Jay Van Andel was an American businessman best known as co-founder of the Amway

Amway

Amway is a direct selling company and manufacturer that uses network marketing to sell a variety of products, primarily in the health, beauty, and home care markets. Amway was founded in 1959 by Jay Van Andel and Richard DeVos...

 Corporation, along with Richard DeVos

Richard DeVos

Richard DeVos, Sr. is an American businessman, co-founder of Amway along with Jay Van Andel , and owner of the Orlando Magic NBA basketball team...

. He also served as Chairman of the U.S. Chamber of Commerce

United States Chamber of Commerce

The United States Chamber of Commerce is an American lobbying group representing the interests of many businesses and trade associations. It is not an agency of the United States government....

 from 1979–1980 and later as a member of its Senior Council from 1980-1985.

He was also known for funding religious missions and conservative political causes, including the Republican Party.

Military service

Van Andel was born in Grand Rapids, Michigan

Grand Rapids, Michigan

Grand Rapids is a city in the U.S. state of Michigan. The city is located on the Grand River about 40 miles east of Lake Michigan. As of the 2010 census, the city population was 188,040. In 2010, the Grand Rapids metropolitan area had a population of 774,160 and a combined statistical area, Grand...

. After high school, a recruiter persuaded him to enlist. He enlisted in 1942 in the United States Army Air Corps

United States Army Air Corps

The United States Army Air Corps was a forerunner of the United States Air Force. Renamed from the Air Service on 2 July 1926, it was part of the United States Army and the predecessor of the United States Army Air Forces , established in 1941...

 as a private and came out four years later as a first lieutenant.

Amway

Van Andel co-founded Amway

Amway

Amway is a direct selling company and manufacturer that uses network marketing to sell a variety of products, primarily in the health, beauty, and home care markets. Amway was founded in 1959 by Jay Van Andel and Richard DeVos...

 with Rich DeVos in 1959.

In 1979 the Federal Trade Commission

Federal Trade Commission

The Federal Trade Commission is an independent agency of the United States government, established in 1914 by the Federal Trade Commission Act...

 ordered Amway to stop misrepresenting the amount of profit, earnings or sales its distributors are likely to achieve with the business. Amway was ordered to accompany any such statements with the actual averages per distributor, pointing out that more than half of the distributors do not make any money, with the average distributor making less than $100 per month. The order was violated with a 1986 ad campaign, resulting in a $100,000 fine.

Conservative contributor

From 1985, Van Andel was a member of the Heritage Foundation

Heritage Foundation

The Heritage Foundation is a conservative American think tank based in Washington, D.C. Heritage's stated mission is to "formulate and promote conservative public policies based on the principles of free enterprise, limited government, individual freedom, traditional American values, and a strong...

, and was at the time of his death a trustee of the traditionally conservative

Conservatism

Conservatism is a political and social philosophy that promotes the maintenance of traditional institutions and supports, at the most, minimal and gradual change in society. Some conservatives seek to preserve things as they are, emphasizing stability and continuity, while others oppose modernism...

 Hillsdale College

Hillsdale College

Hillsdale College in Hillsdale, Michigan, United States, is a co-educational liberal arts college known for being the first American college to prohibit in its charter all discrimination based on race, religion, or sex; its refusal of government funding; and its monthly publication, Imprimis...

. A strong supporter of the Republican Party, Van Andel contributed $2 million to the re-election campaign of President George W. Bush

George W. Bush

George Walker Bush is an American politician who served as the 43rd President of the United States, from 2001 to 2009. Before that, he was the 46th Governor of Texas, having served from 1995 to 2000....

, and $475,000 to the Michigan State Republican Party (mostly for state legislature candidates) in 2004 alone. He was noted for his friendship with former President Gerald R. Ford, a native of Grand Rapids

Grand Rapids, Michigan

Grand Rapids is a city in the U.S. state of Michigan. The city is located on the Grand River about 40 miles east of Lake Michigan. As of the 2010 census, the city population was 188,040. In 2010, the Grand Rapids metropolitan area had a population of 774,160 and a combined statistical area, Grand...

