Frank Armstrong

My name is Frank Armstrong and I am a 48-year-old man who was born and raised in a small town in Montana.  I hold small town values close to my heart.  These values include honesty, integrity, and compassion.  I am currently the President of the Oregon Bears.  It is a honor to be a humble servant of one of the best Bear Clubs in the nation.

My introduction to the Leather Lifestyle began in Seattle at Club Zodiac when I was 19.  There was a patient Leatherman who turned a boy who was somewhat effeminate into a young, masculine man of leather.  I have experienced all aspects of the leather lifestyle except torture, scat and blood sports.  I am a relic of an age of leather that has died along with thousands of our fellow Leather people.  Leather sex, drugs and rock-n-roll was a mainstay of my life for years. I remember bars with slings full of leather clad men being worked over, bathrooms with harnessed men in tubs gleefully wallowing in a bath of piss, back rooms full of men where the scent of sweat, leather and sex permeated the air, and dark alleys lined with leather men being serviced by boys on their knees.  I’ve been HIV positive for 28 years and am surprised that I am still alive when most all my leather friends from years past are gone.  I often wonder how different the Leather Community would be if all these people would have survived.

You will usually see me in Levis, leather boots, leather belt and a leather vest.  These have been the hallmark of my clothing every since those first days in Seattle.  I would love to wear more leather; however, on a disability pension the cost of owning more leather is prohibitive.  I also believe that it’s not the amount of leather a person wears but how much leather is in a persons soul.  My favorite fetish is leather and sweat.  Give me the smell of a ripe armpit or the crotch of a biker who’s been in leather pants for a couple of days and I go wild.  This fetish is still one of the hardest ones to find here in Portland.  Too many people these days have to be clean, tidy, and pretty.

My community involvement has been very low keyed until I became part of the Oregon Bears.  I’ve always been a behind the scenes person who worked to better the community and not for the accolades I could have received. I have raised money for many charities during my life.  My biggest accomplishments have come from taking care of three partners who have passed away from HIV.  I nurtured them, enabled them to live a full life, and gave them all my love to ensure that their life was happy and fulfilling.

I am honored to be a judge in this year’s Mr. & Ms. Oregon State Leather Contest.  I take this responsibility seriously.  I want to thank everyone for trusting me with this task.