William D. "Bill" DeVore

William D. "Bill" DeVore passed away on December 19, 2023, in Wichita, Kansas, at the age of 87. He is survived by his wife, Alta; daughter, Jennifer DeVore of Seattle; son, Ross W. DeVore of Wichita; stepson, Steve Cooley and wife, Sarah of Arlington, Texas; stepson, Joseph Hayosh and wife, Marcy of Westland, Michigan; grandchildren, Logan Cooley, Brooke Cooley, Madeline DeVore, William Henry DeVore, John DeVore, and Alisa Hayosh; niece, Ashley DeVore of San Francisco, California; nephew, Rich DeVore and wife, Mimi of Wichita.

Bill was born on September 10, 1936, in Wichita, Kansas, to the parents of Alma Mae (Ashley) DeVore and Floyd Lee DeVore. He attended Wichita Public schools, graduating from East High in 1953, and received his B.A. degree from Harvard University in 1957 and his M.B.A. from Dartmouth College in 1959. He was first married to Robin Fritz Markham DeVore, now of Oceanside, Washington, for about 9 years. He and his wife Alta Mae Cooley DeVore were married in 1994 and were to celebrate their twenty-ninth wedding anniversary (which was the result of a brief seventeen-year engagement). He was a global traveler. Beginning when he was 17, he took his first trip out of the country, sailing on the RMS Queen Mary to Europe. There were so many trips afterwards it’s hard to count but he visited every continent, every ocean, both poles, and most countries. His wanderlust was real, but he always enjoyed coming home to Wichita and had a rich life of work and philanthropy. Bill’s first job was briefly in the family’s Bible publishing business, located at the time in Chicago. When his Uncle Carl DeVore passed away unexpectedly in 1959, he was called home to begin working for the family’s manufacturing firm, Advance Products, which he would spend most of his career at until rejoining the leadership of the family’s Bible publishing firm when his son, Ross DeVore, joined that firm in 1996. Bill's charitable activities were many and varied. As partner with his brother Dick in the DeVore Foundation, he contributed much to Wichita's cultural life with such projects as the DeVore Farm at Cowtown, Music Theatre's Jester Statue, and the Excellence in Public Service Awards to name a few.

Bill was a lifelong member of First Presbyterian Church in Wichita and served as an usher for many years.

In lieu of flowers, memorials have been established with:

Wichita-Sedgwick County Historical Museum

204 S. Main

Wichita, KS 67202

Humankind Ministries

829 N. Market

Wichita, KS 67214

Salvation Army

350 N. Market

Wichita, KS 67202