Cavaliers Owner and Quicken Loans co-Founder & Chair DAN GILBERT will speak Friday at the Crain's Newsmakers of the Year luncheon at MGM Grand Detroit, marking his "first public speech" since suffering a stroke last May, according to Chad Livengood of CRAIN'S DETROIT BUSINESS. Gilbert will be "honored with the first Newsmaker Hall of Fame award." Currently, Gilbert is "focused on regaining physical strength and motor skills that were lost" on the "day everything changed," when he suffered a stroke on May 26 last year. Gilbert said that there was a "blood clot in his carotid artery that cut off oxygen-rich blood to his brain." Livengood noted for Gilbert, the stroke was both a "near-death and humbling experience." He said, "If that artery was blocked more minutes than it was, it would have been much worse." Livengood noted the stroke has "upended the life" of Gilbert, a "fast-charging businessman." Gilbert said, "When you have a stroke, here's the problem with it: Everything is hard. Everything." Livengood noted the stroke has "left Gilbert physically thinner, though he's sporting a thicker, white beard," and his speech is "clear, if quiet." He "uses a wheelchair to get around" the mortgage company's Detroit HQ, alongside a service dog. As for his recovery, Gilbert said his left leg is "almost there," adding he can "walk with a cane and all that." But he said it "just takes a little longer in the arm" (CRAIN'S DETROIT BUSINESS, 2/17 issue).
