Jay Van Andel

Jay Van Andel was born on June 3, 1924, to James and Petronilla (Van der Woude) Van Andel in Grand Rapids, Michigan. His grandparents, Christian and Elizabeth had immigrated to America from the Netherlands in 1909.

Van Andel's parents were devout Christians and members of the Christian Reformed Church. Jay credits his Christian background as being foundational for the rest of his life as a Christian. He once wrote, "Christianity involved the living out of Biblical values of honesty, generosity, and respect for others in our everyday life."

Jay attended Grand Rapids Christian High School. Later, Van Andel attended Calvin College and Pratt Business School in Kansas.

When World War II broke out, Jay served as a United States Army Air Force officer. He was commissioned as a second lieutenant and trained crews for B-17 and B-29 bombers that reached the Japanese mainland.

Jay met his wife Betty Jean Hoekstra while on a direct selling house call in the spring of 1951. They married on August 16, 1952.

A strong supporter of the Republican Party, in 2004 Van Andel contributed $2 million to Progress for America, a 527 committee (sometimes referred to as political action committee) established in 2001 to support the re-election campaign of President George W. Bush. In that same year, he donated $475,000 to the Michigan State Republican Party (mostly for state legislature candidates). He was noted for his friendship with former President Gerald R. Ford, a native of Grand Rapids, who lamented his death and called him "a great family man and a worldwide leader in the business arena". Steve Forbes wrote, "Whether in business or philanthropy, Van Andel understood that the primary goal was to serve the needs and wants of other people. He exemplified the best of America".