick, left, and Betsy DeVos, right, speak at Evergreen Commons in the Edgar D. Prince Lessons in Leadership Series Wednesday Sept. 8, 2010.

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School choice advocacy leads to Ohio fine

In 2008, the Ohio Elections Commission levied a record $5.2 million fine against a political action committee headed by former Michigan Republican Chairwoman Betsy DeVos that supports candidates who favor school choice. All Children Matter's political action committee in Virginia sent $870,000 to its PAC in Ohio for the 2006 election cycle.

The contribution was illegal because All Children Matter's Virginia PAC wasn't registered in Ohio. Former Michigan gubernatorial candidate Dick DeVos, Betsy's husband, set up All Children Matter in 2003 to promote efforts in other states to push vouchers and tax credits for businesses that create scholarships for children to attend private schools. Dick and Betsy DeVos, who have been the public face of the voucher movement in Michigan, chaired the failed 2000 voucher initiative in Michigan.

In the wake of her selection as education secretary, a group of Democratic senators are calling her out to pay the $5.3 million in fines.

A spokesman for DeVos described the lawsuit that triggered the fines as a political manuever to derail education reform in Ohio. It remains a non-issue because of the 2010 Supreme Court's Citizens United decision negated the case against the organization, contends the DeVos team.

Caption: In 2010, Betsy DeVos and then Ohio Congressman John R. Kasich speak with students in Mike Lubbers’ government class at K-Christian High School about voting for Proposal 1 vouchers. (MLive file photo | Mark Bugnaski)

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Shandra Martinez | smartinez@mlive.com

Mother of four

Married for 37 years, Dick and Betsy DeVos have four children: ArtPrize founder Richard “Rick” DeVos III, Elisabeth “Elissa, ” Andrea and Ryan. Beyond raising their kids, Dick and Betsy DeVos are partners in their business, political advocacy and philanthropy ventures.

Caption: Republican gubernatorial candidate Dick DeVos is accompanied by his family as he thanks supporters gathered in a Lansing Hotel Ballroom after conceding the 2006 election to Jennifer Granholm. Left to right, Ryan, Andrea, Elissa, Rick, and wife Betsy. (MLive file photo | Rex Larsen)

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MLive file photo | Rex Larsen

Betsy's social entreprenuer son

Betsy's oldest son, Rick, was in his 20s when he launched ArtPrize, an international art competition that not only bolstered Grand Rapids image but its economy. Dick and Betsy and the rest of the tight-knit DeVos kin contributed donations to provide the capital to launch Rick's first major social entreprenuer project. He followed up with Start Garden, venture capital fund to launch new business ideas.

Caption: Betsy DeVos, presenting Sponsor for the Dick and Betsy Family Foundation, hugs her son, and ArtPrize Founder and Chairman, Rick DeVos, during the ArtPrize 2011 awards ceremony in DeVos Performance Hall.

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Courtesy photo

Broadway producers

Betsy DeVos, and her husband Dick, tried their hand at producing a Broadway show when they agreed to invest in their friend and Today show co-host Kathie Lee Gifford’s musical "Scandalous: The Life and Trials of Aimee Semple McPherson.

Gifford penned the book and lyrics for the show based on the true story of a 1920s evangelist and broadcasting pioneer known as Sister Aimee. McPherson is described as a celebrity superstar who used progressive media techniques to promote her conservative religious sermons. Among her teachings was that the science-based Evolution was the work of Satan.

"We thought it was a story that people would not only learn about American history but that they would enjoy a great, great show," Dick DeVos told MLive in 2012. "This is a story Betsy and I didn’t know about."

Although star Carolee Carmello was nominated for a Tony Award, the $9 million production ended after a three-week run.

Dick and Betsy DeVos get 'Scandalous' on Broadway with 'Today' show co-host Kathie Lee Gifford

Caption: Carolee Carmello as Aimee and Edward Watts as David Hutton in a scene from the Broadway musical, "Scandalous: The Life and Trials of Aimee Semple McPherson."

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MLive file photo | Mark Copier

Holland summer home that caused gawkers

In 2010, Dick and Betsy DeVos bought Richard DeVos' former Lake Macatawa home for a demolish and rebuild. The result, the 22,000 square-foot stone and shingle "summer" home was the talk of Betsy's hometown.

The biggest home in Holland, if not Ottawa County, iniitally triggered some traffic jams along South Shore Drive gawkers slowed down to follow the construction.

Betsy DeVos, who wasn't thrilled with the attention the house drew, told The Grand Rapids Press in 2010 that she wanted to create a family retreat.

"As our family is continuing to grow, our hope is that it will be a gathering place for many generations," she said.

