NASHVILLE, Tenn. -- Forrest Bradford was a close friend of Steve McNair's for more than a decade. Since Saturday, he's been staying at the family home in Green Hills comforting McNair's wife, Mechelle, and their sons.

"They're doing the best they can," said Bradford, the family's spokesman, who said McNair was like a brother to him. "How do you deal with losing your father, you know, really?"

Close friends and relatives stopped by all afternoon Monday, many coming from out of town, including McNair's mother, Lucille, to help with funeral arrangements.

"Mechelle's a strong woman; she's as strong as Steve. It's real hard to rationalize what God was thinking with this one," said former Tennessee Titan Zach Piller. "I just know I love Steve."

The makeshift memorial continues to grow outside McNair's Gridiron9 restaurant near Tennessee State University.

"I wanted to come down to be closer to him somehow and pay my respects," said fan Whit Hubner.

Most people said they want to remember McNair for the great things he did in the community and on the field, not for the circumstances surrounding his death.

But Lonnie Morrow said he feels there's a lesson everyone can take away from the tragedy.

"Sticking with your family values, the way you was raised, how you were raised, taught, brought up," said Morrow, a fan. "Probably Steve's family and everything, his mother, brought him up to be a decent young man -- which he was, but he just got caught up into the wrong situation."

Friends who went to visit said that McNair's sons spent a lot of the day sleeping.

There will be a public memorial for McNair from 3 p.m. to 6:45 p.m. Thursday at Mount Zion Baptist Church.

A memorial service is scheduled for 7 p.m. at the church. Mount Zion Baptist Church is at 7594 Old Hickory Blvd. in Whites Creek.

Another visitation is scheduled Thursday for the Lewis and Wright Funeral Home on Clarksville Highway from 8 a.m. to 1:30 p.m.

Funeral arrangements in Mississippi are being held Saturday at 11 a.m. in Hattiesburg at Reed Green Coliseum at the University of Southern Mississippi.

In lieu of flowers, fans are asked to make a donation to the following address:

Steve McNair Foundation
1 Willow Bend Drive
Hattiesburg, Miss. 39402