Gordie Howe making dramatic recovery
Mr. Hockey plans to attend ceremony in Saskatchewan naming arena in his honour
Detroit Red Wings legend Gordie Howe has made such a dramatic recovery after having stem cell therapy in December in Tijuana, Mexico, that he’s heading to Saskatoon this weekend for a dementia fundraiser involving Wayne Gretzky.
The Kinsmen Arena there will be renamed the Gordie Howe Kinsman Arena.
Dr. Murray Howe raced from Toledo, Ohio, to Lubbock, Texas, in late October, unsure whether his father, who had suffered a massive stroke, would still be alive when he got there. Gordie Howe was being cared for by his daughter, Cathy, and family members were advised to get there quickly if they wanted to see him again.
Murray Howe said he was heading back to Lubbock on Wednesday to help accompany his father, along with other family members, to Saskatoon for the public appearance at a Friday night dinner.
Gordie Howe’s younger brother, Vic died Saturday at age 85 in Moncton, N.B. Murray Howe said Gordie would not be able to attend his brother’s funeral, but would be with two sisters, Helen and Vi, while in Saskatoon and the family would gather there for a memorial service for their brother.
Although the event in Saskatoon had been planned for more than a year, the Howe family told organizers in August that Gordie probably wouldn’t be able to attend because of declining health.
They definitely didn’t think he’d be able to attend following a series of stokes he had in the months that followed.
But Howe has made a drastic recovery, to the point that family members told the organizers “if there’s an extra chair for him, he thinks he can make it.”
Murray Howe said he was skeptical when representatives from Stemedica reached out after the news of Gordie’s massive stroke.
“Stem cells weren’t even on my radar,” said Murray Howe, who did plenty of research before his father agreed to pursue the therapy.
Stemedica has a stem cell trial in the U.S., but patients must wait six months following their stroke before they can begin the therapy. The stem cell trial by Novastem at Clinica Santa Clarita in Mexico did not require a six-month wait.
“The studies abroad suggested the quicker you get the stem cells (following a stroke), the better your response is going to be,” Murray Howe said.
He was there with his father to see the therapy first-hand.
“I was able to be there for the two- part procedure,” Murray said.
“The leap of faith was, was it going to do anything?” Murray said. “Even looking at the data and seeing some of the amazing results they have, I was still so skeptical because I had never seen any kind of response from somebody after a stroke to any kind of treatment. To me the proof was going to be in the pudding. We hoped, but we had zero expectations.”
Murray Howe said his father now walks on his own.
“Sometimes he’s a little bit wobbly on his feet. He calls himself Wobbly Wilbur.”
MURRAY HOWE ON HIS FATHER’S IMPROVED CONDITION
“He feeds himself, he can help out folding laundry,” Murray Howe said. “He can walk about a half mile. He’ll probably have to sit down every 100 yards or so to take a short rest. Some times are better than others. Sometimes he’s a little bit wobbly on his feet. He calls himself Wobbly Wilbur. But he’ll shake it off and get a little dance in his step and he’ll be fine.”
Murray Howe said if his father continues to see improvement over the next few months, there’s a chance they may go back for a second treatment.
“At this point, we’re planning to do that,” Murray said. “There’s a good chance in June, God willing, if my dad is still alive and is willing, we would take him again for a second treatment.”
But this weekend, Gordie Howe will travel a few extra miles to Saskatoon to help raise money for others.