GRAND RAPIDS, Mich. – Businessman Peter Secchia is one of the core group of philanthropists who collaborated with Amway co-founder Richard DeVos on various community improvement projects.
“The man was a visionary,” says Secchia.“The man was caring and always generous.”
DeVos, 92, died Wednesday.
“I knew he was sick,” says Secchia. “I knew he was close. He dodged the bullet five or six times in the last five months. We thought he was gone, the family gathered around, and he rebounded.”
Secchia says DeVos was a mentor and a unique individual he greatly admired.
He says DeVos had the unique ability to make people believe in him and believe in themselves. The two men met more than 40 years ago and Secchia says no one has impacted his life more.
“I loved him, I really did,” says Secchia. “No man has impacted my life more than DeVos did in my business life and my community life.”
In the 1970s Secchia remembers a Grand Rapids City Commissioner distributing bumper stickers that read "Amway is Not Our Way" to keep the company DeVos co-founded out of the city.
Secchia says DeVos never wanted to get even, but instead invested millions of dollars in projects that transformed Grand Rapids.
“It was easy to love Rich,” says Secchia. “He didn't have a mean spirit in his body. He just wanted to do what he could do and do it with quiet elegance.”
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