Audio Interview, Gin Shear and Sue Slate, September 11, 2012

  • EVELYN BAILEY: This is September 11, 2012.
  • And I'm sitting with Ginny Shear and Sue Slate
  • on their back porch in LeRoy.
  • And we're going to talk about their early involvement
  • in gay activism in Rochester.
  • I did some research, because I've known you for a long time.
  • But do I know your accomplishments?
  • To some degree.
  • SUE SLATE: Do we?
  • I don't know.
  • EVELYN BAILEY: But I know that in 1984, you both
  • received the Vicki Cup for the work you
  • did on getting Rochester City Council, I believe,
  • to approve anti-discrimination law
  • or an anti-discrimination bill or something.
  • SUE SLATE: Yes.
  • And the whole concept was initiated by the fact
  • that we were denied access to the ability
  • to have the prom at the Rochester--
  • GINNY SHEAR: Chamber of Commerce.
  • SUE SLATE: Chamber of Commerce.
  • I think it was Tom Ryan at the time?
  • GINNY SHEAR: Tom Mooney.
  • SUE SLATE: Tom Mooney.
  • Oh, forgive me.
  • Tom Ryan was a very popular mayor.
  • Yeah.
  • Tom Mooney denied us access for our gay prom.
  • And that initiated this whole theme
  • of moving the City Council to just let's
  • come up with a nondiscrimination clause, bill, executive order,
  • what have you, to eliminate it.
  • And it went far, far deeper and far broader
  • than just the gay prom.
  • Because it eliminated discrimination
  • for any contractor hired within the city limits.
  • So you know, that was a pretty courageous time
  • on the part of a lot of people.
  • EVELYN BAILEY: Was that the first involvement
  • you had with gay activism?
  • I mean, were you active--
  • SUE SLATE: No.
  • EVELYN BAILEY: --in the community before that?
  • SUE SLATE: We were part of--
  • my first involvement with the Gay Alliance
  • was actually with the Lesbian Resource Center at the time.
  • And then Gin and I would be going to a lot of meetings.
  • We'd been together since 1976.
  • And so the Lesbian Resource Center
  • was quite active at the time.
  • GINNY SHEAR: Weren't we on the Gay Alliance board at one time,
  • too?
  • SUE SLATE: We were on the Gay Alliance Board.
  • And we were also peer counselors.
  • GINNY SHEAR: Right.
  • SUE SLATE: And that's where we spent a lot of time.
  • Once a week, we staffed the peer counseling phone lines.
  • And that was quite enlightening.
  • GINNY SHEAR: Yeah.
  • SUE SLATE: Because you got calls from all sorts of people.
  • And I can recall in my early years calling that same hotline
  • and getting resources that I could follow up on for myself
  • and our son, Travis.
  • EVELYN BAILEY: Now, were you born in this area?
  • We you born in LeRoy?
  • SUE SLATE: I was born in Spencerport--
  • EVELYN BAILEY: OK.
  • SUE SLATE: --but migrated to LeRoy actually to play softball
  • and loved the community.
  • So between the softball and the volleyball teams I was on,
  • I got to know--
  • get to know the community.
  • And then Gin started poking her nose around a LeRoy,
  • because she knew I was going to be out here.
  • GINNY SHEAR: We had mutual friends out here
  • through softball and volleyball.
  • And also, I got a job in Batavia.
  • So that was 8 miles from here.
  • So that seemed like a good distance to have to drive.
  • At the time, I was living in Irondequoit.
  • So it was easier to live out here.
  • EVELYN BAILEY: And so when you moved out to LeRoy,
  • is that when your understanding of that you were a lesbian
  • came about?
  • Or--
  • SUE SLATE: No, no.
  • That was a couple of years before when our son was not
  • quite two.
  • And--
  • EVELYN BAILEY: Do you remember the year?
  • 19--
  • SUE SLATE: It was probably 1974.
  • And at the time, our son was about eighteen months old.
  • And I had come out to myself even before that,
  • but then found myself pregnant.
  • And I go, "Oh, no.
  • What do I do now?"
  • So it kind of prolonged my coming out to figure out--
  • you know, I didn't want Travis to be a statistic of divorce.
  • And so I thought I'd give it the old college try.
  • And it just-- it wasn't going to work.
  • EVELYN BAILEY: What resources or were there
  • any resources available in the community for you
  • to access about lesbianism, about being a gay person?
  • SUE SLATE: Well, the Lesbian Resource Center
  • is where I initially went, but after calling the Gay Alliance.
  • And you know, then I did my own study.
  • It was certainly before internet and all that kind of stuff.
  • But even in those days, you could find some information,
  • you know, in the public library and things
  • like that and other resources.
  • I just poked around.
  • But I also had met members of the gay community in LeRoy.
  • And they served as a great resource and a sounding board.
  • EVELYN BAILEY: How did that come about?
  • How do you-- how do you meet--
  • SUE SLATE: Well--
  • EVELYN BAILEY: --members of the gay community in LeRoy,
  • the remote part of Rochester?
  • SUE SLATE: Well, actually, my then husband
  • was teaching in LeRoy and got me involved on the volleyball team
  • with the female colleagues.
  • It was-- actually, it was a mixed team.
  • It was a co-gender team at the time.
  • And there were a couple women in the community
  • that were lesbians living together in LeRoy.
  • I got to know them.
  • And it gave me the courage, probably, to--
  • once I had a couple of real live people to talk to
  • and knew that the Lesbian Resource Center was out there,
  • that I might meet other moms that were concerned
  • about keeping their children should they have
  • to go through a divorce and all of that,
  • it gave me the courage to move forward.
  • I was very concerned about losing our son.
  • Because it was back in the '70s.
  • EVELYN BAILEY: Right.
  • SUE SLATE: Life was a little different.
  • EVELYN BAILEY: Now, you, I think--
  • I'm not positive about this.
  • Did you begin the Lesbian Mothers Group?
  • SUE SLATE: I'm not sure if we began the Lesbian Mothers
  • Group.
  • I know that--
  • GINNY SHEAR: I think we joined it.
  • SUE SLATE: I think we joined it early on.
  • And we met the people that were thinking about getting it going
  • or had gotten it going through the Lesbian Resource Center.
  • Because they were attending meetings as well.
  • GINNY SHEAR: Right.
  • SUE SLATE: And then we got quite active with that group.
  • and did a lot of activities, had a real eclectic mix
  • of kids of all ages.
  • And everyone seemed to have at least two peers as far
  • as kids went.
  • They all got along.
  • It was really a joyful time for the kids.
  • Because back in the '70s, they didn't really
  • know a whole lot of other lesbian mothers
  • in their communities.
  • GINNY SHEAR: Yeah.
  • SUE SLATE: You know, now we see things very differently
  • for kids growing up, maybe not necessarily right here
  • in the LeRoy, but in other parts of Rochester.
  • You know, certainly where our grandson and granddaughter
  • are growing up in California.
  • I mean, they have the most diversified neighborhood
  • you could possibly imagine.
  • And everyone gets along.
  • And it's like a no-brainer.
  • You know, we actually legally got married.
  • All our nephews and nieces thought,
  • why are they getting married?
  • I thought they already were.
  • It was just so accepted.
