boy stephen palaschak

SW Leatherboy 2008 Stephen Palaschak's journey into leather began at age 23 in Paris, where he lived and worked in the early 90's. Dragged by a friend to the Bastille district's famous Le Keller bar, he remembers spending the first 30 minutes absolutely terrified. By nightʽs end however, he found himself face-first in the sweaty pits of a hairy-chested Sir while another poured beer over his bare butt and spanked him from behind. Suffice it to say he's never looked back ... except at the marks!

A brief stint in New York followed, where Stephen balanced PhD studies in French Literature at NYU with all that the city had to offer in the days of the Lure and the Eagle.

From there, his life took a completely different turn, and Stephen wound up in Boston, where he co-owned and operated Tribal Ways Body Piercing for 10 years with his ex-partner, as well as ran a farm where they raised Icelandic sheep. During this time they headed a Coven and were instrumental in organizing Massachusetts' first Pagan Pride in 2001. When they handed over the reins of leadership 3 years later, the event had grown from 40 participants to well over 400.

Stephen was runner-up in Mr. Boston Leather 2005 and after moving to Arizona a year later, runner-up again in SW Leatherboy 2007. The third time was the proverbial charm in 2008. Since winning his title, Stephen has organized several "leather invasions" with the help of his club brothers in the Arizona Men of Leather, a group he's been active with since his arrival in Phoenix. Stephen also competed at ILS/b in October 2008, where he placed First Runner Up. He has also worked closely this year with the Imperial Court of Arizona, promoting non-mainstream lifestyles as well as fundraising, and enthusiastically represented the Leather community in his outreach to the greater GLBT community.