Jews in the D

I

t has been a year of 
recoveries and beyond 
for Dan Gilbert, the 
founder of Quicken 
Loans and one of the 
most visible figures in 
the economic revitaliza-
tion of Detroit. 
And in recognition, today, 
Oct. 1, Gilbert, 58, will be the 
recipient of this year’
s Fred M. 
Butzel Award, the highest honor 
bestowed on a Detroit Jewish 
citizen by the Jewish Federation 
of Metropolitan Detroit.
“Without a doubt, Dan 
Gilbert stands alongside the 

most important leaders and 
philanthropists in the history 
of Jewish Detroit,” said Steven 
Ingber, Federation COO. “Dan’
s 
presence at the Fisher Meeting, 
our annual event for the lead-
ing donor families in Jewish 
Detroit, has helped galvanize 
the resources in our communi-
ty, and his personal generosity 
has made in a difference in the 
lives of thousands of individu-
als each year.
“It is hard to think of anyone 
who better deserves this award, 
the highest that Federation 
offers. We are deeply grateful for 

his commitment to our Jewish 
community.”
The award comes as Gilbert 
continues his journey of recov-
ery from a debilitating stroke 
he suffered on May 26, 2019. 
The stroke caused temporary 
paralysis of his left arm and 
leg, but Gilbert has persevered, 
returning to work in February 
and even making public 
appearances.
“With my recent physical 
condition, I just learned what 
gratitude is, because it’
s just been 
a humbling experience,” Gilbert 
told the JN. 
And he has continued to blaze 
forward in his commitment to 
revitalizing the city of Detroit 
via his family of companies 
numbering around 80 entities 
— as well as the Gilbert Family 
Foundation, which he co-found-
ed in 2015 with his wife, 
Jennifer, and into which they 
have channeled more than $125 
million of their own money. 
“Helping your hometown is 
like helping your family: If you 
can, and you’
re in a position, I 
think you should do it,” Gilbert 
said. “That’
s where it really 
comes from, for me.”

A POWERFUL REPUTATION
Gilbert’
s peers in the business 
and philanthropic world hardly 

need an excuse to praise him.
“
As an entrepreneur, philan-
thropist, citizen and friend, they 
don’
t come any better than Dan,” 
world-renowned investor and 
philanthropist Warren Buffett 
told the JN on the occasion of 
the award.
For Gilbert, that kind of sim-
plicity is highly valued. 
“Dan has done something 
remarkable with his business and 
philanthropic work in Detroit,
” 
native Detroiter Steve Ballmer, 
the former CEO of Microsoft, 
told the JN. “Not sure anyone 
anywhere has done as much 
to revive a city as Dan has. He 
inspires me.
”
“Dan Gilbert is a passionate 
champion of the city of Detroit,
” 
Stephen M. Ross, the influen-
tial real estate developer and 
namesake of the University 
of Michigan’
s Ross School of 
Business, told the JN. “His 
unwavering belief in the future 
of this city has inspired many, 
myself included, to invest in and 
forge new partnerships with 
Detroit to reinvigorate its endur-
ing legacy as a global center of 
technological innovation.
” 
Ross and Gilbert both attend-
ed law school at Wayne State 
University. Each contributed 
$5 million to the school in 2016.
More recently, Ross and 

12 | OCTOBER 1 • 2020 

Butzel Award winner Dan Gilbert 
refl
 ects on family, faith and 
philanthropy.

ADAM FINKEL CONTRIBUTING WRITER

cover story

