Philanthropy & Community Involvement
From the creation of Grand Rapids' 12,000-seat Van Andel Arena to Muskegon's multi-million-dollar Michigan Alternative and Renewable Energy Center to the $1.1 million beginning of a multi-county trailway connector in Lowell, West Michigan leads the pack with its culture of giving and an unparalleled record for public/private partnerships.
Philanthropy, the desire to make a difference for the greater community, has become a way of life, for a new generation of up-and-coming philanthropists. West Michigan residents are driven to do more, to put our money where the need is, to continue building on philanthropic projects of the past.
West Michigan also has a heritage of bringing competing industries, entrepreneurs, nonprofit organizations and government agencies together at one table to leverage the talents and combined resources of all for the betterment of a city, the region and even the state is a feat not seen in other areas of the country.
In West Michigan, working together is how we get things done. It's why there's been $3 billion of investment in life sciences in Grand Rapids, millions more invested in innovations that convert landfills and farm waste into viable alternative energy, and why Holland's Hope College has a state-of-the-art soccer stadium.