BORN A MASON, MADE A MASON
By Paul Hooley, MBE, JP, PAGDC

Last year the world of boxing said farewell to two former British Heavyweight title holders. Both men had risen from humble backgrounds on South London housing estates to become national champions in the most physically demanding of all sports. They wore their crowns with dignity and became examples to be admired in and out of the ring. Yet whilst one died peacefully at home of natural causes after a full and happy family life that had seen him become a much loved ‘national treasure’ with lasting fame, fortune, celebrity status and honours from the Queen, the other, a Freemason, died alone in tragic circumstances after years of hardship following his struggle to make a living outside of boxing.

Henry Cooper, who died on May 21st, was born in 1934 and grew up in Bellingham. He, his twin George and another brother, Bernard, became professional boxers following their periods of
National Service. In a career spanning 14 years ‘our ‘enry’, as he became affectionately known, had 55 professional fights winning 40 and drawing one, collecting an unequalled three Lonsdale Belts along the way. His most memorable moment came in a 1963 fight that he eventually lost. Cooper floored Muhammad Ali (then Cassius Clay) with a punch that almost changed the history of boxing. Ali later confided it was the hardest punch he ever took adding ‘He hit me so hard my
ancestors in Africa felt it’. Cooper later added the European and Commonwealth crowns to his British title but failed in his attempt to become world champion. Following retirement in 1968 he became even more popular through his work on radio and television and he was twice voted BBC Sports Personality of the Year. In 2000 he became the first boxer to be knighted having previously been awarded an OBE. A devoted family man he never got over the deaths of Albina his beloved wife of 47 years in 2008 and his twin George two years later.

Gary Mason never achieved the same level of recognition and adulation in the ring as Henry Cooper, nor did he enjoy anything like the wealth, fame or happiness of his illustrious predecessor. Yet his record stands alongside the very best and few can match the levels of kindness and generosity regularly demonstrated by this ‘gentle giant’.

Born in 1962 Gary, one of a family of 10 children, was brought up in Clapham. On leaving school he tried his hand at various jobs, including night club bouncer, before turning to boxing. Known for his courage, his iron chin and his ferocious punching power he won his first professional fight in 1984 and five years later became British champion. In total he had 38 fights in his ten year career of which he won 37 – 34 of them by knockouts. His win over former
Olympic champion Tyrell Biggs propelled him to number 4 in the WBC rankings and to the brink of a possible title fight with world champion Mike Tyson. Like Henry Cooper, Mason will be best remembered however for the one fight he lost, against Lennox Lewis, which had a devastating effect on his life. The judges had Mason ahead on points when the referee was forced to stop the fight in the 7th round in favour of Lewis – Gary had sustained a second detached retina. In that moment he not only lost a fight, a title and a crack at the world champion, but also his career. After failed attempts as a commentator, promoter, retailer and a professional rugby player Gary began a long downward spiral that saw him divorced, distanced from his teenage son and in debt. His character was such that he remained cheerful and optimistic and he was often seen signing autographs as he stood in the queue outside his local Job Centre. In stark contrast Lennox Lewis, who on retirement said ‘of all my opponents Gary Mason hit the hardest’, went on to become the undisputed world heavyweight champion amassing a wealth estimated to
be £70 million.

Not so well remembered by the general public outside London, Gary remained close to his many
friends in boxing and in his church, All Saints Carshalton, where he was a sidesman and regularly read the lessons. It was through his connections at All Saints that he founded what is now known as the Gary Mason Rhythmical Empowerment Charitable Foundation*, a ‘not-for-profit’ charity which teaches African djembe drum music to people of all ages, colours and creeds with an emphasises on encouraging the disabled and those with special needs. Gary’s other great interest was Freemasonry. He was initiated into Chelsea Lodge No. 3098 in 1999 and passed and raised the following year. He later joined Pride of Surrey Lodge No 9167, in which he advanced to the position of Junior Deacon, and he was also a member of Surrey Council No 88 Royal and Select – a degree open to those who are both Royal Arch and Mark Masons.

Integrity, decency, dignity, charm, modesty, unassuming, are all words regularly mentioned alongside his name. It is generally accepted too that he was a worthy, if underrated,
heavyweight champion who was gracious in victory and philosophical in his one defeat, about
which he later said ‘I don’t regret a thing or envy anybody – nobody said it was going to be easy’. A cheerful extrovert with a personality to match his size and his heart Gary was a loveable character with an infectious laugh and a genuine desire to help humanity.

This was never more evident than in an incident related by writer/broadcaster Steve Bunce.
Knowing of Mason’s financial difficulties the boxing fraternity had presented him with a cheque for £10,000 collected at a gala event held in his honour. Shortly afterwards Gary was in tears at the bedside of his comatose friend Michael Watson, who following a fight with Chris Eubank was left brain damaged for life. Mason passed the £10,000 to Michael’s mother ‘His family needs that more than me’ he told her. Bunce only released this information after Gary’s death saying ‘He refused every effort by me to make the donation public.'

Gary Mason was killed in the early hours of January 6th 2011. He had been hit by a white van whilst out cycling as part of a regime to get fit for a charity event he had promised to fulfil. He died at the scene which was near to where he had been living alone in a flat, poor and penniless – so impoverished was he that it seemed he might have to suffer the indignity of a pauper’s funeral. That wasn’t going to happen once his situation, which through pride he had kept to himself, became known by the boxing fraternity, his church and his Brethren in Freemasonry. As Chelsea Lodge Secretary Tony Chaperlin, Gary’s proposer into the Craft and long term friend said ‘We made sure he had a good send off’. Lennox Lewis, his stable mate Frank Bruno and Michael Watson were amongst the 1,000 mourners who attended the funeral of a man who was born a Mason, was made a Mason and who, as is the hope of every Mason, lived respected and died regretted.

Footnote: In February of this year, 13 months after the tragic event, the Coroner at an inquest in Croydon declared Gary’s death to have been an accident – this in spite of strong evidence of driver error. Following the hearing Gary’s sister, Paulette Stewart, paid a moving tribute to the popular boxer and indicated the family would be taking civil action against the driver of the white van, adding ‘It was clear he was driving at excessive speed, cut the corner of the junction [where Gary was killed] and failed an eye test on the morning of the collision’.

               *Further information about the Gary Mason Foundation can be found at:
                                                www.gary-mason-charity.org

Defining moments: Left – Cassius Clay (Muhammad Ali) on the floor after feeling the full force of ‘enry’s ammer’. Right – Lennox Lewis (black shorts) ends the career of a heretofore unbeaten Gary Mason


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