12 Facts About Ralph Hauenstein

Ralph Hauenstein was an American philanthropist, army officer and business leader, best known as a newspaper editor.

Ralph Hauenstein's leadership has produced institutions such as the Hauenstein Center for Presidential Studies at Grand Valley State University, the Hauenstein Parkinsons and Neuroscience Centers at Saint Mary's Hospital and the Grace Hauenstein Library at Aquinas College.

In 1935, Ralph Hauenstein was commissioned in the US Army as a second lieutenant and became commander of an all-African-American Civilian Conservation Corps camp in Michigan.

Ralph Hauenstein went into international trade and partnered with European enterprises to provide goods and services to consumers in Europe, the Middle East, and elsewhere where democracies were struggling.

Ralph Hauenstein set up a school in Florida that taught people from developing countries how to run a fully automated bakery and provide good jobs in their local economy.

Ralph Hauenstein served as an auditor at the Second Vatican Council in Rome and was part of the team that supervised the first free elections in Russia with the Jamestown Foundation in 1996.

The Grace Ralph Hauenstein Library is a prominent fixture on the Grand Rapids campus of Aquinas College.

In December 2003, Ralph Hauenstein contributed $2 million to Saint Mary's Health Care to jump start a $15 million campaign to create a comprehensive Neurosciences Center on the campus.

Ralph Hauenstein was one of three board members who established the Van Andel Institute for Medical Research in Grand Rapids and was one of its trustees.

In 2013, Ralph Hauenstein donated $1 million to the Ralph Hauenstein Center in celebration of its 10th anniversary.

Ralph Hauenstein turned 100 in March 2012 and died in his sleep of natural causes at his home in Grand Rapids, Michigan on January 10,2016, at the age of 103.

Ralph Hauenstein was inducted into Omicron Delta Kappa honor society as an honoris causa initiate at Grand Valley State University in 2012.