, who lamented his passing and called him "a great family man and a worldwide leader in the business arena". Steve Forbes

Steve Forbes

Malcolm Stevenson "Steve" Forbes, Jr. is an American editor, publisher, and businessman. He is the editor-in-chief of business magazine Forbes as well as president and chief executive officer of its publisher, Forbes Inc. He was a Republican candidate in the U.S. Presidential primaries in 1996...

 wrote about Van Andel, "Whether in business or philanthropy, Van Andel understood that the primary goal was to serve the needs and wants of other people. He exmplified the best of America." Jay Van Andel served as a director of the Gerald R. Ford Foundation.

In addition to Amway, Van Andel pursued many other business ventures throughout his life. He served as chairman of the U.S. Chamber of Commerce

United States Chamber of Commerce

The United States Chamber of Commerce is an American lobbying group representing the interests of many businesses and trade associations. It is not an agency of the United States government....

. He was particularly interested in leaving his mark on the city of Grand Rapids, and his name appears on landmarks throughout the city. After purchasing the 65-year-old Pantlind Hotel in 1978, he and DeVos had it rebuilt with a 29-story tower and reopened as the Amway Grand Plaza Hotel

Amway Grand Plaza Hotel

Amway Grand Plaza Hotel is located in Grand Rapids, Michigan and is named after Amway Corporation, which is based in nearby Ada Township.Originally known as The Pantlind Hotel , Amway Grand Plaza Hotel reopened in 1981 after extensive renovations done by Marvin DeWinter & Associates including the...

.

He donated substantial funds to build the Van Andel Museum Center to house the Grand Rapids Public Museum in 1994. He donated $11.5 million towards the $75 million cost of Van Andel Arena

Van Andel Arena

The Van Andel Arena is a 10,834-seat multi-purpose arena, situated in the Heartside district, of Grand Rapids, Michigan. After a $75 million construction effort, the arena opened on October 8, 1996 and since has attracted over five million patrons. It is home to the popular Grand Rapids Griffins...

 downtown. Since he and his wife suffered from serious medical problems later in life, he established the Van Andel Institute

Van Andel Institute

Van Andel Institute is a 501 nonprofit organization in Grand Rapids, Michigan. The Institute’s mission is to improve the health and enhance the lives of current and future generations through disease research and science education...

 (devoted to medical research and education), building its headquarters in Grand Rapids at a cost of $60 million, and pledging $2 billion, which was most of his personal estate, to medical research.

His wife Betty preceded him in death on 18 January 2004, at the age of 82. A sufferer of Alzheimer's disease

Alzheimer's disease

Alzheimer's disease also known in medical literature as Alzheimer disease is the most common form of dementia. There is no cure for the disease, which worsens as it progresses, and eventually leads to death...

, she died at their Peter Island

Peter Island

The 720 hectare Peter Island, is a private island located in the British Virgin Islands , about 5.2 miles south-west from Road Harbour , Tortola...

 home in the Caribbean.

A member of the Christian Reformed Church

Christian Reformed Church in North America

The Christian Reformed Church in North America is a Protestant Christian denomination in the United States and Canada. Having roots in the Dutch Reformed churches of the Netherlands, the Christian Reformed Church was founded by Gijsbert Haan and Dutch immigrants who left the Reformed Church in...

, Van Andel had a life-long interest in Christian causes, and funded many religious ventures, including the construction of the Van Andel Creation Research Center (VACRC) experiment station in Chino Valley, Arizona

Arizona

Arizona ; is a state located in the southwestern region of the United States. It is also part of the western United States and the mountain west. The capital and largest city is Phoenix...

 operated by Creation Research Society

Creation Research Society

The Creation Research Society is a Christian research group that engages in creation science. The organization has produced various publications, including a journal and a creation-based biology textbook...

.

Mr. Van Andel was inducted into the Junior Achievement U.S. Business Hall of Fame in 1998.