HIV/AIDS LONG-TERM SURVIVOR * YOUTH EDUCATION * ADVOCACY * ACTIVISM * RESOURCES
Houston, Texas - United States
LIVE TO TELL THE TALE!
62 Years of Living
62 years. 22,630 days (and counting). Some were heavy, some were light. Some were barely survivable. But all of them have shaped me into who I am today.
At 21, I was told I wouldn't make it to 25. It's hard to believe that now, knowing I’m 62. But here I am, still here, still living with purpose, still learning, still fighting.
In these 62 years, I’ve lost loved ones, I've battled demons, and I’ve danced with joy in moments I never thought I’d get to see. Through it all, I’ve held onto a simple truth: God wasn’t done with me. And I’m still not done.
I am humbly grateful for every day. For every breath, every step, and every challenge that brought me closer to who I am now. I’ve lived a full life, and I’m still writing the next chapters.
Here’s to life. And to all the incredible people who’ve walked alongside me, seen the best and worst of me, and reminded me why I should never stop fighting.
Bob Bowers
THE FIRE WITHIN DOCUMENTARY
I was up late last night and I watched your special (The Fire Within) with you and your wife, she was doing the road bike through California. I think you two are amazing people, I wanted to thank you for helping me. To look at my life completely differently. then the poor me I got sick. I don't have HIV but I have enough other shit I just cried watching you throw up and throw up from medicine and your attitude amazed me. I take more pills than any normal person could stand. and I decided to live more like you I can win this fight for life. Bob you should do more specials and if there are more out there, please direct them to me. Write a book too, you might already have one I think you impact people more than you realize. thank you, God be with you. You are in my prayers forever.
Malinda
COMPASSION IS OUR CURE!
“Bob Bowers is a passionate activist and educator. As someone who has lived with AIDS for over 40 years, Bob is not just a survivor. He works passionately to fight complacency and improve the lives of those around him. His commitment to teaching young people about the importance of healthy choices in their lives, and his advocacy of quality health-care for those living with AIDS, are just two examples of his numerous good works.”
~ United States Senator Tammy Baldwin
LIVE TO TELL THE TALE!
25 Years of One Tough Pirate: A Journey of Hope, Advocacy, and Survival
Twenty-five years ago, One Tough Pirate set sail with a simple mission: to educate, advocate, and share the raw, unfiltered truth about living with HIV/AIDS. At the time, I had already spent 17 years fighting this virus—now, as I stand here in my 42nd year with HIV, I can’t help but reflect on the incredible journey this website has taken.
What started as a personal outlet became a beacon of hope for so many. It became a space to honor those we’ve lost, to fight stigma with truth, and to remind the world that HIV is not just a statistic—it’s real lives, real struggles, and real resilience. Over the years, I’ve shared my triumphs and my darkest moments, not because it was easy, but because it mattered. Because people needed to hear it.
I never imagined One Tough Pirate would reach so many, but here we are—25 years later, still fighting, still educating, still proving that hope and determination can outlast even the toughest storms. To everyone who has followed, supported, or found strength in these pages—thank you. You’ve been a part of this journey, and I am beyond grateful.
For 25 years, One Tough Pirate has been a voice in the fight against HIV/AIDS—born from my own 42-year journey of survival.
With gratitude,
Bob Bowers
www.onetoughpirate.com
The Fight Continues
To those still in the trenches—educators, activists, healthcare workers, and everyone fighting to end the HIV epidemic—I see you, and I thank you. The fight isn’t over, and your dedication is saving lives. While I may no longer be in classrooms, I know firsthand the power of education and advocacy. HIV is still here, and so is the need for truth, compassion, and action. Your work matters now more than ever.
Keep going—you are making a difference.
~ Bob Bowers
positively positive!
I love your website. I am too often on the "medicine is failing, hope is failing,
infection is winning" end of things. It does my heart and soul good to be reminded that you--and many others--are LIVING with AIDS. Keep living and keep telling your story and spreading the word. You'll be in my heart and in my prayers.
~Kathi
NEWS AND MEDIA
When I first met Bob a little more than a year ago. I was amazed at how mentally strong he was. Bob was the first person I had ever met, that I knew of, that was HIV positive. His attitude on life really made me think twice about little things that I used to dwell on daily.
His passion and commitment to educating others comes across in his website. Bob knows first-hand the facts about the disease. He has dedicated a lot of time and effort to hopefully changing someone else's life for the better through his website.
Through my job I used to only refer to Bob as that guy I did a story on about his life and his fight against HIV. Now a year later, I can call him my friend.
~Mitch Weber - ABC's Channel 27 News
COMPASSION IN ACTION!
