Milwaukee, WI
Bobby Portis and his mom share the story behind his foundation while honoring Milwaukee teachers
MILWAUKEE, Wis. — The Bobby Portis Foundation hosted a luncheon Friday at Roosevelt Middle School to honor teachers — many of whom are also mothers — with Mother’s Day and Teacher Appreciation Week overlapping on the calendar.
Portis and his mother, Tina Edwards, spent the day celebrating educators and reflecting on the mission behind the foundation.
“We just want to make sure that we let the teachers know you are appreciated because sometimes it goes beyond being a parent at home, but sometimes teachers are parents at school,” Edwards explained.
Ariel Campos, TMJ4 Sports
For Portis, a forward for the Milwaukee Bucks, the foundation has always been rooted in one person.
“The Bobby Portis Foundation has always just been solely based upon really my mom, and that’s the inspiration behind it,” Portis said.
WATCH: Bobby Portis and his mom share the story behind his foundation
Bobby Portis and his mom share the story behind his foundation while honoring Milwaukee teachers
Growing up, Portis watched his mother raise four boys on her own.
“My mom worked tirelessly to take care of all four of us,” Portis said.
Edwards made sacrifices for her sons from the very beginning — including turning down a basketball scholarship after becoming pregnant with Bobby.
“I still was offered a scholarship after I had him, but I wanted to choose him over ball,” Edwards said.
Tina Edwards
That sacrifice brought her full circle through her son’s career.
“With Bobby becoming an NBA player, he’s living my dream, and I’m living the dream through him,” Edwards shared.
For Portis, the event was an opportunity to honor everything his mother has given him.
“I can’t just put into words what my mom has done for me, not only for my basketball career – that’s just like a small portion of my life – I’m talking about just me as a human being, as a man. I mean, I didn’t have a dad growing up, so my mom played both roles. She did a hell of a job raising not only me but my three other brothers,” Portis said.
His grandmother’s message to spread his blessings continues to drive his work.
“Being able to be in a position now to have a voice, to have a platform, to give back, to help inspire. I try to use it to the best of my abilities,” Portis said.
This story was reported on-air by a journalist and has been converted to this platform with the assistance of AI. Our editorial team verifies all reporting on all platforms for fairness and accuracy.
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Brandon Sproat makes best start of the season, but Brewers still lose
Brandon Sproat limited the A’s to one run over six innings in a tough environment in Las Vegas but the Brewers still fell, 4-3.
As Jacob Misiorowski faced off with the Philadelphia Phillies – who publicly decried Jacob after his stunning All-Star Game selection last season – the Milwaukee Brewers right-hander and his teammates swore there wasn’t any added venom behind his fastballs on June 12 at American Family Field.
Try telling that to the radar gun.
Misiorowski looked like a man on a mission – even the aw-shucks smiles from his locker postgame tried saying otherwis.e
The 24-year-old flamethrower incinerated the Phillies over a one-hit shutout in a Brewers’ 6-0 win, coming within one base runner of a perfect game and recording the most strikeouts ever (15) in a shutout of fewer than 100 pitches – colloquially referred to as a “Maddux”.
Misiorowski reached back for 104.5 mph, the fastest tracked pitch by a starting pitcher ever, and surpassed 103 mph three times against the final batter of his masterpiece.
Aside from a Kyle Schwarber single to lead off the fourth, it was, in a reversal of last July’s proceedings through the press, a bully stomping on innocent prey.
“What a joke,” is what Phillies shortstop Trea Turner told The Athletic nearly a calendar year ago when news came out that Misiorowski was going to play in the All-Star Game despite just five career outings. “That’s f—ing terrible. I mean that’s terrible, dude.”
“It’s turning into the Savannah Bananas,” said Nick Castellanos.
The motive for the Phillies’ comments was to defend their teammate, Cristopher Sánchez. The left-hander Sánchez was having a stellar year at the time and went on to finish second in Cy Young voting, but was passed over on the initial all-star selections. When MLB offered him a spot in the game under the condition he would be available to pitch two days after his final scheduled start of the first half, he declined.
Misiorowski, though, was caught by the stray blows emanating from Philadelphia’s clubhouse simply for accepting the commissioner’s invitation. The veterans on the Phillies felt his nod cheapened the honor that comes with making the midsummer classic.
But the only joke at American Family Field this time were the feeble attempts to make contact with Misiorowski’s heat that registered well north of triple digits all night.
Banana Ball? Nope. This was just plain bananas.
Misiorowski against the Phillies continued his conquest to do things never seen before on a diamond.
He averaged 101.7 mph with his fastball, which got 23 whiffs, the second most on any pitch in a game in the pitch tracking era (since 2008). He reached 100 mph 58 times, besting the previous record – set by himself, of course – of 57.
