MILWAUKEE — Former U.S. Senator Herb Kohl died at the age of 88 on Wednesday, Dec. 27, 2023, after a brief illness, the Herb Kohl Foundation announced.
"In the life of Herb Kohl, everybody was equal and everybody had value, and everybody served a purpose for the better man for us all" Franklyn Gimbel explained.
Gimbel and Senator Kohl both grew up near Sherman Park in Milwaukee. They have been friends since they were young boys."I was very happy and proud to be a friend of Herb Kohl.”
The news of Senator Kohls passing brought much sadness to Gimbel. However, wonderful memories arose as well.
"He was a person who contributed so very very much to Greater Milwaukee, to the state of Wisconsin, and to the nation in so many different kinds of ways" Gimbel explained.
He leaves behind a legacy filled with major milestones as founder of the Kohl's Department Stores chain.
"He contributed to the expansion of retail in Milwaukee" Gimbel said.
He served as a U.S. Senator for 24 years. A career he started in 1988.
"In his initial campaign, he said he was nobody's Senator but yours, nobody's Senator but yours. And I think he meant that" Mayor Cavalier Johnson explained.
He is greatly known as an owner of the Milwaukee Bucks.
"He bought the Bucks so that that professional team would not leave Milwaukee" Gimbel explained.
He bought the team in 1985 and promised fans the team would never leave. One of his best friends and former MLB Commissioner, Bud Selig, said on a phone call that his dedication was unmatched.
"I don't know if I have ever seen anybody devote themselves more to the welfare of the city and the state than Herb Kohl did and the proof, every time they go to a bucks game, he's the reason you're there" Bug Selig explained.
Many that know Senator Kohl said he was modest with all his achievements.
"I will always remember for the rest of my life, the humility that Herb Kohl had and the generosity that he had without expectation of any kind of recognition or any type of reward" Gimbel said.
He was a true philanthropist with his foundation, The Herb Kohl Foundation. Which has provided more than $34 million in grants and scholarships to Wisconsin students, teachers, and schools.
"Herb is a person who had a heart and eyes for common people who struggled everyday to make life a better place not only for themselves but for people who they interacted." Gimbel explained.
Mayor Johnson says we can all learn a thing or two from the senator. "Herb Kohl was a man who wanted to do good. It doesn't cost anything to be kind, it doesn't cost anything to be a good person, and if everybody did just that. That simple gesture. Then we would continue to be a better, a stronger community for everybody.”
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