Michael Knight was not a native of Muskegon. But few have championed her causes as Knight has. He fell in love with the area shortly after moving here in the 1970s and immediately got involved with many civic projects on a volunteer basis. He is credited with personally fighting through miles of red tape to get a luge, cross-country ski trails, and an ice-skating facility built on state park land in North Muskegon. The facility, known as the Muskegon Winter Sports Complex, has been utilized by hundreds of thousands of people since it was established in the late 1980s, averaging 25,000 participants a year. The complex’s lodge is called the “Michael Knight Memorial Sports Lodge,” in honor of Knight who died in 1988 at age 45 of heart failure.

In addition to the Winter Sports Complex, Knight helped establish the Amateur Athletic Union Winter games in Muskegon, which lured hundreds here for competition in everything from cross-country skiing to gymnastics, to karate. Those games even received national TV exposure. Knight also established a biathlon near the state park that was among the most competitive and well-attended in the state. Outside of the sports arena, Knight busily promoted Muskegon in whatever capacity he could. He served as president of the Miss Michigan Scholarship Pageant, was founder and executive director of the Northside Summer Spectacular, served on the North Muskegon city council, and was executive director of the Muskegon Heights Festival in the Park.