JACKSONVILLE, Fla. — Two days after the Coast Guard suspended the search for two missing boaters headed to St. Augustine, First Coast News is learning more details about who the men were.
Dave Wickenden and Charlie Andrade were on a 50-foot catamaran that was found capsized 65 miles off the shore of Brunswick, Georgia, but their remains have not been found. The daughters of Andrade remember their father fondly.
"Sailing into the horizon for the last time with his best mate", that's how Andrade's family members chose to memorialize him in a social media post.
The Coast Guard suspended their search Wednesday for the missing boaters, who their family remembers as kind and loving people.
"He definitely loved living life," said Charlie Andrade's daughter Natasha Biro. "A little adventurous, he had no timeline, they were were really just going to enjoy themselves."
Andrade and his best friend Dave Wickenden set off from Connecticut for St. Augustine, a long journey, but nothing unusual according to Biro.
"They're both extremely experienced on the water," said Biro. "All our lives we were on the water, growing up on the shoreline is something that means a lot to us."
The best friends set off for their latest adventure at the beginning of November. Earlier in the summer the Andrade family was hosted on the boat.
"Dave gave us an incredible experience on the water," said Biro. "He knew how to navigate the water, he knew the weather, he knew everything you could ever think of, he knew, you felt safe always."
According to the Coast Guard, the Qori Inti was found capsized roughly 65 miles off the coast of Brunswick. After a search and rescue operation that covered more than 9,000 square miles, the Coast Guard suspended their search.
"In our hearts we'll always have a little bit of hope that he's out there," said Andrade's daughter Brandi Andrade. "But in our heads we're a little bit more logical as unfortunate as that is."
Andrade's daughters are choosing to remember their father for the good times they shared as a family and the memories that will never fade.
"He's just incredibly talented, if you ask anyone along the shoreline, he's the most talented craftsman," said Biro. "We joked and called him McGyver, he could fix anything."
"I'd call him and say, dad can you fix this, he'd be annoyed but show up," said Brandi.
"They were best friends, they had an incredible relationship and had a love for being on the water," said Biro.
Charlie Andrade is survived by his four children and five grandchildren. His children said his love for the sea was only matched by his love for his family.
The Andrade family has started a GoFundMe to help with costs of a memorial service.