A Detroit nonprofit’s annual summer celebration was in jeopardy after 400 pairs of shoes were stolen from its warehouse. Thanks to the community, Hoopfest was able to move forward.

Day three of NW Goldberg Cares’ Hoopfest started with a 3-on-3 basketball tournament at Curtis Jones Park.

“I love Hoopfest. I like seeing the happy people, and some people don’t have this every day, and I’m glad that they can have it, at least this summer and all the other summers,” Detroit resident Addison Washington, 9, said.

The event is something the children in the neighborhood have been looking forward to for the past four years.

“I like that I get to come here with my friends and my family, and that I get new shoes every year,” Avery Ponders of Detroit said.

From the entertainment on the basketball court to the barbershop pop-up, everything is free.

“I think, for so long, this community hasn’t had someone to give back and just show them love and appreciation for free. Enjoy yourself, eat, get something to eat, drink, everything, enjoy the festivities. I think it’s much needed for the community,” Devon Larkin, a parent, said.

More than a week ago, the nonprofit made headlines after 400 pairs of name-brand custom sneakers intended for a giveaway were stolen.

“It just was sad, man, to know that they do so much for the community and they give back so much. Why would you come take something that is going to the children?” Larkin said.

Thanks to donations from the community and sponsors, the organization secured the amount needed to reach its goal of handing out 1,000 pairs of shoes.

“That was the number we had set in mind, and we’re going to hit that number. We’re so thankful to the Detroit community. We were able to secure enough shoes to still continue this event and that’s what we’re most proud of,” Brandon Daniels, treasurer for NW Goldberg Cares, said.

Whether it’s on the basketball court or off, students can start the school year feeling ready and confident.

“I am looking forward to a new pair of shoes. It’s going to be really great and I’m super excited,” Washington said.

The Milwaukee Brewers aren’t going to be judged on anything but postseason success this season. That said, their second half began on the best possible note.

Over the weekend against the Miami Marlins, the Brewers displayed their clutch chops. Sweeping a series against a team firmly in the wild card hunt was an accomplishment enough, but doing so on a pair of walk-offs displayed the kind of mettle that will benefit Milwaukee when it gets to October.

After being shut out for eight innings in Sunday’s series finale, the Brewers struck against Marlins closer Pete Fairbanks, as a furious rally concluded in a three-run home run for William Contreras. It was arguably the high point of the season so far, but with 63 games to go, everything from this point forward becomes a more important tune-up.

Brewers pass early second-half test against Miami

The Brewers obviously expect Contreras to be among the most important bats for them in the second half, so to get such a dramatic, explosive swing from him early in the second half is a reassuring sign. But so many other things happened in this series that the Brewers could take heart in as well.

How about the fact that neither Jacob Misiorowski, nor Kyle Harrison, nor even Brandon Sproat, had anything to do with this series? The Brewers hope all three of those arms pass tests in the second half (Harrison’s health first and foremost) and perhaps that might even be the playoff rotation.

But Logan Henderson, Shane Drohan, and Robert Gasser brought their A-game in this series. The Brewers bullpen did Brewers bullpen things, leading to Craig Yoho’s first major league win in Game 1.

Now, Misiorowski and Sproat will get their chances to make their mark on the second half in the upcoming series against Freddy Peralta and the New York Mets. Peralta, who used to hold Misiorowski’s role as ace of the staff, was traded for Sproat in January.

Will the Brewers keep on passing tests? At 62-37, they’re blitzing their way to a fifth division title in six seasons, but they know nothing counts until the calendar flips to October.

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July 19 (UPI) — A total of 19 people were injured during early morning mass shootings in entertainment districts in the U.S. cities of Tucson and Minneapolis, authorities said Sunday.

Tucson Police Department officers were on foot patrol in the city’s downtown area around 2 a.m. local time when they heard gunfire and ran toward a crowded scene, police spokesman Frank Magos told reporters.

There they encountered a male suspect and ordered him to drop his weapon, he said.

After repeating the order several times, an officer shot and injured the suspect, who was hospitalized with life-threatening injuries.

Magos described the suspect as a local man whose identity was being withheld.

Police said all nine of the hospitalized victims were adults and that most of them sustained injuries to their extremities.

A 10th person suffered minor injuries.

Meanwhile in Minneapolis, nine adults were injured in a shooting outside a nightclub in the city’s Uptown district early on Sunday, according to interim Minneapolis Police Chief Bill Peterson.

Two of the male victims sustained potentially life-threatening injuries, he told reporters.

The first officers arrived on the scene in less than a minute after the initial gunfire reports and found “a chaotic scene, with multiple victims and a large crowd.

“This was a brazen act of violence in a crowded entertainment district where innocent people were placed at tremendous risk that is absolutely unacceptable,” Peterson said.

Tucson Mayor Regina Romero called the incident in her city “another serious and senseless act of gun violence.

“A shooter recklessly began shooting in a crowded area striking nine people before being stopped by a Tucson Police Officer,” she said in a statement. “Thanks to the quick actions and excellent care provided by our fire fighters and police officers, all victims were stabilized and taken to the hospital where we are hopeful they will all recover.”

The mayor blamed “easy access to guns” and “Arizona’s weak gun safety laws” for continuing to “put all of us at risk. From requiring universal background checks to extreme risk laws to funding violence prevention there is more lawmakers can and should do.”

“I’m heartbroken to learn that nine people were shot early this morning in downtown Tucson,” added former Arizona congresswoman and gun control advocate Gabby Giffords, whose political career was cut short when she was nearly shot to death during an attempted assassination.

“Too many lives have been changed forever because of America’s gun violence crisis, in my hometown and across the nation,” she said in a statement. “[Husband and U.S. senator] Mark [Kelly] and I are grateful for the bravery of Tucson’s first responders as we await more information and hold all those impacted in our hearts.”