  • GINNY SHEAR: Yeah.
  • SUE SLATE: We were so accepted as a couple.
  • EVELYN BAILEY: And were you still in Batavia working?
  • GINNY SHEAR: I-- we met before I got that job.
  • I was teaching in Rochester School District when we met.
  • And then I got laid off.
  • EVELYN BAILEY: What were you teaching?
  • GINNY SHEAR: Instrumental music.
  • EVELYN BAILEY: OK.
  • GINNY SHEAR: I was a band director.
  • EVELYN BAILEY: Oh, wow.
  • GINNY SHEAR: Marched in the Memorial Day Parades.
  • But when they have budget cuts in '76,
  • the first thing they cut is music and art.
  • EVELYN BAILEY: Right.
  • GINNY SHEAR: So I was a new teacher at the time,
  • so I got laid off.
  • So then I went to school and got new skills
  • and became a mechanic.
  • So I got the job in Batavia.
  • We weren't living together yet.
  • But shortly after I got that job,
  • then we found an apartment out here.
  • And we moved in together.
  • EVELYN BAILEY: And were you open at work?
  • GINNY SHEAR: Yes.
  • Yeah.
  • I would say so.
  • I didn't make any announcements.
  • But--
  • SUE SLATE: You had--
  • EVELYN BAILEY: Did you--
  • SUE SLATE: --pictures on your desk and things like that--
  • GINNY SHEAR: Yeah.
  • SUE SLATE: --or something that was very--
  • GINNY SHEAR: Yeah.
  • EVELYN BAILEY: You went to events together for work
  • if there were events?
  • GINNY SHEAR: Well, in a small motorcycle dealership,
  • we didn't have many events.
  • But Sue would pick me up at work, or we'd meet there.
  • And a job I had before that, we were pretty open there I guess.
  • And then when I got a job at Kodak,
  • it was just sort of assumed that I was gay.
  • EVELYN BAILEY: Talk to me a little bit
  • about that Kodak experience.
  • Had Lambda Kodak been formed yet?
  • GINNY SHEAR: I don't think so.
  • I went to Kodak in 1980.
  • And--
  • EVELYN BAILEY: I'm not sure when they formed.
  • GINNY SHEAR: I think it was not long after that.
  • But I don't think they existed yet.
  • I can't remember exactly.
  • But there was some nasty people there at the time.
  • And it was not management or anybody of any great importance
  • other than human beings.
  • But there were some workers there
  • that didn't like lesbians.
  • They were anti-gay definitely.
  • But when you do your job well, people don't bother you.
  • EVELYN BAILEY: Yeah.
  • GINNY SHEAR: Now, I never had any problem there at all
  • and always brought Sue to all the employee,
  • the office parties or whatever we had.
  • I always brought Sue to those things.
  • And nobody made a big deal out of it.
  • EVELYN BAILEY: And we were eventually
  • a member of Lambda Kodak?
  • GINNY SHEAR: No.
  • No I wasn't.
  • They were always downtown.
  • I was out at Elmgrove.
  • So, eh, we were very busy during the '80s raising a kid
  • and doing motorcycle events.
  • And--
  • EVELYN BAILEY: You were teaching, Sue, right?
  • SUE SLATE: Yeah.
  • I was teaching at Churchville-Chili.
  • And I had graduated from Churchville-Chili.
  • So a lot of the families that I grew up with
  • were affiliated with the school district.
  • My ex-mother-in-law worked in Central Office.
  • A number of employees--
  • you know, one was the Business Director at Churchville-Chili.
  • One was Buildings and Grounds Superintendent.
  • So they get to know me as a person before I came out.
  • And I really never felt any discrimination
  • in the workplace at all.
  • And I think-- and it was a concern.
  • EVELYN BAILEY: Sure.
  • SUE SLATE: Because, certainly, our son--
  • we had-- our son, we chose Churchville-Chili as the--
  • we felt that it was a better school district for Travis,
  • a better fit for him.
  • Because when we did get divorced,
  • then he wouldn't be uprooted from his friends as well as,
  • you know, living in two households.
  • So that was a commitment that Kenny, my ex-husband, and I
  • made to Travis, that we were going to make life
  • as normal as possible for him.
  • So I think when people get to know you as a person,
  • and then they find about this other dimension,
  • it's pretty hard to all of a sudden hate you.
  • And I always felt that the kids got it.
  • And I was a good teacher.
  • And I really knew that I was born to teach.
  • It's what I did.
  • I miss it terribly still.
  • But life's moved in other directions since I retired.
  • And Gin would come to school sometimes with her guitar
  • and play for songs that were thematic to the stories we
  • were reading.
  • She came and taught CPR and first aid
  • to phys-ed teachers and nurses as well as my kids.
  • She got community service time off from work
  • to be able to come from Kodak to come and teach
  • CPR and first aid to my kids, which I turned into a reading
  • and writing component as well.
  • So we haven't-- and we have family support.
  • We have always had unbelievable family support.
  • So I think maybe the need for Lambda and some other things
  • weren't as high on our priority list, which I
  • think is a good thing in a way.
  • GINNY SHEAR: Yes.
  • We were incredibly lucky.
  • My family-- I grew up in my family,
  • so they pretty much knew me.
  • And my grandmother always said at Sunday dinner
  • with my cousins and my sister would
  • bring a boyfriend or a girlfriend, she took me aside.
  • And she said, "Now, Virginia, you
  • can bring a friend along, too, if you want.
  • If you want to bring somebody to Sunday dinner,
  • you go right ahead."
  • And so I started bringing my girlfriends to Sunday dinner
  • at grandma's.
  • And it was just very accepted.
  • And when Sue and I got together, my parents just adored her.
  • And they certainly adored Travis.
  • And he became their newest grandson.
  • EVELYN BAILEY: I want to stop for a minute
  • and just ask both of you, what do
  • you attribute the openness within your families
  • to the fact that you were lesbians?
  • GINNY SHEAR: My family, I think it's just them.
  • They're very open-minded in a lot of ways.
  • My grandmother, especially my maternal grandmother,
  • is way ahead of her time on civil rights issues,
  • and how to treat people, and acceptance.
  • And that came down to my mother and my father.
  • And it was just the way they are.
  • SUE SLATE: Now, initially my mother
  • had a tough time with it.
  • And it put a great strain on our relationship
  • for about two years.
  • Because it relegated us to talking
  • about superficial issues, which was
  • totally different from the dynamics of our relationship
  • from before I came out to her.
  • So she was a widow.
  • She started dating a guy, Richard.
  • And after not quite two years he said, "Dorothy,
  • they're not playing house.
  • When are you going to have a real relationship
  • with your daughter?"
  • And upon that conversation with Richard,
  • they showed up here when we were renovating it,
  • getting it ready to move into with a bottle of wine,
  • some cheese.
  • And we sat down on footstools and ladders
  • and had our first real conversation.
  • And from that point on, my mother I would say
  • became an out mother, very comfortable
  • with her love for me, the acceptance of us.
  • And so that was very early on.
  • That was like 1978 that--
  • GINNY SHEAR: Yeah.
  • SUE SLATE: --she-- and she went to PFLAG upon my suggestion
  • and got more information and was able to work through her guilt.
