Memory of wrestler still lives on

By Mark Schulman
Assistant Editor

UNCP lost not only a superb wrestler but also a caring, loving individual, Willie D. Mayes, Jr., in a fatal automobile accident 16 years ago on April 9, 1988. That same year, there was an endowment created in his honor for those who have excelled in academics, athletics and leadership.

The NCAA Division II All-American Wrestler was a 22-year-old senior majoring in business management and was commissioned in Fort Bragg as a U.S. Army Reservist 2nd Lieutenant.

The Willie D. Mayes Jr. Endowment Fund was established by his mother, Mary Mayes White, so his legacy will live on and help students pay for college who share the same mannerisms and qualities as her son.

“Willie’s spirit still lives,” White said. “He whispers to me and says, ‘Oh Mama, I’m everywhere, I’m all around.’”

His memorial service was held in Charlotte giving Mayes full military honors.

“He was an outstanding person and was very popular,” Wrestling Coach P.J. Smith said. “You would not believe how many people from the University came to Charlotte.”

Mayes grew up in Charlotte and attended Garinger High School where he became the school’s first athlete to be a North Carolina State Wrestling Champion.

“He was the best at what he did,” White said.

Not only is Mayes’ name etched in the UNCP Wall of Honor in the Jones Athletic Center, he was also a three-time National qualifier and had two seasons winning over 25 matches each.

“I love it, I could lose myself in wrestling,” Mayes always said, according to his mother.

Wrestling was his passion, his life. As an athlete in an aggressive sport, he remained humble and easy going.

“When I think of Willie, I think of his smile,” Smith said.

Smith recalled the 1987-wrestling season when Willie and the team named themselves the “Ultimate Wrestling Animals.” Smith pulled out a black and white team photo from an old file that showed eight members all posing for the camera, wearing their UNCP singlets, sporting hip dark sunglasses and black bow ties wrapped around their bare necks. In the back row, Mayes looked at the camera with great sincerity and confidence.

Since Mayes’ endowment was created there have been 10-15 recipients. In the last few years, those who have received the scholarship have continued onto graduate school and law school, according to Smith.

“This endowment is to help those meet the commitment of paying for college who exemplify leadership, hard work and good academic standing,” Smith said.

Mayes was not only a mentor on the mat; he was a leader of Phi Beta Sigma Fraternity. To this day his fraternity brothers still keep in contact with his mother at least once a month.

“The fraternity has really helped me keep going,” White said. “Even though it has been 16 years and they have their own families and their own lives, they still call me Mom.”

Mayes was a major factor in his fraternity brothers’ lives as well as they were important in his own life, according to White.

“He was one of the most thoughtful students on campus,” Smith said.

Smith’s goal is to make the endowment a full scholarship.

“I hope people will contribute to make his legacy go on,” Smith said.

White expresses tremendous gratitude to Smith, “His heart is so big, he was like a father away from home to Willie. I want to congratulate Coach Smith. He is such an inspiration for the students and I hope [UNCP] realizes that they have much more than just a coach.”

This 2003-2004 the Phi Beta Sigma Fraternity and an anonymous donor have contributed $1000 each to the endowment.