Peter Fordney Devaux

1944 - 2022

Peter Fordney deVaux
August 21, 1944 - April 29, 2022
Bellingham, Washington - Peter Fordney deVaux died on April 29, 2022, aged 77. Born in Detroit, Michigan on August 21, 1944, he was raised in Saginaw. He attended the University of Michigan, majoring in business. While there, he met his future wife Paula Turner in 1965. Shortly after graduating, Pete was drafted into the Army and after basic training, was posted to the Panama Canal Zone.
Since the Canal Zone was a permanent posting, Paula joined him and they were married there on August 4, 1967. During his time in Panama he took the Graduate Record exam, his excellent results gaining him admittance to the University of Michigan Business School, where he earned his MBA, graduating in 1970 with high distinction.
After an initial job in Providence, Rhode Island, he moved to New York City, working first at TWA and then at Young and Rubicam Advertising. His over ten-year career at Y&R saw him rise from VP and Treasurer, through SVP and Controller, member of the board and CFO of the Y&R USA division, to EVP and Director of Finance.
In 1987, he was recruited as EVP and CFO of Chiat Day Advertising in Venice, California. During his tenure, he acquired Australia's second largest ad agency and profitably managed growth.
When he left Chiat Day he semi-retired into consulting with both the senior management of agencies, as well as their clients, negotiating agency/client contracts and advising on all aspects of strategic planning.
He and Paula travelled widely. Some of their travel was business-related, but most often they went on their own, renting houses as a base and exploring the surrounding area, visiting at least once every continent except Antarctica.
After retiring fully, he pursued his hobby of woodworking, and also volunteered in the community of Staunton, Virginia, as a member of the Kiwanis Club of Staunton, and serving on the board of Blue Ridge Community College and the Valley Conservation Council.
He joined the board of directors of the Woodrow Wilson Museum, eventually serving three terms as Chair of the Board of Trustees and spearheading the transition of the Woodrow Wilson Birthplace into the Woodrow Wilson Presidential Library. This was his last big project, and one of which he was justly proud. "To have witnessed the great legacy of 'The Birthplace' reborn as an important national education resource has been a privilege and a joy," Pete said.
Feeling that the Presidential Library was on a firm footing, he and Paula decided to move to Canada in 2006. They lived in British Columbia for seven years, becoming dual citizens of Canada and the US. In 2014 they moved back to the US, settling in the college town of Bellingham, Washington, to be near the border and easily able to visit their many Canadian friends. They lived in Bellingham for eight years and made many new friends.
In March 2022 Pete and Paula moved to Michigan to be close to his family, as he suffered from Cordicobasal Syndrome, a rare degenerative neurological condition that affects movement, speech, and memory. Only a month after the move, he died peacefully with his wife and his sister Irene at his side.
Cremation has taken place, and celebration of his life will be scheduled at a later date.
To honor his memory, in lieu of flowers, you may donate to the Woodrow Wilson Presidential Library and Museum in Staunton, VA www.woodrowwilson.org; to the Peter F. and Paula T. deVaux Scholarship at the University of Michigan Ross School of Business https://donate.umich.edu/MJPWv; or the charity of your choice.
To read the full-length obituary and sign the online guestbook, visit
www.cremationsocietymidmi.com. Arrangements made with the Cremation Society of Mid-Michigan.