  • And her guilt revolved around the fact
  • that she recognized my lesbianism
  • when I was, you know, pre-pubescent
  • and in early puberty.
  • And from her background and messages she got,
  • she thought the right thing to do
  • was to absolutely stamp that out of me.
  • EVELYN BAILEY: Yeah.
  • SUE SLATE: So she would say things
  • like, "You can't hate these people.
  • God is love.
  • But you can't help but feel sorry for them.
  • And you know, it's not a good way to live,"
  • and things like that.
  • So--
  • EVELYN BAILEY: In one sentence, can you
  • simplify the impact of PFLAG on your mother's
  • attitude and her own growth and development as a out lesbian
  • mom?
  • SUE SLATE: I would say that PFLAG gave her permission
  • to let go of her fear and her guilt. Once those went away,
  • we were good.
  • EVELYN BAILEY: So you were a mechanic, Ginny?
  • GINNY SHEAR: Hm-hm.
  • EVELYN BAILEY: What did you do at Kodak?
  • GINNY SHEAR: I got into an apprentice program
  • there as becoming a sheet metal mechanic.
  • And during that two-year apprenticeship,
  • I became a programmer on computer
  • operated equipment, tour presses, stamping machines,
  • and laser cutters and things of that sort.
  • So I went right into programming in the poppier area.
  • And moved up from there to programming inspection
  • equipment, and then moved into the quality assurance group
  • at Elmgrove.
  • And from there, I was on loan to the health division,
  • health imaging.
  • And then they got sold.
  • And I became part of Carestream Health.
  • EVELYN BAILEY: So where did the motorcycles come in?
  • GINNY SHEAR: Well, I was--
  • we both rode motorcycles.
  • We met riding the same model motorcycle.
  • EVELYN BAILEY: How-- when did you start riding?
  • GINNY SHEAR: I got my license when I was nineteen.
  • I was in college.
  • I bought a Honda 150 for $90.
  • And I had ridden friend's dirt bikes and mini bikes
  • and things like that earlier on before I got out on my own.
  • And you know, it didn't seem to be well-received,
  • a road bike, at the time.
  • But as soon as I was out on my own,
  • it was cheap transportation.
  • I learned to wrench on it myself.
  • And so I had been riding, you know, for quite a while
  • before we met.
  • EVELYN BAILEY: Wrench, what does that mean?
  • GINNY SHEAR: Wrench-- work on your own motorcycle,
  • do your own mechanical work.
  • SUE SLATE: And I had always wanted
  • to ride a motorcycle since I was a little kid.
  • I was the kid on the sidewalk would see a bike parked,
  • and I'd glaze over and just stare at it.
  • And I didn't know anyone who rode a motorcycle.
  • And it took until I was twenty-four
  • and I was teaching that my vice principal at one of my schools
  • rode a motorcycle.
  • And she said she'd teach me how to ride.
  • So in '74, '75, I started riding.
  • EVELYN BAILEY: When did you buy your first?
  • SUE SLATE: 1975.
  • EVELYN BAILEY: And what was it?
  • SUE SLATE: It was a 1975 Kawasaki KZ400 Deluxe,
  • chrome and red and beautiful.
  • GINNY SHEAR: Meanwhile, I was on the Plain Jane KZ400, 1975.
  • SUE SLATE: The special.
  • GINNY SHEAR: Special, kick start no tack,
  • you know, it was just a stripped down model.
  • But it was a KZ400.
  • We both thought that was pretty ironic that we met at a ball
  • field riding the same bike.
  • Meant to be.
  • EVELYN BAILEY: So you're riding your bikes.
  • What made you begin your motorcycle
  • work or the motorcycle festivals that span a good twenty
  • years of your life?
  • GINNY SHEAR: Oh, yeah.
  • We had been riding together since before we met.
  • We had a couple of friends here in LeRoy who rode.
  • And we had a couple of friends in Toronto who rode.
  • And they would come down and ride with us.
  • SUE SLATE: And a couple of friends in Gowanda.
  • GINNY SHEAR: And a couple of friends in Gowanda.
  • And so there were like six or eight of us that rode.
  • But that's all we knew of women who rode motorcycles.
  • We thought, well, there's got to be more of us out there.
  • So Sue came up with an idea to start fishing,
  • looking for more women who ride.
  • And she came up with the idea of the first festival.
  • SUE SLATE: And it was educational in format.
  • You participated in some of them,
  • so you probably remember that we had seminars
  • going on going all the time, riding skills events,
  • all sorts of things like that.
  • And the idea is that, with more comfort and a stronger skill
  • set, you would be empowered to try going cross-country
  • on your own, working on your own motorcycle,
  • developing the confidence to maybe take
  • on other challenges in life over and beyond motorcycling.
  • EVELYN BAILEY: But when this began, I have to ask you,
  • did you have any idea of the impact that it would have
  • and on the number of women that became
  • involved in this endeavor?
  • SUE SLATE: Well, I dream big.
  • GINNY SHEAR: She dreams big.
  • I wasn't so sure about it.
  • But she thought we'd get 250 women
  • to the first one we had in '84.
  • She said, "Wow, this will be great.
  • This will be great."
  • And we had our staff all set, which is mostly our ball team.
  • SUE SLATE: Our ball team and our eight riders.
  • GINNY SHEAR: Yeah, our ball team and our eight riders
  • that we rode with.
  • We had them all on the staff and rented the Presbyterian camp
  • on Seneca Lake.
  • And we were all set.
  • And we did advertising in all the women's
  • newspapers and magazines we could locate in the country.
  • And that was before--
  • SUE SLATE: College newspapers, things like that.
  • GINNY SHEAR: Yeah, it was before the internet.
  • SUE SLATE: Yeah.
  • GINNY SHEAR: So it was--
  • SUE SLATE: Yeah.
  • GINNY SHEAR: --you know, difficult.
  • And it all took mail.
  • And we had a poor electric typewriter
  • that didn't have an O. So we had to hand put in all the Os.
  • But we got sixty-four people to come to this.
  • And they had a great time.
  • And it was a great bunch.
  • They were really strong leaders, strong riders,
  • and have remained very close friends since then.
  • And it was good that we only had sixty-four there.
  • Because otherwise--
  • EVELYN BAILEY: At the first--
  • GINNY SHEAR: --it would have been too much.
  • EVELYN BAILEY: --women's motorcycle festival,
  • did you have seminars?
  • GINNY SHEAR: Yes.
  • EVELYN BAILEY: Did you have workshops?
  • SUE SLATE: Mm-hm.
  • GINNY SHEAR: Yes, yes we did.
  • SUE SLATE: It's always--
  • it's always been educational with the focus on fun.
  • GINNY SHEAR: We had evening entertainment.
  • During the day, there were rides, destination rides,
  • group rides, and skill activities and fun events.
  • And at night, we had entertainment.
  • EVELYN BAILEY: So from sixty-four--
  • GINNY SHEAR: Eighty-four.
  • EVELYN BAILEY: --eighty-four--
  • GINNY SHEAR: Eighty-four altogether, yeah.
  • EVELYN BAILEY: --original members or participants,
  • what was the largest it ever grew to?
  • SUE SLATE: Well, you have to take a look
  • at the evolution from the motorcycle festivals
  • into the foundations work.
