Richard Vander Veen
Richard Vander Veen | |
---|---|
Member of the U.S. House of Representatives from Michigan's 5th district | |
In office February 18, 1974 – January 3, 1977 | |
Preceded by | Gerald Ford |
Succeeded by | Harold S. Sawyer |
Personal details | |
Born | Junior Lieutenant | November 26, 1922
Battles/wars | World War II • South Pacific Theater Korean War |
Richard Franklin Vander Veen (November 26, 1922 – March 3, 2006) was a politician from the U.S. state of Michigan.
Early life and education
Born in Grand Rapids, Michigan, Vander Veen attended the local public schools and graduated from Muskegon High School in 1940. He earned a B.S from the University of South Carolina in 1946 and an LL.B. from Harvard Law School in 1949. He was admitted to the Michigan bar in 1949 and commenced practice in Grand Rapids. In 1951, he, Walter Freihofer and George Cook formed what was to become the third-largest law firm in Grand Rapids. He retired from the law firm when he was elected to Congress. He is a relative of musician Anthony Kiedis.
Military service
With the outbreak of World War II, Vander Veen enlisted in the United States Navy in January 1941 and served until 1946, seeing active duty in the South Pacific Theater. He also served in the Korean War from 1950 to 1952 with the rank of lieutenant (junior grade).
Political career
In 1958, Vander Veen made an unsuccessful bid as the
After Gerald Ford resigned his House seat in 1973 to become
Vander Veen was reelected in November 1974 to a full term in the 94th Congress, but lost his seat in 1976 to Republican Kent County prosecuting attorney Harold S. Sawyer. His 35-month tenure was the only time that the Grand Rapids-based district was out of Republican hands from 1913 until Hillary Scholten won the seat, by now renumbered as the 3rd district, in 2022.
In 1978, Vander Veen ran for the United States Senate, but lost his bid for the Democratic nomination to Carl Levin, who went on to win the general election in November.
Vander Veen formed two environmental companies: Resource Energy and Enigered. In 1990, he founded the Ryerson Library Foundation, and served as its president.
After his service in Congress, Vander Veen served as a member of the Michigan State Waterways Commission. Vander Veen died of prostate cancer at his home in East Grand Rapids at the age of 83.
References
- ^ In the Shadow of Watergate: Bob Michel Becomes a Congressional Leader Archived 2014-10-10 at the Wayback Machine by Frank H. Mackaman, The Dirksen Congressional Center
- ^ "Nixon: Lots of People Cheat on Taxes" The Tech, March 1, 1974, p. 4
- ^ "An Early Alarm Bell For the G.O.P.", TIME, March 4, 1974
- Sabato, Larry (June 15, 2006). "Election Exceptions: Which 2006 contests will frustrate the national trend?". University of Virginia Center for Politics. Retrieved February 6, 2010.
External links
- The Political Graveyard
- Congressman Vern Ehlers' note to Members of Congress about the death of former Congressman Vander Veen
- United States Congress. "Richard Vander Veen (id: V000029)". Biographical Directory of the United States Congress.