Back to Our Roots: Catching Up with the Bears of San Francisco
Members of the Bears of San Francisco join us for a discussion about the current bear scene in SF and the history of their organization.
At Bear World Magazine we take great pride in introducing our readers to bear artists, titleholders and events from around the globe. We do recognize, however, that it is the local bear organizations that play a massive role in keeping our community and culture alive; so, we wanted to start digging a bit deeper and getting to know more about these bear clubs that are the lifeblood of the bear community.
As such we figured we’d start with the birthplace of bear culture – San Francisco. From this magical city came the first bear gatherings, Bear Magazine and the beginnings of our wonderful community that now spans the entire globe.
The Bears of San Francisco (BOSF) have been showing us how its done since the 1990’s and we are very proud to be joined by Erik Greenfrost, the Chair of the BOSF Steering Committee and Larry Rivera, one of the organization’s founders (and current member of the Steering Committee) for an insightful conversation about the history of the Bears of San Francisco and the state of bear affairs in SF nowadays.
John: Hey Erik and Larry! Thank you so much for joining us. Let’s dive right in. When did the Bears of San Francisco start? Who created it and why?
Erik: BOSF was founded in 1994, so this year is our 30th anniversary and we are still going strong!
Larry: It was largely created through the efforts of Lurch, a local bear comedian, and other local bears like Jason Macario. Prior to International Bear Rendezvous, there was a San Francisco bear run called BearExpo. BearExpo was very successful, but after the third event there were some comments from the beneficiaries about the amount they were being given. We all volunteered our time and asked the organizers to see their books. They refused and we all withdrew our help. BOSF was formed as a backup plan if BearExpo failed to be held. When we were sure BearExpo was a no-go, we began to plan a replacement event, Bear Rendezvous.
John: When did you come to join the group? Why did you join and what is your role?
Larry: I’m given much more credit than I deserve. I attended the first strategy meeting laying out the plan for an alternative event. We needed to be a nonprofit so Bears of San Francisco was proposed as the name of the nonprofit. I was sitting in a comfortable armchair and did not contribute much more than my vote. For all the years I’ve been a part of BOSF, I’ve spent most of my time as a go-for, volunteer, and useful fool. I was elected to the board several years ago and served there ever since.
Erik: First of all, I’d argue that Larry doesn’t give himself as much credit as he should! I joined in 2018 at the request of the (now former) President, who was looking to retire and have a succession plan in place. The organization hosted the last International Bear Rendezvous in 2011, had decided to retire its nonprofit status, and was transitioning the leadership to a steering committee. I had been involved with BOSF throughout the years – including as the final 2011 International Cub winner – and was honored to be brought on to help with the transition as the group continued figuring out what a post-IBR future looked like. Folks had gotten burned out by constant fundraising, and so we made a decision to scale back and focus more on the “service and socializing” aspects of our mission.
John: How big is your membership and what are some of your key events throughout the year?
Erik: After retiring our nonprofit status, we also decided to retire our membership model. Anyone can participate in our events, and we have about 1,300 folks on our mailing list and over 2,500 folks in our Facebook BOSF Community Forum. We host bi-monthly dinner nights, produce the Bay Area Cub Contest, and along with the Bearrison Coordination Team host about six to eight beer busts a year. There are also other one-off events that we produce, like our annual Bearrison Volunteer Appreciation Party and Furassic Park.
John: Bearrison Street Fair, which one could argue is your most famous event, is a collab between BOSF and the Sisters of Perpetual Indulgence. How intertwined are the two groups and what is the mission of the Fair?
Erik: After joining forces to create the Bearrison Street Fair, BOSF actually petitioned for the Sisters to become our fiscal sponsors, so we are very intertwined! The mission of Bearrison – to provide “an inclusive event for all members of the adult LGBTQ+ community which promotes body positivity for all and builds a more supportive, welcoming, and inclusive bear scene by representing a diverse arena of cultures” – is the perfect partnership between our organizations. BOSF is “an all-inclusive community-based association that benefits the greater Bay Area through fundraising, service, and socializing” and the Sisters “believe all people have a right to express their unique joy and beauty” and “use humor and irreverent wit to expose the forces of bigotry, complacency and guilt that chain the human spirit.” It’s no surprise that we would work so well together!
John: What is the state of the bear scene in SF? Where are the key places the community gathers?
Larry: I think the bear scene is thriving. Bears are everywhere and recognized. Lone Star Saloon is the epicenter. Leather bars like the SF Eagle and the Powerhouse are also popular with bear folk. Of course there is also the Bear Area Cub Contest, a revitalized Mr SF Bear Contest, and Bearrison Street Fair.
Erik: I agree. Bearrison keeps growing every year, and just a few hours north the annual Lazy Bear Week – one of our sister organizations and Bearrison sponsors! – sells out every year. Like Larry points out, the SoMa (South of Market) bars all have a strong bear contingent, but plenty of bars in the Castro host weekly or monthly bear events, including 440, The Edge, and the Midnight Sun. And a relatively new “weekly, floating Happy Hour for the Bear Community” has popped up, giving even more social opportunities for our community.
John: How do you think the bear community in your city has evolved since the group was created?
Larry: Much more scattered. Bears seem to be fully integrated with the larger Gay community. With recognition came acceptance, most people now know what a bear is. With recognition came more self-acceptance, bears are happy and proud to put themselves out there.
Erik: I’ll expand on that to say that the San Francisco bear community is a lot more diverse now. I’ve actually spoken to Bear World about this before – especially being a genderqueer person chairing a bear organization. In some ways, the bear community risked becoming as exclusionary as the cultures it was fighting against, as some folks started gatekeeping what it meant to be a “bear”. With BOSF and Bearrison and the Cub Contest, we work to actively expand the concept of the community and allow folks to self-identify in whatever ways make them feel sexy in their bodies. There’s still work to be done, but in general I feel like San Francisco bears have been open to conversations about gender and race in our community, and really embraced some of the joy and levity in things like the Red Dress Bar Crawl and the Lazy Bear Kaftan Splash Bash.
John: Anything else you’d like to mention?
Larry: When I first got to SF, I was categorized as a blue-collar working man kind of guy. I became a bear later. I like to think I had a part, however miniscule, in establishing bear as a type of gay. I was in issue two of Bear Magazine under the name of Rafael, I was San Francisco’s first Callbear, bear escort, and of course my very small part in creating BOSF and International Bear Rendezvous. We’ve come a long way.
John: We sure have! Thank you both for joining me and for your tireless efforts on behalf of our community.
For more information about the Bears of San Francisco (BOSF) check out their official website.