  • We actually hosted our last festival in 1994.
  • However, from there, '93 is when we took the Women's Arctic
  • Tour, Ride for Research, which was a 1,399 mile dual sport
  • ride to the Arctic Ocean by motorcycle
  • on behalf of the Susan G. Komen Breast Cancer Foundation.
  • EVELYN BAILEY: Why?
  • SUE SLATE: Why?
  • We-- our son had--
  • what triggered it was we were going on a vacation
  • to the Arctic Ocean--
  • vacation.
  • (Laughter)
  • And were planning it since 1991.
  • We started the plans.
  • But in 1991, our son was also graduating from high school,
  • and had to register for the draft,
  • even though we didn't have an active draft at the time,
  • nor do we now.
  • Males still have to go down and register.
  • And this kid grew up in a very gender equity home.
  • You know, he was doing his own laundry from the age of eleven
  • on.
  • So he did not get this.
  • And he posed the question to us, "If my name were Travina,
  • I wouldn't be going down to the post office
  • to register for the draft, what gives?"
  • And we agreed with him and told him
  • we wouldn't want to send you to war anymore than we'd want
  • to send our daughter to war.
  • GINNY SHEAR: But it's not fair.
  • SUE SLATE: It's not fair.
  • GINNY SHEAR: It's not right.
  • SUE SLATE: So we took a trip to the wall
  • just to show him the names of all the people
  • we, all the friends we lost during the Vietnam Conflict.
  • And it was wrenching.
  • You know, you can't go to that whether it's
  • the wall of Washington or the Moving Wall-- they're
  • both so powerful.
  • Cried, etched the names, the whole thing,
  • came back and read an article by a woman--
  • GINNY SHEAR: In Hilton.
  • SUE SLATE: --in Rochester.
  • GINNY SHEAR: She was in Hilton.
  • SUE SLATE: She lived in Hilton.
  • She, as the Memorial Day era came up,
  • that was the same time of year.
  • She mentioned that let's think about the ripple effect
  • of the 58,000 plus Americans who died in Conflict that
  • are represented on that wall.
  • Think of all the lives that each one of them touched,
  • the impact it had on our country and the world.
  • And then factor into your thinking
  • that in the United States alone we quietly
  • lost 330,000 Americans to breast cancer.
  • We're going to the Arctic Ocean.
  • There's four women.
  • We're riding, all those dirt.
  • We knew we could get some, in quotes, "mileage" out of it
  • for a good cause.
  • And once that happened, we just had to move forward on that.
  • And when we came back from that with a fundraising
  • goal of $10,000 having raised $25,000,
  • we just knew our work wasn't done in that arena.
  • EVELYN BAILEY: Why did you choose Kathrine Komen?
  • Why--
  • GINNY SHEAR: Susan G. Komen?
  • EVELYN BAILEY: Susan G. Komen.
  • GINNY SHEAR: We had done research
  • on where we could have the money go specifically
  • to breast cancer research.
  • And a woman in the American Cancer Society in Syracuse
  • said try Komen Foundation.
  • They're new.
  • They are small.
  • But they allow you to earmark where
  • you want your funds to go.
  • So we looked into them.
  • SUE SLATE: And that worked nicely up until 2003.
  • GINNY SHEAR: 2003, yeah.
  • SUE SLATE: And then we were not allowed.
  • Because their structure had grown exponentially.
  • Their corporate structure was much different.
  • They wouldn't allow us to dedicate our money solely
  • to research unless you could guarantee them megabucks.
  • And we're an all volunteer organization,
  • so that wasn't going to happen.
  • GINNY SHEAR: We couldn't guarantee
  • them a quarter million dollars.
  • SUE SLATE: Right.
  • GINNY SHEAR: On an event.
  • Although, we had done that in the past,
  • but the economy changed.
  • And our base changed.
  • And a lot of our rides-- and there
  • were thousands of riders that rode
  • with us during those years of doing the Pony Express
  • tours for breast cancer.
  • A lot of those people had gone on
  • to start their own events in their own areas
  • and were raising money for their local Komen
  • chapter or their local Bosom Buddies
  • or different charities around the country.
  • So we weren't drawing as many people to our events.
  • And we couldn't afford to draw as many people to our events
  • with the price of gas going so high
  • and price of everything going high.
  • So we'd cut down on our events, making them smaller,
  • which meant smaller money gathering.
  • So it just wasn't going to work with Komen anyone
  • at that point.
  • SUE SLATE: We did try working with Komen
  • on an international fundraising event in 2011.
  • And we raised $47,500 for that program.
  • And no, that was 2009 was the last time
  • we raised money for Komen.
  • GINNY SHEAR: Yeah.
  • SUE SLATE: I take that back.
  • In 2009, we raised for Komen.
  • And it was 2007, it was 2007 and then 2011 was back to Komen.
  • Because they found a vehicle for us to use to raise for them.
  • And then when 2012 came up, we weren't
  • as comfortable with the decisions
  • that Komen was making.
  • It wasn't a good fit.
  • We absolutely respect all the work they have done
  • and continue to do.
  • But we couldn't be involved with an organization as small
  • as we are that would even suggest politics was involved.
  • And we polled the riders.
  • We went to the riders.
  • We did not make a unilateral decision with our board or just
  • the two of us.
  • We went to the riders.
  • We sent out a mass email to 6,000 people.
  • And quite frankly, it was overwhelming to support Dr.
  • Susan Love Research Foundation.
  • One it's strictly for research, which is our bias.
  • Don't just cure it.
  • Eliminate it.
  • Stop it from ever happening, that
  • is our bias for all cancers.
  • And two, we could dedicate the research dollars solely
  • to them.
  • They'd work with us set up online pages,
  • so it made it easy.
  • And they were small the way Komen was small--
  • GINNY SHEAR: In the beginning.
  • SUE SLATE: --in the beginning.
  • And for our organization, we're grassroots.
  • And that's exactly where we want to be.
  • We entrench ourselves with the riders.
  • And it's been a gift for us personally
  • to be involved with this.
  • EVELYN BAILEY: So, but go back.
  • The first-- the eighty-four women who came together
  • was in what year?
  • SUE SLATE: '84
  • GINNY SHEAR: '64, eighty-four women.
  • No '84, sixty-four women attended the first.
  • And then we capped it.
  • EVELYN BAILEY: In 1984, Ginny?
  • GINNY SHEAR: Yes.
  • EVELYN BAILEY: And so that went on, though.
  • GINNY SHEAR: We did one in '84--
  • SUE SLATE: '85.
  • GINNY SHEAR: --'85, '86.
  • And then we started going every other year, to '88, '90, '92,
  • and '94.
  • Did we do one in '96?
  • SUE SLATE: No.
  • GINNY SHEAR: No, we did Pony Express.
  • SUE SLATE: We did Pony Express.
  • GINNY SHEAR: So '94 was the last one we did.
  • And that was at the hotel over by RIT.
  • SUE SLATE: Inn on the Campus.
  • (Interposing voices)
  • GINNY SHEAR: Inn on the Campus was what it was called then.
  • EVELYN BAILEY: And the year before that was at Wells?
  • SUE SLATE: Wells College, yeah.
  • GINNY SHEAR: Yes.