It was, to put it deftly, one of the greatest pitching performances in baseball history.
Misiorowski has shown a knack early in his career – this start came on the one-year anniversary of his debut – for rising to the moment, but he denied having any extra ammo for the Phillies.
“To be honest it’s about the same as the Yankees, Dodgers,” Misiorowski said. “Any of those big market teams, you always want to throw well against them.
Catcher William Contreras echoed the sentiment.
“That’s just another Miz performance,” he said. “I don’t think anyone’s paying any mind to that. I didn’t even have any idea of any of that going into the game. Wasn’t paying attention to that. He’s going out there doing what he can to show he deserves to be in the All-Star Game again.”
Whether you believe that or not, a second All-Star nod is surely coming to Misiorowski, who leads all pitchers in earned run average, strikeouts, batting average against and WHIP.
The Phillies will probably remain hush about this one.
MILWAUKEE — A family is suing the City of Milwaukee after their son was left inside a car at a tow lot following a fatal crash.
The lawsuit says James Edward Stokes, Jr. was a passenger in the car involved in a crash on June 1, 2023, where the car hit a pole or tree near 9000 West Fond Du Lac Avenue. It suffered significant damage, including a shattered windshield, blown tires and more, the lawsuit says.
When police arrived on scene, the lawsuit claims that witnesses told police to check for a body in the car, but were ignored.
Instead, Milwaukee police took control and custody of the car, the lawsuit says, claiming it was evidence and contraband, since the car had been reported stolen.
The police had it towed to a city tow lot, located at 3811 West Lincoln Avenue, where it was locked up and left there.
The lawsuit claims officers and the tow lot workers failed to search the car to make sure there were no trapped occupants. In the lawsuit, the family called this an “act of shocking and deliberate indifference.”
As a result of lacking a search, the lawsuit says Stokes died a slow death, trapped inside the car for the next four days.
On June 5, 2023, the owner of the car came to get some of their belongings and noticed a foot hanging over the back seat. Upon seeing that, the owner called the police.
A Medical examiner’s report said Stokes, Jr. had advanced signs of decomposition, one of which was bloating, which the lawsuit says is consistent with being trapped in an unventilated car for days. The report also states that he had survived the initial impact of the crash.
The lawsuit is not only against the city but also against Police Chief Jeffrey Norman, manager of the city tow lot Peter Knox, and MPD officers Shate Doughty, Brett Stegerwald, Andrew Fuerte and Alex Bartoshevich.
WISCONSIN – Severe storms moved through southeastern Wisconsin on Thursday night, June 11, leaving damage behind in Kenosha and the Town of Burlington.
Tornado touchdown?
What we know:
In Kenosha County, a DOT camera captured a tornado-warned storm moving quickly east over I-94. Traffic appeared to slow as the storm crossed over the freeway.
The National Weather Service reported an observed tornado touchdown in the area. The agency is expected to confirm storm damage in the following days.
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In the Town of Paris, County Highway 142 was blocked near 136th Avenue because of downed power lines. The road was also blocked farther west near County Highway MB South, also known as 152nd Avenue.
Scattered damage
What they’re saying:
Homeowners in the area described intense winds and scattered damage. Trees were ripped up from the roots, aluminum flagpoles were bent close to the ground and a trailer near the Uline facility appeared to have been tipped over.
“The wind picked up real, pretty strong, and it only lasted like 30 seconds,” resident Mark Wisnefski said. “You know, whew, it went through and it was gone. But I see there’s a trailer tipped over in the lot.”
COMPLETE COVERAGE: Live blog tracks severe weather through southeast Wisconsin
The Kenosha County Sheriff’s Office said County Highway 142 was expected to remain closed for some time because of extensive damage and downed power lines.
Burlington severe weather
Dig deeper:
Storm damage was also reported in Burlington, where a large tree blocked a road and knocked down power lines. About four homes were impacted, according to Burlington Fire Chief Bill Vrchota.
No injuries were reported.
The fire chief said crews responded to several downed trees.
“Rough estimates initially are anywhere from about a half a dozen to a dozen,” Vrchota said. “I did talk to our DPW head and we wanted to make sure that we addressed all the road closures we need to and that’s the number that he had given me and what I have talked to the Sheriff’s Department about.”
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Officials reminded people to stay away from downed power lines because they could still be energized.
Racine during the storm, courtesy of Loki Lott
Burlington neighbors described hearing a loud boom as the storm moved through. One person compared the sound to a car bomb and described the rain coming in as a wall of water.
Crews were working Thursday night to clear damage and restore power.
COMPLETE COVERAGE: Live blog tracks severe weather through southeast Wisconsin
The Source: FOX6 News had crews on the scene of severe weather throughout south-east Wisconsin.
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