Family and friends gathered for Mays’ visitation Sunday evening at Beck Funeral Home in Rogers City, where they remembered Mays not only for surviving the shipwreck, but for his adventurous spirit.

“It’s actually nice to see family and friends, the people who knew him and all the memories of him sailing and being on the Bradley,” his daughter Laine Mays said during the Sunday visitation.

Originally from Rogers City, Mays was one of two people to survive the sinking of the Bradley, a self unloading bulk freighter that split in two and sank during a storm on Nov. 18, 1958, about 12 miles south of Gull Island on Lake Michigan.

Mays died on January 7 at Advent Health Hospital in Zephyrhills, Florida at the age of 89, according to his obituary. Mays moved to Florida in 1982.

News Photo by Crystal Nelson Eric Mays, pictured right, visits with family and friends Sunday at Beck Funeral Home in Rogers City for his father, Frank Mays, visitation. Frank Mays, who died January 7, was the last living survivor of the Carl D. Bradley shipwreck.

Mays graduated from Rogers City High School in 1950 and sailed on the Great Lakes for a short time before joining the Navy in February of 1951. After four years of service in the Navy, he worked various jobs in Waterloo, Iowa, before returning to Rogers City and sailing on the Great Lakes.

A deck watchman on the Bradley, Mays was on deck the night the Bradley sank. He was one of four men to make it into a life raft, according to the U.S. Coast Guard report, but two of them fell overboard as the raft flipped over several times in heavy seas.

First Mate Elmer Fleming also survived, but died decades ago, leaving Mays the sole living survivor of the shipwreck.

Eric Mays, one of Mays’ sons, said his dad never really talked about the Bradley until after the first submarine expedition to the Bradley.

He said his dad always said the Edmund Fitzgerald got the thunder and Bradley was forgotten. However, Eric Mays said after the submarine expedition, was when his dad really opened up about his experiences.

Carla Brege, who grew up across the street from Mays in Rogers City, said although they knew he was a survivor of the Bradley, her father had a rule they were not to talk about the Bradley in front of him until he wanted to talk about it.

Brege said their families were close and were always in touch, even when the Mays moved away. She said any time Mays was in Rogers City he was always in touch.

After surviving the wreck, Mays pursued a career at Portland Cement Manufacturing, working for Medusa Cement in Charlevoix and in York, Pennsylvania. He also worked at Florida Mining and Materials in Brooksville, Florida, from which he retired.

Laine Mays said she remembered living at the farm in Charlevoix.

“He always made sure we went on great summer vacations even though we lived on the farm,” she said.

Frank Mays, who was preceded in death by his wife, Veronica “Toodie” Derry in 1998, joined the Peace Corp in January 2000 and served in the country of Moldova.

He began traveling the world after serving in the Peace Corp, traveling to many coutries, including Spain, Italy, China, Germany, Russia, Australia, and Cuba. Mays also visited 46 of the 50 states in the United States.

Mays would travel back to Michigan in the summers and give speeches about the Bradley and do book signings.

He co-authored two books — “If We Make it to Daylight,” which was written with Pat Stayer, Jim Stayer, and Tim Juhl, about how he survived the sinking of the Bradley and “A Lot More to Do: The Remarkable Life of Frank Mays,” which he co-authored with Roger Hulett of the Great Lakes Lore Maritime Museum. His second book was about his life after the shipwreck.

Mays’ visitation continues at 9 a.m. today at St. Ignatius Catholic Church until the time of his memorial mass at 10 a.m. with the Rev. Rolando Silva officiating. Inurnment will follow at Mt. Calvary Catholic Cemetery, where Rogers City Veterans of Foreign Wars Post 607 will provide military honors.