  • EVELYN BAILEY: And prior to that, you were in the mud
  • as I recall.
  • GINNY SHEAR: Camp Lakeland.
  • SUE SLATE: Camp Lakeland, yeah.
  • GINNY SHEAR: Down off Route 16 in the Southern tier.
  • Yeah.
  • SUE SLATE: Yeah.
  • And before that, we were at Whitman on Seneca Lake.
  • GINNY SHEAR: On Seneca Lake.
  • EVELYN BAILEY: And what was the largest group
  • of women who came together?
  • Do you remember?
  • GINNY SHEAR: We capped it actually.
  • SUE SLATE: Yeah.
  • We had to.
  • GINNY SHEAR: We capped it at 250.
  • We were as much interested in creating leadership.
  • And we really feel a smaller venue
  • allows for a more intense level of interaction with the seminar
  • speakers and all the workshops, the skills of the events,
  • everything.
  • And we felt that we would produce a stronger leadership
  • base that way.
  • And so we--
  • SUE SLATE: And it'd be easier to manage if we capped it at 250.
  • GINNY SHEAR: 250 allowed us to take over
  • the whole campus at Wells College, the whole hotel,
  • at Inn on the Campus and create community, which
  • was extremely important to us.
  • EVELYN BAILEY: And the foundation began when?
  • SUE SLATE: '84
  • GINNY SHEAR: The foundation began in '84.
  • SUE SLATE: Or '83.
  • GINNY SHEAR: But it became a tax exempt 501(c)(3) in '95 when we
  • started.
  • EVELYN BAILEY: OK.
  • GINNY SHEAR: We did our first fundraising event
  • under the auspices of the Women's Motorcyclist
  • Foundation.
  • But we weren't a tax exempt organization at the time.
  • So Komen wrote all the thank you letters.
  • Because 100 cents on the dollar did go to Komen.
  • And actually, that's always been true of all of our fundraisers.
  • EVELYN BAILEY: So it was in your mind
  • in a sense from the very beginning
  • that this would become or be a foundation as well as a,
  • quote unquote, "festival" or gathering.
  • GINNY SHEAR: Yeah, yeah.
  • SUE SLATE: The irony is when we started
  • using the term Women's Motorcycle Festival,
  • it was a little harder to get land secured,
  • like campgrounds and college campuses and all.
  • But everyone was used to it.
  • By 1984, people were already used to WMF.
  • So when we'd go in to meet with people,
  • we would meet as representatives of the Women's Motorcyclist
  • Foundation.
  • And secure the contract and explain to them.
  • Because you were going in as of a recognized foundation,
  • we had the credibility of the American Motorcyclist
  • Association behind us.
  • They were our-- they provided--
  • we were a sanctioned AMA, which is
  • a huge national organization.
  • We were sanctioned by the AMA.
  • We carried liability insurance.
  • We did-- we had our ducks in a row.
  • We did staff development with our staff.
  • I mean, everything looked good to the-- and you know,
  • we had still--
  • until we started having some people in our dirt rides--
  • and dirt bikes, you do go down.
  • You fall.
  • We had not a single moving accident on a motorcycle
  • in all of our events.
  • So that's a pretty good track record.
  • EVELYN BAILEY: Excellent.
  • SUE SLATE: And so people did secure.
  • They were willing to come forward
  • and say, yes, you can use our facilities.
  • EVELYN BAILEY: Before I go back to a previous thing,
  • but can you share one or two stories
  • from the women who came about the life changing experience
  • your group gatherings or festivals provided?
  • SUE SLATE: I think Dotty Bratcher is one.
  • Dotty Bratcher--
  • GINNY SHEAR: Yeah.
  • SUE SLATE: --also rode with us on our Pony Express rides
  • before and after she got breast cancer.
  • And she came to know a community that she had never
  • been exposed to before.
  • She rode a motorcycle, but she was in a small little area
  • in Pennsylvania.
  • So she came to our festivals, then
  • she joined our motorcycle club, Moving Violations,
  • and continued to come to every one of our festivals.
  • In fact, she was the first to register--
  • GINNY SHEAR: Yeah.
  • SUE SLATE: --at our festival.
  • And when she got breast cancer, the wealth of resources
  • that she had at her disposal in the motorcycling community,
  • women's motorcycling community was incredible.
  • GINNY SHEAR: And she had always been a bit
  • of a loner and not a joiner.
  • But the motorcycle club and the festivals
  • caught her imagination.
  • And she enjoyed that.
  • And she said that when she got cancer,
  • she had no idea how many friends she had.
  • Because the motorcycle community just came to her aid and said,
  • "What can we do?
  • How can we help?"
  • And it changed her life.
  • As well as ours.
  • We saw that happen.
  • And there's been so many women that
  • were at our festivals that are now lifelong friends of ours.
  • Just a lot of them that were close,
  • some that are not close, living nearby or in Massachusetts,
  • or Pennsylvania, or Ohio, is just a long list of people
  • that we cherish, that are friends,
  • because of getting to know them at those events.
  • SUE SLATE: But also, the number of women that
  • came such as members of our ball team--
  • GINNY SHEAR: Yeah.
  • SUE SLATE: --who never thought of getting on a motorcycle
  • or partners of people who came to the Women's Motorcycle
  • Festival and weren't riders, and then got
  • caught up in the possibilities for themselves.
  • So I think to me that was huge to see people
  • take those healthy risks and move forward
  • on two wheels on their own, instead of just a passenger.
  • You know, there's nothing wrong with being a passenger.
  • But you're certainly much more in charge of your own destiny
  • when you're piloting your own machine.
  • EVELYN BAILEY: Now, prior to the motorcycle gatherings,
  • you had some experience, though, in organizing large events.
  • Because I think you and Ginny both organized the Gay Prom
  • for a number of years--
  • SUE SLATE: That's right, yes.
  • EVELYN BAILEY: --prior to the motorcycle festivals,
  • prior to those gatherings.
  • Right?
  • SUE SLATE: Oh, absolutely.
  • And it's just by nature we're organizers.
  • And we're a good balance for each other.
  • Some people say of us that I'm the kite, and she's the string.
  • I can come up with some pretty insane ideas.
  • GINNY SHEAR: I rope her in every now and then.
  • (Laughter)
  • But it's a good yin and yang.
  • It truly is.
  • SUE SLATE: Yeah, it works well.
  • GINNY SHEAR: And it's two different skill sets
  • that we bring to it.
  • And they're both needed.
  • I think our strongest skill is recognizing
  • how to tap into the talents of other people.
  • And we firmly believe that most people
  • want to contribute to society if you just
  • find the right fit for them.
  • And then once they get involved, they're hooked.
  • And that's what we've seen with the festivals.
  • That's what we've seen with the Pony Express rides.
  • That's what we're seeing now with our Adventure for the Cure
  • Series, that you find the right people for the right job.
  • Passion is-- passion is a far greater motivator than money
  • when you find the right fit.
  • SUE SLATE: Yeah.
  • And once people see that we're normal human beings who,
  • you know, did something, you know, that was successful,
  • they're like, "Wow, we could do that.
  • I could do that."
  • And you find a way for them to become involved.
  • They're more than happy to jump out and get going.
  • And then they go off on their own and do great things.
