Michael Stephen Mast of Arcata passed away on September 8, 2021 after battling cancer and Alzheimer’s disease. He was 75 years of age. He was born on September 2, 1946 in St. Louis, Missouri to Lawrence Mast and Marie Boegeman Mast. He is survived by his sister, Mary Ekiss, his daughters, Theresa Mast Sorensen of Sacramento and Christina Mast of Arcata. He also leaves behind his former wife Kathleen Strickland of Sacramento and his estranged wife Catherine Dean of Arcata.

He grew up in the San Fernando Valley of Los Angeles, and just loved the music of the Beach Boys. After high school he went to Pierce College there for a while and then transferred to a small Catholic University in Olympia, Washington called St. Martin’s University. They built a brand new gym which they also intended to use as an entertainment venue. Somehow Mike got put in charge of booking some entertainment. He had no idea how to go about it so he contacted a local DJ who happened to know the agent for some groups including the Beach Boys. He found out that the Beach Boys were on tour along with Buffalo Springfield and they were playing Portland, Oregon and Seattle, Washington. They had an empty day in between those two concerts. Well, with the help of the DJ, Mike convinced the Beach Boys to come to St. Martin’s University and play on that empty day. Although Mike had many accomplishments I think this is the one he was most proud of.

Most recently Michael worked as a civilian for the US Air Force at McClellan Air Force Base in Sacramento. After retirement he moved to a rural property just south of Orick. Then he moved to a home in Arcata to be closer to medical care and his daughter and grandchildren.

Mike loved to make people smile. Even during the radiation treatments he had, the nurses and technicians always smiled when they saw him.

He loved to travel. Some memorable trips he took were to Europe in a motor home, several trips to Hawaii and two to Belize where he especially enjoyed investigating the Mayan ruins.

He had always wanted to be a farmer like his grandfather, but he was allergic to all animals, trees and grass. He called the property he had south of Orick on McDonald Creek Road his farm. He did love to watch the elk that came to graze in the field across the road from his house.

Michael was known for his “Get ‘er Done” attitude, his love for his family an his generosity. We all miss him.

###

The obituary above was submitted on behalf of Michael Mast’s loved ones. The Lost Coast Outpost runs obituaries of Humboldt County residents at no charge. See guidelines here.