Herb Kohl, a former U.S. Democrat senator from Wisconsin and past owner of the NBA’s Milwaukee Bucks, died on Wednesday at the age of 88.
His death was announced by Herb Kohl Philanthropies, a non-profit that focuses on K-12 education. No specific cause of death was disclosed, but the organization said Mr. Kohl passed away after a brief illness.
Mr. Kohl was a popular figure in Wisconsin, known for spending generously from his personal fortune on civic and educational causes throughout the state. He served four consecutive terms as a state senator.
Basketball
In 1985, Mr. Kohl bought the Bucks for $18 million, keeping the team from leaving Milwaukee.
“Senator Kohl was a dear friend and one of our very best public servants,” NBA commissioner Adam Silver said in a statement. “In addition to his decades of devoted service in the U.S. Senate, he set the standard for NBA team ownership as the governor of his hometown Milwaukee Bucks for nearly 30 years.”
“Through his purchase of the team, Senator Kohl ensured that the Bucks would stay in Milwaukee and remain an important pillar of the community,” Mr. Silver added.
After the acquisition, the team would post winning records in the first six full seasons before stumbling through most of the 1990s until picking up speed later in that decade and in the early 2000s.
After selling the team in 2014, Mr. Kohl contributed $100 million toward constructing Fiserv Forum, which opened in 2018 to replace the aging Bradley Center, helping once again to ensure the team would remain in Milwaukee.
“There was never any doubt about his extraordinary commitment to the franchise and city that he loved, and his vision and unparalleled financial contribution towards a new arena in Milwaukee will forever be remembered.” Mr. Silver said.
“He will be deeply missed by his NBA family.”
Mr. Kohl took great pride in his engagement for the team: “The opportunity I was given to purchase and to keep the team here in Milwaukee is one of the most unique and fortunate experiences I’ve ever enjoyed,” he once said.
Politics
Mr. Kohl was born in Milwaukee in 1935 and earned a B.S. in American institutions from the University of Wisconsin-Madison in 1956 and an M.B.A. from Harvard University in 1958.
He joined the Army Reserve from 1958 to 1964 and, together with his brother, helped grow the family business—Kohl’s grocery and department stores—eventually serving as the company’s president in the 1970s. He also ran his own investment company, managing stock and real estate assets.
He eventually became involved in politics, first as a donor and fundraiser, then as chair of the state Democratic Party from 1975 to 1977.
The Kohl retail chain was sold in 1979, the proceeds placing Mr. Kohl in the position to fund his senate races from his own pocket, campaigning as “nobody’s senator but yours.”
He won the senate seat in 1988 and subsequent reelections in 1994, 2000, and 2006.
In the Senate, Mr. Kohl emerged as a reserved figure, dedicated to getting work done rather than seeking self-promotion.
“I am a person who does not believe in invective,” he stated. “I never go out and look to grab the mike or go in front of the TV camera. When I go to work every day, I check my ego at the door.”
During his 24 years in the senate, Mr. Kohl never accepted a pay raise—drawing the same $89,500 salary when he first entered the senate every year, returning the rest to the Treasury Department.
Mr. Kohl was a long-time supporter of amending the U.S. Constitution to require a balanced budget.
Philanthropy
Mr. Kohl’s civic commitments extended well beyond keeping professional basketball in Wisconsin. In 1990, he established the Herb Kohl Educational Foundation, which donates money for scholarships and fellowships to students, teachers and schools in Wisconsin.
He also donated $25 million to the University of Wisconsin to help fund the construction of a new sports arena, home to the school’s basketball and hockey teams, which opened in 1998.
“More than anything, Herb loved Milwaukee and Wisconsin, and that is where he chose to live out his days,” Mr. Kohl’s foundation said in a statement. “He touched an incalculable number of lives, and those who love him would remark that he is among the most decent people to ever walk the earth.”
The Associated Press contributed to this report.