  • So you know, everything grows exponentially out.
  • EVELYN BAILEY: How would you characterize your experience
  • in the Gay Alliance as contributing, if any,
  • to your overall ability to reach out, organize, and bring people
  • together, or doesn't it?
  • SUE SLATE: Oh, I absolutely do think it--
  • I think our initial training with Michelle Boyer,
  • who was our peer counselor training--
  • trainee-- trainer.
  • GINNY SHEAR: That was huge.
  • SUE SLATE: That was a huge impact
  • on our life, just the training, being on the board,
  • understanding the workings, how decisions got made,
  • contributing.
  • GINNY SHEAR: Working with many different people
  • from different backgrounds who had different ideas of life
  • in general and what the board or the Alliance should be doing
  • was enlightening.
  • And it got us used to working with people
  • that had different needs than us or different ideas than us.
  • So yeah, it was huge.
  • It was a huge influence on everything we do I think.
  • SUE SLATE: And also, just staffing those phones
  • and talking with people, you develop a comfort level
  • with talking with someone, initiating ways for them
  • to open up and feel comfortable about it.
  • And that has been--
  • because we immerse ourselves with our riders.
  • We're not-- we don't show up for just what we call our Medallion
  • Pass Ceremony, which happens daily.
  • We're there with the riders 24/7.
  • And so it gives a comfort level working
  • with a lot of different personalities
  • and a lot of different needs and being
  • able to think on our feet.
  • I really think that contributed to that ability a lot.
  • And then of course, the proms were fun.
  • We had gone to a couple.
  • And then they needed some organizers.
  • And we said, "Hey, a different tux, different set of tuxes
  • every year, this would be great fun.
  • So let's do it."
  • And then we found people to help us out.
  • You can't do it by yourself.
  • GINNY SHEAR: The other thing that I attribute
  • to all of that, I actually have been a very shy person
  • and not one to speak in public.
  • Duh, no, never.
  • And that training and the exposure within the Alliance
  • and working with all those people
  • really brought me out of my shell,
  • as did working with the festivals and Pony Express.
  • And I'm a much more comfortable person in the public arena now.
  • You know, things that used to set me into hysteria just--
  • meh, yeah, I'm going to speak to 3,000 people, OK.
  • (Laughter)
  • I had to-- at one event, it was one of the Komen luncheons
  • in Dallas, they had asked me to present, or one of us,
  • to present the Jill Ireland Award for volunteerism
  • to the winner in 1987 I think.
  • SUE SLATE: No, '97.
  • GINNY SHEAR: No, it was in 2000.
  • SUE SLATE: Oh, maybe.
  • GINNY SHEAR: Donna went with me.
  • SUE SLATE: Yeah, that's right.
  • GINNY SHEAR: It was in 2000.
  • And Sue couldn't get out of work.
  • She had to teach.
  • So my cousin went with me.
  • And she had just lost her mother to breast cancer.
  • And they asked me to introduce this person who
  • was getting the award.
  • And I had to speak in front of 4,000 or 5,000 people
  • at this luncheon on a stage with spotlights and teleprompters
  • and, you know, very big deal, you know, in my mind.
  • And because of all we have done before that, I said, "Great,
  • I'll do it."
  • And I had a great time doing it.
  • And you know, everybody said, "Wow, wow, you were great,"
  • you know.
  • And it was a good experience.
  • You know, crowds don't bother me anymore.
  • EVELYN BAILEY: Wow.
  • SUE SLATE: And ironically, Pony Express and all the work
  • we've done with the foundation-- because we now do seminars
  • around the country not as a festival,
  • but as secured speakers for other rallies and events--
  • it has allowed us a comfort level
  • in working with the straight community
  • as a visible gay couple.
  • One of the most joyful events on Pony Express '96 was it
  • happened in Connecticut--
  • GINNY SHEAR: Connecticut.
  • SUE SLATE: --at Marcus Dairy, two groups of people, a--
  • GINNY SHEAR: Two clubs.
  • SUE SLATE: Two clubs--
  • a lesbian motorcycle club and a Born Again Christian motorcycle
  • club, pretty diametrically opposed groups.
  • EVELYN BAILEY: I would say so.
  • GINNY SHEAR: And this was in '96.
  • SUE SLATE: Right.
  • They found common ground with the motorcycles and breast
  • cancer research and came together and did ice cream
  • socials all season long from the fall through
  • to when they rode their leg of the tour.
  • And when we picked them up at the Marcus Dairy for their leg,
  • one bike for the lesbian motorcycle club
  • had this gigunda rainbow flag.
  • And the Christian group was hauling
  • a church on a small trailer.
  • And they rode side by side leading the parade.
  • That just said legions to us.
  • And that wasn't the only time that that happened.
  • GINNY SHEAR: No.
  • SUE SLATE: The spaghetti dinner in New Mexico,
  • there was a gay men's motorcycle club and a Goldwin club, which
  • are mostly middle aged folk, you know, middle class, middle age,
  • whatever.
  • And they had worked together to raise the money
  • for their leg of the tour.
  • And you know, we're all good friends now.
  • GINNY SHEAR: Yeah, our overall comfort level with ourselves,
  • acceptance from our family, our experiences with the Alliance,
  • serving as peer counselors all gave us
  • the tools we needed to go out, do our work.
  • We don't wear a sign.
  • But we also-- it's very known to everyone.
  • We don't need to wear a sign.
  • We are obviously a long-term old married couple.
  • We work well together.
  • We're very businesslike.
  • We can be extremely businesslike as we
  • share our coupledom with other people,
  • so that they're comfortable.
  • I think it's opened a lot of doors for the LBGT,
  • you know, area, just because we're
  • out there intermingling with the straight community as well.
  • And so it's made both communities come together
  • for events very comfortably.
  • EVELYN BAILEY: If you could--
  • if I asked--
  • I will ask you.
  • Identify one moment in your lives
  • for which you are proudest.
  • And if not one, two.
  • GINNY SHEAR: There's so many--
  • SUE SLATE: Yeah.
  • GINNY SHEAR: --really, moments when--
  • I don't know if proud is the word or filled up.
  • Recently, a great one was a posting on her son's Facebook.
  • Of the moms, meaning Gin and Sue,
  • with our two grandchildren on a family
  • vacation with our son, daughter-in-law
  • and the grandkids.
  • He made a comment.
  • I accept everyone else's political opinion.
  • But I guess you know how I'm voting.
  • And then he made that--
  • he has a huge network on his Facebook.
  • And he works with mostly Republicans.
  • And honestly, that just felt so good to us.
  • That was a great tickle.
  • SUE SLATE: Yeah.
  • That was a good one.
  • GINNY SHEAR: Oh, gosh.
  • You know, there have been so many.
  • I'm searching my memory banks here.
  • EVELYN BAILEY: Right.
  • GINNY SHEAR: And there's so many.
  • EVELYN BAILEY: And let me ask you specifically, Ginny,
  • if you in two sentences or less had before you
  • a gay male or female age fourteen,
  • fifteen, what would you say to them
  • to help them move in their own growth and development
  • as a gay person?
  • GINNY SHEAR: Trust yourself, and be true to yourself.
  • And I think from where I came from I had family support.