What a compassionate human being Bob Bowers is. There wasn't one person in that room Saturday night that wasn't moved by what Bob had to say. His presentation wasn't about "my life living with AIDS." It was about his outrage and suffering for others that people are still dying from a PREVENTABLE disease. I was honored to have seen him speak Saturday night.
~ Linda
HIV and aging awareness day
Surviving HIV/AIDS for 41 years has been a rollercoaster of emotions.
I've witnessed the loss of countless friends, battled physical and emotional struggles, and experienced my share of highs and lows.
There have been moments of survivor's guilt, questioning my own luck while others succumbed to the disease.
Yet, through it all, I've clung to hope, never forgetting the importance of educating others, battling stigma, raising awareness, and fighting for a cure.
The journey has been arduous, but I'm grateful for the strength and resilience it has instilled in me. I've learned that even in the darkest of times, there is always light to be found.
And so, I continue to fight, never surrendering to the virus or the challenges it brings.
YOU'VE GOT THIS!
NEVER EVER SURRENDER!
NEVER EVER FORGET!
~ Bob
Mr. Bowers has been an HIV/AIDS educator/activist/advocate for over 3 decades.
U=U
People with HIV who take HIV medicine as prescribed and get and keep an undetectable viral load can live long and healthy lives and will not transmit HIV to their HIV-negative partners through sex.
HETEROSEXUAL MEN LIVING WITH HIV
Bob Bowers was a panelist for this webinar from the Long-term Survivor Toolkit Series. This video focuses on the barriers and challenges, as well as the need for visibility for heterosexual men living with HIV.
Please visit our friends at The Reunion Project for more information and ways to get involved: www.reunionproject.net
until there's a cure®
Join the fight against HIV!
Wear The Bracelet
When you wear it, you stand for compassion over judgment, understanding over stigma, and education over fear. You stand with those of us fighting not just for ourselves, but for a future free from HIV/AIDS.
Order your Bracelet. Wear it proudly. Help us raise awareness, spark conversations, fight stigma, and fund the fight — UNTIL the battle is won.
#WearUNTILChange #WearUNTILTheresACure
wear until change®
Wear The Bracelet UNTIL There's a Cure!
This Bracelet carries more than a message — it carries hope.
~ Bob Bowers
HIV long-term survivor of 42 years
Compassion isn’t weakness—it’s power. This bracelet is my quiet protest, my daily reminder that empathy can outlast stigma, and love can outshine fear. It carries the weight of names, memories, and moments that shaped me. I wear it for those we’ve lost, those still fighting, and the ones who feel unseen. I’ll keep wearing it—speaking, showing up—until compassion wins.
#WearUNTILTheresNoStigma #WearUNTILCompassionWins
HOPE LIVES!
Bob Bowers is a youth HIV/AIDS educator, advocate, activist, and a 42-year long-term survivor of HIV/AIDS
Welcome to my personal website! I'd like to extend my sincere and heartfelt thanks for your compassion, love, and support. I sincerely hope that you enjoy your time spent here. This site pays homage to hope, survival and to the over 40 million of our courageous brothers and sisters that were taken from us far too early in life. I truly believe that where there is a will, there is a way. I have survived living with HIV/AIDS for over four decades, and I have dedicated my life to educating and empowering youth and others about this dreadful scourge. I am blessed and grateful to be alive. I despise the stigma that continues to drive this disease. Through my advocacy and activism, I work diligently to address the core issues of poverty, racism, homophobia, women's rights, domestic violence, homelessness, addiction etc. Regardless of HIV/AIDS, it is vital that we not turn on backs on those who need our love and support. In 2006 I created our youth AIDS awareness poster contest, to pose the simple and profound question, "What if it Were You?" I fight equally to be a voice of hope, knowing that we all have obstacles to overcome. I've come to realize that good, bad or ugly, life is truly a blessing. Throughout these many years of being a long-term survivor, an activist, and through my advocacy as a youth educator, I have had the privilege and honor to speak to countless thousands of students, and adults alike, about life, and living life with this virus - neither of which are easy. Without a doubt, education and awareness remain vital in helping to stop the spread of HIV. I hope that through my speaking, or in my day-to-day interactions, that I've helped empower others to live life to the fullest, as you have helped me! I give endless thanks and praise to you, my family, friends, and those individuals who have blessed my voyage to this point in life. I say without a doubt, "I did not get here alone!" Your involvement in my life and/or words of love and encouragement are forever embedded in my heart, soul, mission, and on the many pages throughout this website! Once again, welcome. Compassion is our cure!
