Philanthropy and society--Personal narratives; Charities--Michigan; Associations, institutions, etc.--Michigan
Joel Orosz discusses his education and work at the Kalamazoo Public Museum, the W.K. Kellogg Foundation, and the Johnson Center for Philanthropy at Grand Valley State University. He authored a book on how to be a grantmaker. He shares stories about...
Paul Phillips was a prominent African American community service leader and was the first African-American to hold elected office in Grand Rapids. The collection includes biographical information, copies of speech notes and testimony, writings,...
Robert H. Phinny served as Ambassador to the Kingdom of Swaziland from 1982-1984. After serving as Ambassador, Phinny was a free-lance journalist who wrote on South African Apartheid. Collection documents the published writing of Robert H. Phinny...
The name U.S.S. Michigan has been shared by 3 vessels in the United States Navy, U.S.S. Michigan (1843-1949), renamed the U.S.S. Wolverine; the U.S.S. Michigan (Battleship BB-27); and the U.S.S. Michigan SSBN 727, a Trident-class missile submarine...
The Jim Harrison collection documents the life and work of Michigan-born writer Jim Harrison from 1938 to the present. Harrison has published books in several genres throughout his career, including poetry, fiction, nonfiction, and children’s...
Russel Kirkhof was an inventor, mechanic, businessman in Grand Rapids, Michigan. The collection includes diaries, patents, personal correspondence, legal correspondence, business ledgers, and records of his philanthropy.
Donald James Angus was born in Wisconsin and lived most of his life in Indianapolis, Indiana and Grand Haven, Michigan. He was self-educated and worked in the field of electrical engineering, specializing in electrical measuring and recording...
The Arnold Ott collection documents the life and work of Michigan-born chemist and entrepreneur Arnold Ott from 1940-2008. He worked at Dow Chemical Company and the Upjohn Company where he authored 55 domestic and foreign patents before starting...
Conrad Thornquist was a Michigan native who attended the University of Michigan as an undergraduate and attended Harvard Law School in the Class of 1931. His papers include handwritten and bound class notes from his Harvard Law School coursework...
Ella Koeze Weed was born in Grand Rapids, Michigan and was involved in Republican Party politics and participated in the Michigan Constitutional Convention of 1961-1962. The collection includes her political files, convention materials, news...
F. W. (Francis "Frank" Wallace) Beasecker was born in 1917 in Grand Rapids, Michigan. He joined the Army in August 1942 and was assigned to Company A, 411th Engineer Base Shop Battalion, 2nd Brigade, Engineer Amphibious Command. He served in...
Frank J. Schulte is known as the Father of Civil Service in Grand Rapids, Michigan. Schulte worked in civil service throughout Michigan and on the proposed personnel system for the royal government in Afghanistan in the early 1960s. The collection...
Guy Vander Jagt served as a Republican member of the U.S. House of Representatives from Michigan from 1966 until 1992. Vander Jagt served as Chairman of the National Republican Congressional Committee from 1975 until he left the House in 1992. The...
Karla (Mrs. James) Parker was a Grand Rapids educator involved in education and educational policy at local, state, and national levels. The collection includes reports, publications, and conference materials from local and national educational...
The Mathias J. Alten papers document the personal life and career of the West Michigan painter. The collection includes biographical information, business records, exhibit catalogs, and newspaper clippings collected by family members.