  • I think kids today need just as much of that support
  • in coming out or being out.
  • And they need to seek those who will support them.
  • And hopefully, that will be their families, their parents.
  • SUE SLATE: If not, thank goodness,
  • there's a lot more resources for kids--
  • GINNY SHEAR: A lot more.
  • SUE SLATE: --today
  • GINNY SHEAR: School counselors, teachers,
  • coaches, whatever, you know?
  • SUE SLATE: Right.
  • GINNY SHEAR: There are good people in the educational area.
  • There are good people in churches.
  • There are resources for kids that there
  • were not when I was growing up.
  • My mother was told when I was like in fifth grade
  • that they thought I was going to be gay.
  • And this is back in, what?
  • 1960, '61?
  • I'm old.
  • (Laughter)
  • And she didn't know what to do.
  • And the counselors told her that.
  • And she just-- oh.
  • And she went to our pediatrician.
  • And thank goodness, he was an enlightened individual.
  • He said, "Just love her, let her grow up.
  • Don't worry.
  • She will be whatever she will be.
  • Love her."
  • And my mother took that to heart and so did my dad.
  • I mean, my parents were always there for me.
  • They were always there when I was screwing up, too.
  • And you know--
  • SUE SLATE: Yeah.
  • GINNY SHEAR: They're a huge influence on my life.
  • EVELYN BAILEY: OK.
  • Just two more questions, and then we can kind of end this.
  • And either or both of you can answer this.
  • And Sue, you've already alluded to some of the answer.
  • Have you ever in your experience as over your own lifetime
  • any opposition, discrimination, put down, hatred,
  • bigotry in your life?
  • GINNY SHEAR: Once at Kodak when I was an apprentice,
  • I was going up the stairs to the cafeteria with a friend of mine
  • who was also an apprentice and also a lesbian.
  • And we're in work clothes.
  • So you know, we don't dress up to go and play in greasy,
  • oily machines.
  • But we were going up the stairs.
  • And there were a couple of guys behind us going up
  • to the cafeteria.
  • And they said, "Wow, there go two of Kodak's finest."
  • You know, it was very sarcastic and snide.
  • And you know, that's about it.
  • EVELYN BAILEY: But the implication was--
  • GINNY SHEAR: Yeah.
  • Oh, yeah.
  • We knew what he was saying.
  • SUE SLATE: Back home we were working
  • towards this non-discrimination bill in the '80s,
  • we were on the front page of the Democrat and Chronicle,
  • which, of course, is always part of the teacher's room table.
  • They had two or three of them laying there, front section
  • right there.
  • So it's obviously us--
  • (Laughter)
  • --front and center.
  • GINNY SHEAR: Names were there, weren't they?
  • SUE SLATE: I believe so.
  • But at any rate, I thought here's all these newspapers.
  • And no one has said one word about this.
  • So I talked to a buddy of mine who
  • I was pretty comfortable with.
  • I go, "I don't get it.
  • You wind up on the front page of the D&C.
  • There are three papers laying around the teacher's room,
  • and not one person has said a word."
  • He goes, "Oh, they're saying lots of words."
  • (Laughter)
  • And he didn't infer that it was all negative.
  • It was more, "Did you see Sue on the front page of the paper?
  • What do we say to her?"
  • I think it was more their discomfort, which
  • that wouldn't happen today, not with us anyway.
  • GINNY SHEAR: Yeah.
  • SUE SLATE: So I think it was an uncomfortable moment.
  • I have always been out at work no matter what the job.
  • It's not something that Gin and I make a big deal about.
  • But let's say we're teaching together,
  • a Red Cross course or a motorcycle course or something
  • like that.
  • Because we co-teach quite often.
  • You know, you mention your families
  • and what's going on with your life
  • when you're sitting down with a break.
  • We never hesitate to talk about her son and daughter-in-law,
  • our grandchildren.
  • We're very conscious about using pronouns
  • that identify us as a couple.
  • We feel that that is a way to say it.
  • And people can accept that at the level of acceptance
  • they can deal with.
  • And I would say that Gin and I are probably more evolutionists
  • than we are revolutionists.
  • You know, we know that ACT UP did a tremendous job.
  • But it wouldn't be the way we could contribute.
  • We're more, have a festival, empower women,
  • go raise money for breast cancer,
  • and rub elbows with all sorts of people.
  • That's the way we do our work.
  • GINNY SHEAR: We've found-- and it's
  • been shown around the country-- that when
  • you know somebody who's gay, or you know somebody
  • and you've known them for years or a long time
  • and you like them, and then you find out
  • they're gay, oh, your attitudes change if you were anti-gay.
  • "Wow, well, they're a nice person.
  • They must be OK."
  • Then, you know, that affects how you think of other gay people.
  • And you know, I think that helps.
  • And a lot of people that worked with us
  • over the years for the festivals and the Pony Express rides
  • came from all walks of life and got
  • to know us through letters and whatnot
  • and getting ready for the event.
  • And they meet us.
  • And they find out that we're a couple--
  • oh, wow.
  • How about that.
  • No big deal.
  • That does not mean we have not been victimized as a couple,
  • because we're lesbians.
  • I think DOMA, the Defense of Marriage Act,
  • that's cost us personally thousands and thousands
  • of dollars since we've been married.
  • Because of the-- considering medical benefits as income.
  • Last year alone, it added $9,000 to my income.
  • We can't file jointly with the federal government.
  • So you're triple taxed.
  • You have to pay income tax on the $9,000.
  • It raises your overall federal tax profile,
  • which for me on Social Security costs me
  • another $3,100 that I have to pay back now
  • to Social Security.
  • It's just--
  • SUE SLATE: Plus paying--
  • GINNY SHEAR: Plus paying the federal taxes
  • on the medical benefits.
  • SUE SLATE: And they wanted to go back
  • to 2009 when we got married.
  • So it's back taxes we've had to pay back, too--
  • GINNY SHEAR: Yeah.
  • SUE SLATE: --besides what we're having to do now.
  • So--
  • EVELYN BAILEY: So for you as lesbians,
  • the next agenda item needs to be the reversal of those laws?
  • GINNY SHEAR: Absolutely.
  • Yes.
  • Yeah.
  • EVELYN BAILEY: To not--
  • to eliminate DOMA and to create equity--
  • GINNY SHEAR: Get federal recognition of our marriage.
  • EVELYN BAILEY: --in-- right, federal recognition
  • of your marriage.
  • GINNY SHEAR: And that's an education process.
  • And when it's an appropriate place
  • to slip it into the conversation,
  • we let people know.
  • Because what we find is most people accept us, accept
  • our marriage, accept, you know, us as parents, grandparents.
  • They don't always know.
  • They don't understand what DOMA even is.
  • It's not a term familiar to most people.
  • So they don't understand the discrimination that's going on.
  • EVELYN BAILEY: Right.
  • GINNY SHEAR: And it's not New York State.
  • SUE SLATE: That's federal.
  • It's totally federal level item.
  • EVELYN BAILEY: Right.
  • SUE SLATE: And friends of ours, straight people
  • that we've told about it, they said, "Well, that's not right."
  • Well, no, it's not right.
  • GINNY SHEAR: Exactly.
  • SUE SLATE: You know, so this election's
  • very important to us.
