A 'compassionate non-judgmental forum'

Sportscaster becomes veep of support group for guys whose partners have breast cancer

Bruce Macgowan

Noted San Francisco Bay Area radio sportscaster Bruce Magowan has been elected vice chair/treasurer of Marin Man to Man.

That's my weekly support group aimed at guys whose partners have — or had — breast cancer.

Bruce, a Fairfax resident, replaces Marv Edelstein, longtime officer of the group who's left it after 23 years because he's moved to Idaho from San Rafael.

Marv was one of the four original members of Man to Man, which is unique in the San Francisco Bay Area.

Its emphasis has always been on making guys "feel less isolated, uncertain, misunderstood or afraid."

It achieves that goal by providing an easygoing, compassionate non-judgmental environment and forum "in which each member can discuss and understand the difficulties of being a prime caregiver."

I , Woody Weingarten of San Anselmo, have been the group's chair for more than two decades — and reference some material from its website in my VitalityPress book, "Rollercoaster: How a man can survive his partner's breast cancer," which is aimed at male caregivers.

A lot more information can be found on that site, including an article describing the group more fully, first-person stories by members, and reprints of newspaper pieces about it.

Bruce, who's covered more than 5,000 major sports events, has been a regular attendee well over a year.

The group, which is free, welcomes drop-ins at its weekly 9:30 a.m. Wednesday breakfast meetings at West End Cafe, 1131 4th Street, San Rafael, across from the Rafael Film Center.