Famous Natives

Famous Natives

Gerald R. Ford

The 38th President of the United States, Gerald R. Ford spent many years in Grand Rapids. When he was only two weeks old, his mother moved them to Grand Rapids, where he grew up. He earned All-City and All-State awards playing football at South High School. After obtaining degrees at the University of Michigan at Ann Arbor and at Yale, he returned to set up a law practice in Grand Rapids. During this time he also taught a course in business law at the University of Grand Rapids (now Davenport University) and was a line coach for the football team. He also served Grand Rapids in the House of Representatives for 24 years before becoming President.
*Photo courtesy of Gerald R. Ford Library

Fred Meijer

Fred Meijer is the son of the original founder of the Meijer chain which opened it’s first store in 1934 in Greenville. He currently serves as the chairman for Meijer Stores which now exceeds 144 stores in 5 states, and is headquartered in Walker. Meijer is the 15th largest grocery store in the United States, employs over 92,000 people, and has estimated sales of $10 billion.

Gillian Anderson of "The X-Files"

To most people Gillian Anderson is Agent Dana Scully from Fox’s "The X-Files." Gillian spent many of her formative years in Grand Rapids. Her family moved here when she was 11 years old and remains here to this day. Active in drama in high school, Gillian graduated in 1986 from Grand Rapids City High School before pursuing an acting career at a theater school in Chicago. Since the beginning of "The X-Files" series in 1993, she has appeared on shows such as The Today Show, Leno, and Entertainment Tonight. Gillian was awarded an Emmy in 1997 for "Outstanding Actress in TV Drama," a Screen Actor’s Guild Award, and a Golden Globe, just to mention a few.

Adam Herz of "American Pie"

Even if you don’t recognize his name, you will probably recognize the name of his 1999 breakthrough movie, "American Pie," which sent Adam Herz’s career as a screenwriter spinning into action. In the movie, he replicates his home town of East Grand Rapids by creating "East Great Falls." Also mentioned in the movie, is his alma mater, The University of Michigan. Herz continued on to write the 2001 sequel to "American Pie" entitled "American Pie II." Currently he is working on several other projects including a tv sitcom, "Go Fish."

Anthony Kiedis of the Red Hot Chili Peppers

Anthony Kiedis, lead singer for the Red Hot Chili Peppers was born in Grand Rapids and spent his early years living with his mother in nearby Lowell. At the age of 11, his mother allowed him to go to live with his father in California. He returned briefly to Michigan and attended Lowell High School for a year before returning to Los Angeles where, in 1983, the Red Hot Chili Peppers was formed. It was not until 1989 that the band gained recognition in the mainstream with their hit "Mother’s Milk". From there, the band went on to record several more hit songs. Between the years of 1978 and 1993 Kiedis also appeared as an actor in 5 movies.

Lieutenant Commander Roger B. Chaffee

Roger Bruce Chaffee was born February 15, 1935 in Grand Rapids, MI. He graduated in the top 5% of his high school class at Central High in 1953 and went on to receive his B.A. in Aeronautical Engineering at Purdue University. Chaffee was selected by NASA in 1963 to become an astronaut. In 1966, he was chosen as a lunar module pilot of the Apollo I Mission, the first three-man mission. Unfortunately, Lieutenant Commander Chaffee died in 1967 when a flash fire ravaged the Apollo during a launch pad test at Kennedy Space Center. In 1997, Chaffee was inducted into the Astronaut Hall of Fame.

Kevin Max of dcTalk

Kevin Max is a member of the trio of the Christian Rock group dcTalk. He began singing at a young age in church and always wanted to be a performer. After graduating from Grand Rapids Baptist Academy, Kevin cut his college career short when he decided to go on tour with the band. Since this decision, the group has been awarded numerous Dove Awards and 3 Grammys. Two of their albums have gone platinum. Max has also recently released his first solo album, "Stereotype Be."

Kim Zimmer of "Guiding Light"

Best known as Reva Shayne in "Guiding Light," Kim Zimmer was born in Grand Rapids and grew up in nearby Ada. She was a self-described "tomboy" in her early years and loved sports. Kim attended Forest Hills High School where she was a cheerleader, a member of the homecoming court, and a Junior Achiever. She was also a first runner up in the Miss Michigan contest. After graduating, Kim spent two years attending Hope College in Holland, MI. From there, she went on to San Francisco’s Conservatory Theater. Her career began when she landed an agent in Chicago. Since that time Kim has appeared on several shows besides "Guiding Light" such as "Santa Barbara" and "One Life to Live." Guest appearances for Zimmer include "MacGyver," "Seinfeld," "Designing Women," and "Babylon 5."

Al Green

Legendary soul singer Al Green recorded his first hit song in Grand Rapids. Green moved to Grand Rapids in the mid 60’s and is a graduate of South High School’s Class of 1966. His first band was called Al Green and the Creations. Later, he became the lead singer for the band "The Soul Mates" which recorded a top 5 R&B hit "Back up Train." Two years later, he went solo and has since won eight Grammy Awards and was inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 1995. Al’s "Greatest Hits" Album was on the top 200 Album Chart and earned him appearances on "The Tonight Show with Jay Leno" and "The David Letterman Show." He now resides in Memphis and pastors a church. His abilities, leadership, and career have gained him great acclaim. The Grand Rapids’ Community Empowerment Center awarded Al a Leadership Award after his benefit concert in Grand Rapids in July of 2000. The proceeds provided enough money for them to feed 10,000 people.

Leo and Mark Peters

The late Leo Peters was the inventor of the Butterball turkey and also initiated the line of butter products that are Butterball’s trademark. The uniquely designed butter patties, sold in shapes like roses and swans use a process that creates design detail far superior to that of their competitors’. Leo’s son, Mark, became the CEO of Butterball Farms after his father passed away in 1995. As a graduate of Grand Rapids Christian High School, Mark is now giving back to the schools. He has become active in the inner-city schools, both mentoring the students himself, and encouraging other businesses to do the same.

Melville and Anna Bissell

Melville Bissell first developed the Bissell carpet sweeper in 1876 for his wife to use in their Grand Rapids crockery shop. He quickly patented the design that was lighter, worked in more situations, and created less dust than other sweepers of the time. The new sweeper was met with high demand, and in 1883, Melville and Anna incorporated Bissell and built the first Bissell manufacturing plant in Grand Rapids. Anna went on to become one of the first female CEO’s in America when she took over the company after Melville’s death in 1889. Today, Bissell products are sold in over 60 countries. The company remains family-owned.

Richard DeVos and Jay VanAndel

A lifelong business partnership between these two men began in 1939 when Jay Van Andel struck a deal with his 15-year-old friend, Richard DeVos. For 25 cents, Van Andel gave DeVos rides to school in his Model-A Ford. After briefly going their separate ways, they joined together in 1945 to begin their first business venture. They also started the first drive-in restaurant in Michigan, ran a flight school, and sold vitamins. In 1959, they founded the Amway Corporation. Today Amway is a worldwide corporation based in Ada with sales of $5.7 billion of 450 high-quality products. Amway has changed its company name to Alticor.

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