  • Because this could make some great changes for us.
  • EVELYN BAILEY: Yes.
  • It could.
  • Last question-- when all is said and done, how do you
  • want to be remembered?
  • How do you want Sue Slate--
  • what do you want people to be able to say about Sue Slate?
  • And what do you want people to be
  • able to say about Ginny Shear, for lack of a better term,
  • on the tombstone?
  • SUE SLATE: Which we have.
  • (Laughter)
  • GINNY SHEAR: We're going to both be under the same rock.
  • EVELYN BAILEY: And if you can't answer it now, think about it.
  • GINNY SHEAR: We are so tied together as a couple.
  • And yet, we're both very unique individuals.
  • But I'd like us to be remembered--
  • SUE SLATE: Yeah.
  • GINNY SHEAR: --as contributing, loving,
  • welcoming members of society.
  • SUE SLATE: Loving, compassionate--
  • GINNY SHEAR: Fun.
  • SUE SLATE: Yeah, fun.
  • GINNY SHEAR: We're fun.
  • Yeah, we're fun.
  • (Laughter)
  • Yeah.
  • Just, you know, thought of well.
  • Like, wow, they did a lot.
  • They contributed to society and--
  • SUE SLATE: Had a lot of fun doing it.
  • GINNY SHEAR: Had a lot of fun doing it.
  • EVELYN BAILEY: And the world is a better place.
  • GINNY SHEAR: I hope so.
  • SUE SLATE: We really believe it is.
  • GINNY SHEAR: This little corner here is.
  • SUE SLATE: We've seen the changes in people's lives.
  • They share that all the time with us in emails, in person.
  • And the irony is that we've gotten as much, probably more--
  • GINNY SHEAR: Oh, yeah.
  • SUE SLATE: --than we've given.
  • GINNY SHEAR: Definitely.
  • SUE SLATE: And yet, people see us,
  • you know, as changing their lives.
  • Really, it's an intricately woven tapestry.
  • GINNY SHEAR: One that was very striking to me-- the other day,
  • we were cleaning.
  • And I found a letter from my sister from '81?
  • SUE SLATE: When we were getting unioned.
  • GINNY SHEAR: No, no.
  • It was when you were in a custody battle for Travis.
  • SUE SLATE: Oh, that's right.
  • GINNY SHEAR: It was like '91.
  • No, '81, '82.
  • SUE SLATE: He was at fourth grade.
  • Nine and--
  • GINNY SHEAR: It would be '92, or '82.
  • SUE SLATE: '82.
  • GINNY SHEAR: '82.
  • And her kids are roughly the same age as Travis.
  • And they're cousins.
  • And they love one another.
  • And he'd go and visit them for a week in the summer and whatnot.
  • And my sister was writing.
  • We had told her about the problems we were having
  • with this custody battle.
  • And she wrote this long compassionate letter
  • supporting us in trying to get full custody of Travis.
  • She said, "I know this is a complete 180 for me
  • from the way I used to think, but I'm in your corner now."
  • And that was huge.
  • EVELYN BAILEY: I don't have any more questions for you.
  • But is there anything you would like
  • to say outside of what you've already said?
  • GINNY SHEAR: I've never seen you not have something else to say.
  • EVELYN BAILEY: Keep riding.
  • SUE SLATE: Oh, I just would wish everyone
  • could have the incredible lifelong joys that we've
  • experienced in life.
  • What a wonderful place this would be,
  • because we are blessed.
  • And we know it.
  • People tell us that all the time.
  • And it's never lost on us.
  • GINNY SHEAR: Oh, we know it.
  • We have been so incredibly blessed.
  • We are just so fortunate.
  • We have had so much fun.
  • We have so much love in our lives.
  • And you know, it's just been a real circus.
  • We count the number of times we laugh during the day.
  • And then we run out of--
  • we can't count that high.
  • We laugh a lot.
  • And we wake up laughing.
  • And there's always something to laugh about.
  • When I was diagnosed with cancer,
  • we found a lot to laugh about.
  • And there just is always something
  • to laugh about and bring joy in our lives.
  • Because there is already so much joy there.
  • SUE SLATE: One of our dear friends,
  • who was a Pony Express rider and now a breast cancer
  • survivor-- who would know that ten, twelve years later,
  • she would be riding for herself?
  • But Kerry Ramos, when she first met us and saw us
  • at eleven o'clock at night changing oil, because we
  • had ridden through the desert and we
  • wanted to take care of the bikes that we were using,
  • she goes, "Oh, I know what this is--
  • purposeful insanity."
  • (Laughter)
  • I love that phrase.
  • GINNY SHEAR: Yeah.
  • Yeah.
  • SUE SLATE: And that really kind of--
  • GINNY SHEAR: That was from Kerry, huh?
  • SUE SLATE: --sums up our lives.
  • GINNY SHEAR: Yeah.
  • Yeah.
  • That's the thing.
  • Boy, we just-- all those thousands of people
  • we've ridden with over the years,
  • and so many who have since been diagnosed with breast cancer,
  • it's because we're all, you know, ten, twenty years older
  • than we were.
  • It's becoming more often and--
  • SUE SLATE: Just more survivable.
  • GINNY SHEAR: More survivable.
  • Yeah.
  • Back then--
  • SUE SLATE: Yeah, we lost people in the early years.
  • GINNY SHEAR: Yeah.
  • The early years of Pony Express, we were losing people.
  • And now, people are getting just--
  • they're being diagnosed earlier.
  • And they're getting treated and getting much better treatment
  • and surviving.
  • I mean, I'm cured.
  • You know, there weren't so many people
  • that could say that back 20 years ago when we started
  • raising money for Komen.
  • EVELYN BAILEY: No.
  • GINNY SHEAR: You know, it's just--
  • it was kind of unheard of.
  • You know, maybe you were lucky.
  • EVELYN BAILEY: And the risks of cure were greater.
  • GINNY SHEAR: Oh, yeah.
  • My aunt died from chemotherapy.
  • She didn't die from breast cancer.
  • SUE SLATE: Yeah.
  • Yeah, now the treatments are so much more targeted,
  • so they're less invasive.
  • Research is the key.
  • GINNY SHEAR: It is, definitely.
  • And money drives research.
  • EVELYN BAILEY: Right.
  • GINNY SHEAR: And that's something
  • that we're still wedded to.
  • It's so important.
  • EVELYN BAILEY: Well, thank you.
  • GINNY SHEAR: Thank you.
  • EVELYN BAILEY: And thank you for your contribution
  • to Rochester and to the nation.
  • Because I really believe there are many more
  • people in touch with many more people, because of what
  • you've done.
  • And the Pony Express ride really--
  • I mean, how you can put together--
  • (Laughter)
  • SUE SLATE: I said it would be easy.
  • GINNY SHEAR: That's what she said in the beginning.
  • EVELYN BAILEY: All of those groups.
  • GINNY SHEAR: Listen, Gin, this will be easy.
  • EVELYN BAILEY: All around the perimeter,
  • I mean, yes, it is purposeful insanity.
  • (Laughter)
  • SUE SLATE: Oh, it was.
  • It is.
  • EVELYN BAILEY: Oh.
  • GINNY SHEAR: Everything we do is.