An inspiring philanthropist, loving wife and caring mother

Publicly, Helen was perhaps best known as the wife of Amway Cofounder Rich DeVos, and a generous philanthropist. At home, she was the anchor of the family.

And in closer-kept circles, she was the quiet gal who graduated with 30 other teens – 10 boys and 20 girls – from Frankfort High School during World War II and subsequently from Calvin College; the only child of educators who instilled in her the principles of a servant’s heart.

She was the 4-year-old girl whose feet hadn’t yet reached the floor from the piano bench where she sat and took lessons from her own mother. By 14, she was playing Claude Debussy’s “Claire de Lune” with expression beyond her years.

Years later, she was the loving mother who cuddled up to her four children at night and, using a quarter to draw a circle for a clock, taught them how to tell time.

Though one circle of acquaintances read like a “Who’s Who” of global leaders, Helen never lost touch with the friends she made early on, including those who belonged to a potluck group that continued to meet up until she was too ill.

And all along the way she was the partner and champion of her husband, an entrepreneur who courted fortune and with his business partner, parlaying a dream into a global enterprise and household name.

On October 18, 2017, she died at the age of 90, leaving in her gentle wake a life lived with dignity, grace and an uncommon compassion for others who will benefit for decades from her legacy of love and philanthropy.