Namaste,
Bob Bowers
Aka - One Tough Pirate
PERSEVERANCE
Bob Bowers was by far one of the most amazing speakers I have ever heard in my life. No words can describe the respect I have for him, and how much I look up to him. My sister went to Africa and worked in an orphanage. When she arrived back home again, and I heard her stories of interacting with kids who have been diagnosed with HIV/AIDS, I wanted to go back or do something to help so badly. Now that I have heard Mr. Bowers speak, and heard his stories, that urge is even worse. I want to do as much as I can to help. I can guarantee that I will go home tonight after school and the first thing I will do is visit his website and find out what I can do to help. It amazes me how high his spirits are in times like these and his perseverance and his hopefulness. I especially like how he is willing to share his story with people like me and inform us so that we become aware. I learned many things from Bob.
~Jennifer B.
KEEP ON LIVING...
Dear. Bob Bowers.
I just want you to know that i am not affected by hiv/aids and don't know anyone who is. But this website is the most amazing one i have ever seen. What you do is just incredible...so keep on living and doing what you do. Inspire as many as you can...so they can carry on your legacy. Your family should be so proud of you.
~ Adria
RIP SIR DUKE BOWERS CGC
"Bubba" Duke Bowers
May 26, 2015 - August 16, 2023
Our best friend and most beautiful and devoted service dog. Your paw prints are in our hearts forever, Angel!
Bob and Sir Duke at the Texas Gulf Coast
LONG-TERM SURVIVOR
LONG-TERM SURVIVOR
LONG-TERM SURVIVOR
"Long-Term Survivors are defined as having a HIV/AIDS diagnosis before 1996. They share those earliest and darkest years of the epidemic when there were no effective treatments. Effective treatments were available in 1995-96. Protease inhibitors transformed HIV infection from a “death sentence” to a more chronic but manageable condition."
SURVIVE!
LONG-TERM SURVIVOR
LONG-TERM SURVIVOR
"My personal ambition is to inspire and motivate everyone to be victorious in life's challenges. In this process I educate about the cause of HIV/AIDS, the consequences of having it, and how I have survived for 42 years."
~ Bob Bowers
keep growing!
LONG-TERM SURVIVOR
Bob, you were just the cutest thing when we were in grade school and have grown to be a handsome, very driven man. I applaud all that you do and wish you nothing but the best and may you continue to stay strong. Most people don't have near the drive or discipline, let alone energy that you appear to have. You are truly an amazing man. My hat is off to you my friend, you are truly an ANGEL and a gift to this earth and the life of everyone you come in contact with. Take care of yourself.
~ Sheila
ADVOCACY
STOP THE STIGMA!
Good Afternoon Bob,
I just spoke with Jake Glaser and he told me that you wanted me to email you. I only have a few minutes right now, but I will definitely email you again. I have checked out your website. IT is awesome!!!! I hope to create a website one of these days. Thank You for those kind words you said about me the other night to the reporter from The Capital Times. I am just started to do more and more. If I can help you out with anything, please let me know and I will do everything I can do to help you. I will let you know of things that come my way. I hope this finds you in good health. Take Care of yourself!! Continue to do that great work you do!
Best Wishes,
Ben Banks
ACTIVISM
STOP THE STIGMA!
STOP THE STIGMA!
Hi Bob,
Wow...your generous websites give people a pretty good idea of who you are. Thank you for sharing that with people. (my bro died of AIDS after refusing to go to doctors and then it was too late).
I am sorry for your struggle. I am happy for your brains. I am awed at your "person". I am glad you have spirituality and a sense of yourself. I hope you have all the love around you that you put out in the world. I wanted you to know that right at this moment there is someone thinking about everything you said. Good rides and good luck and good feelings to you in your life.
Elizabeth
STOP THE STIGMA!
STOP THE STIGMA!
STOP THE STIGMA!
Even today, secrecy still surrounds HIV/AIDS. Fortunately, Bob Bowers is a leading HIV/AIDS educator, ambassador and spokesperson. Through his speeches, Web sites and new documentary film about his life called The Fire Within, Bob is providing much needed leadership in the areas of HIV awareness and prevention. In addition, by living his life with great humor, integrity, strength and purpose, Bob has bridged the gap between diverse groups of individuals and in so doing, has lessened the stigma and discrimination that is so often associated with HIV/AIDS.
~ Neil Willenson
NEVER SURRENDER! never forget!
"For years, people told me to stop getting them, warning me that I’d never be invited into “polite society.” My mom, who was Jewish, told me as a kid that if I got tattooed, I couldn’t be buried in a Jewish cemetery."
"Long-Term Survivors are defined as having a HIV/AIDS diagnosis before 1996. They share those earliest and darkest years of the epidemic when there were no effective treatments. Effective treatments were available in 1995-96. Protease inhibitors transformed HIV infection from a “death sentence” to a more chronic but manageable condition."
" Gritty, raw and very real, The Fire Within is a compelling feature-length documentary chronicling a year in the life of long-term AIDS survivor Bob Bowers. "