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Betsy DeVos, the environmentalist

After spotting algae in Lake Macatawa in 2012, Betsy DeVos organized a $12 million Project Clarity cleanup of the Holland lake her summer home overlooks. The plans involves restoring wetlands.

She rallied community members who donated the bulk of the funding, which was paired with local and state tax dollars.

How Betsy DeVos' paddle boarding led to $12M plan to clean up Lake Macatawa

Caption: Philanthropist Betsy DeVos, shown on a boat ride, is credited for launching a $12 million community effort to clean up Lake Macatawa in Holland, Mich.

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Prolific philanthropists

While the DeVos family is known for outspending most in their political contributions, they give even more through philanthropy.

The DeVoses have five family foundations. Rich and his wife have the Richard and Helen DeVos Foundation. And each of their four children and spouses have one: the Dick and Betsy DeVos Foundation, the Daniel and Pamella DeVos Foundation, the (Cheri DeVos) CDV5 Foundation, and the Douglas and Maria DeVos Foundation.

Forbes pegs the Amway co-founder Rich DeVos and his family’s fortune at $5.1 billion, putting them at the 88th spot of the magazine’s list of the 400 wealthiest Americans.

For the second time in a row, the family's philanthrophy put it on Forbes' America's Top Givers list, coming in at the 24th spot when the list for giving away $104 million in 2015. The donations excluded contributions made to political parties and candidates. Over their lives, the family has given away $1.33 billion.

Where Rich DeVos and his family donate millions

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Courtesy photo

Daughter of a Holland industrialist

Edgar Prince, an industrialist, known for growing his namesake international automotive supplier, died at age 63 in 1995. The Holland company he found had grown to 4,500 employees around the world, and was ranked as the nation’s largest privately held producer of die cast machinery.

The next year, his widow Elsa, sold the company to Johnson Controls for $1.35 billion. She shared a portion of her new fortune with Prince employees, giving workers bonuses based on the number of years they worked the company.

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(MLive file photo | Mark Copier)

Betsy's mom is her hometown's biggest philanthropist

Elsa Prince Broekhuizen, who remarried after her first husband died in 1995, continued Ed Prince's investment and philanthropy in downtown Holland, which is credited with turning around from struggling to award-winning.

Her future giving is expected to be curtailed after a trusted advisor embezzled $16 million outright, and made risky investment that depleted her fortune by an estimated $50 million.

'My greed:' Investor for Elsa Prince Trust sentenced in $16M theft

Caption: Betsy DeVos' mother, Elsa Prince Broekhuizen, speaks at the Dutch-American Heritage Day dinner in Hudsonville in 2013. Prince Broekhuizen was honored with the West Michigan Dutch-American Leadership Award.

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MLive file photo | Lauren Petracca

Betsy's siblings

Betsy DeVos is the oldest of four children. Her sisters are Emilie Wierda and Eileen Ellens, who while enjoy a lower profile than Betsy, have been involved in philanthropic efforts in Holland.

Her younger brother Erik Prince, a Navy SEAL, has made international headlines as the founder of the controversial security agency Blackwater USA. The company became the world’s largest employer of former special operations soldiers at its peak, working on behalf of the U.S. State Department among other clients.

His book, "Civilian Warriors, The Inside Story of Blackwater and the Unsung Heroes of the War on Terror." was written in response to a federal investigation of the company that forced him out, and the company to rebrand.

Caption: Erik Prince, Betsy DeVos' brother, gives a lecture at Acton Institute in Grand Rapids, Mich. on Tuesday, Feb. 18, 2014. Prince, a Holland, Mich. native, is best known for founding security agency and government services Blackwater USA.

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Carolyn Kaster | AP Photo

Trump's pick

Just before Thanksgiving, President-elect Donald Trump announced Betsy DeVos, Michigan school choice advocate and longtime Republican supporter, was his pick for education secretary.

At a Dec. 9 rally in Grand Rapids as part of his "Thank you" tour, Trump said he wants DeVos to fix the nation's broken education systems to put students and families first.

Joining him on stage, DeVos promised to "put kids first every single day" if she wins U.S. Senate confirmation to the post.

"This means expanding choices and options to give every single child the opportunity for quality education regardless of their ZIP code or family circumstances," she said. "The answer isn't bigger control. The answer is local control, it's listening to parents and it's giving more choices."

Betsy DeVos shows at Donald Trump stop in Grand Rapids

Caption: In this Nov. 19, 2016 file photo, President-elect Donald Trump and Betsy DeVos pose for photographs at Trump National Golf Club Bedminster clubhouse in Bedminster, N.J. Trump has chosen charter school advocate DeVos as Education Secretary in his administration. (AP Photo/Carolyn Kaster, File)

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