Time capsule burial preserves legacy of boxing legend
Artifacts will show 50 years of history at Muhammad Ali’s former training camp in Deer Lake
Fighter’s Heaven, the site of former professional boxer and heavyweight champion Muhammad Ali’s former training camp in Deer Lake, will host a 50-year time capsule burial.
Friends of the famous boxer will be among those in attendance to witness the burial of artifacts showing 50 years of history at the training camp, from its establishment in 1971 to present day. The free and open to the public event will be held at 11 a.m. on June 4.
“This is to bury the time capsule with today’s events that were happening around the camp itself, the Mike Madden legacy who refurbished the camp. In 50 years he’s hoping that his two sons, Jesse and Jack, will still be around to come and open up that time capsule,” said Sam Matta, media relations for Fighter’s Heaven.
Shelby Splain of the Pennsylvania State Historic Preservation Office also plans to attend the burial of the time capsule.
The heritage time capsule is part of a Pennsylvania State Historic Preservation Office Community Initiative Award presented to Fighter’s Heaven in 2019 but the pandemic postponed its burial. The award recognizes the hard work and dedication of outstanding organizations, municipalities, agencies and individuals whose work embodies the theme of Pennsylvania’s statewide historic preservation plan. Recipients have demonstrated the value of preserving iconic places and community landmarks through their ownership and stewardship.
On June 4, the time capsule will be filled with stories and memorabilia related to Ali’s former training camp.
“There will be articles that were written about Muhammad Ali, about Fighter’s Heaven today,” said Matta. “There will be some interesting artifacts that are going to be put in the time capsule. When they open it up in 50 years, they’ll say, ‘Wow, look at was written here.”
Matta said the purpose of the time capsule is to preserve history, from the time Ali came to the camp in 1971 to present day.
Several people who knew Ali will be in attendance to witness the burial, including Ali’s former personal aide and driver Harold Hazzard Sr. of Philadelphia.
Recently, Hazzard was among the select few invited to Fighter’s Heaven in September for an outdoor viewing of the new documentary series “Muhammad Ali: A Documentary” by Ken Burns when it aired on PBS.
“He was like a brother to me. He never treated me like an employer; he treated me like I was family,” he said prior to the film viewing. “It was just fantastic.”
Also in attendance will be Lynda Pollack Schiffert, originally of Deer Lake and now a resident of Orwigsburg, who knew Ali since he was a family friend. Her father Bernie Pollack was a friend of Ali’s business manager Gene Kilroy. Her father sold to Ali the Deer Lake land that now houses Ali’s training camp, a secluded site in an area called Sculps Hill.
Today, Schiffert volunteers on weekends to give tours at the Fighter’s Heaven and share stories about Ali.
History of Fighter’s Heaven
Fighter’s Heaven offers tours by appointment Monday through Friday and from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. on weekends.
“There is never a charge to visit Fighter’s Heaven, it is a free museum,” said Matta. “The goal is to maintain the legacy of Muhammad Ali who trained there through his illustrious career,” said Matta. “The camp was built in late 1971 and 1972 and it started to come together. Actually, it became the capital of the world for avid boxing fans to come and visit.”
Ali built his Fighter’s Heaven training camp while seeking a secluded place to train after attracting significant media attention when he returned to boxing in 1970.
“I brought Muhammad Ali to Deer Lake, taking him away from all the distractions of being in a city,” said Ali’s business manager Gene Kilroy in a statement to media in September. “I told Ali I was going to make a businessman out of him. He could use the camp as a tax write-off, Ali’s accountants agreed with me.”
The camp included eight log cabins for his support personnel, a Mosque, kitchen, and a gym where he trained away from the distractions and media of Philadelphia, New York, Baltimore and Washington, preparing for numerous fights, such as Rumble in the Jungle in 1974 and Thrilla in Manila in 1975.
“Ali loved being at Deer Lake, it was his piece of Heaven,” said Kilroy. “The people were good to us. I’m a very luck man to have known Ali.”
After his retirement from the ring, Ali sold the camp to George Dillman in 1997. Following Ali’s death on June 3, 2016, Dillman reopened Fighter’s Heaven to the public, including the gym, kitchen and cabins.
Since July 2016, the site has been owned by Mike Madden, son of legendary Hall of Fame football coach John Madden.
Madden continues to open the camp to the public for free tours.
“The story of Muhammad Ali is too important to American history and sports history,” Madden said. “The lessons we can learn from the life of Muhammad Ali are as relevant now as ever.”
In October, Fighter’s Heaven will erect a Pennsylvania Historical and Museum Commission historical marker. “The Commission administers a program of historical markers to capture the stories of people, places, events, and innovations that have affected the lives of Pennsylvanians over the centuries,” www. phmc.pa.gov.
Fighter’s Heaven does not charge admission to tour the six-acre facility, but donations are gladly accepted. These donations and any sales of T-shirts or sweatshirts go directly to these worthy organizations — all in Muhammad Ali’s spirit of “giving.” Further information can be found at www. fightersheaven.com.