From Lew Knows Leather, by Mike Hein, published Mar 21, 2007, by Christian Civic League of Maine:

New York’s “New American Leathermen”, 2001

Homosexual activist Lewis (Lew) Alessio of Greene, Maine was recently announced by EqualityMaine to be the 2007 recipient of the Cameron Duncan Award. The annual award is the radical homosexual lobbying group’s ‘homosexual of the year’ award. The award was presented to Alessio at EqualityMaine’s 23rd Annual Awards Banquet on March 10 at the Holiday Inn by the Bay in Portland.

The EqualityMaine press release spoke of Alessio as a homosexual demonstrating “extraordinary accomplishment, commitment, and service within the AIDS community” and “an outstanding leader in Maine’s gay community.” Lew Alessio is better known in the central Maine community as being the leader of a homosexual men’s social club called “ Just Guys.” The “Just Guys” motto from their website is “… the new men’s social group for men who have sex with men.” The group meets at MaineGeneral Heath’s Green Street location, located immediately adjacent to the Green Street United Methodist Church in Augusta.

New York Leathermen Contestants

Less well known is Alessio’s recent past, where he competed, and was named 1st runner up, in a homosexual leather bondage fetishist contest in 2001 in New York City. Alessio placed 1st Runner Up in the homosexual leather bondage “New American Leatherman 2001″ according to the homosexual leather bondage fetish website Leatherweb.com. Later that same year, Alessio “married” his homosexual partner, Jim Shaffer.

Besides being a leather bondage fetishist and leader of a homosexual sex men-only social club, Alessio is also self-employed as part of the theater troupe “Actors Theater of Maine.” The State of Maine Arts directory website states the theater group charges $500 per performance and caters primarily to children, from pre-kindergarden to 8th grade. Alessio’s ‘Actors Theater of Maine’ troupe stages plays that “all use students in the performances along with the professional casts. [The performances] are accompanied by extensive teaching materials,” according to the Maine government website.

Additionally, Alessio has been a speaker with the homosexual activist Maine Speakout Project for a number of years. In 2004, he wrote a column promoting homosexual marriages for the Lewiston Sun Journal. The column was later published as part of a newsletter for the group. In the column, Alessio assures readers it is perfectly acceptable and appropriate to allow children to attend a homosexual ‘wedding’ ceremony. “If [children] are invited, sure! What a wonderful opportunity to help them understand this historic societal event. Tell [the children] this is new for you, too. Kids are great at helping adults adjust to change.”