Bears of the Past, Part I, Episode 2: Black Bear

Good morning, Build-A-Bear fans! I have secured an interview with the Honorary Black Bear, and he should be here any second. Oh, here he is now!

Black Bear: Hey, Lilli!
Lilli: Hi, Black Bear! I'm so excited to have you on the show!
Black Bear: No, the excitement is all mine. I've been following your blog, and you're doing a great job!
Lilli: Thanks! Well, let's get on with the interview. The first thing I usually ask is, "Tell us a little about yourself," but I guess you have a lot more to tell than most bears.
Black Bear: Indeed I do. For starters, I was introduced to Build-A-Bear the very first day the store opened. That was an immensly exciting day, and there aren't words to describe it. I lasted all through the winter of that year, and all us bears celebrated Christmas by sneaking into the snowy night while the mall was closed. Most of us had short fur (myself included), so it was a brave thing for a teddy bear to do!
Lilli: Wow! I can't imagine. What happened after that?
Black Bear: I'll cut my long story short; I'm sure other bears can tell you some of the fun times we had. But, one by one, we were retired. I retired in January of 2002, the year they retired most of their original bears. I was the first bear that year to retire, and it was awfully sad to leave. I, at least, knew my retirement was coming: during the previous summer, Build-A-Bear introduced Black Bear II and sent me on the "sell-out" path.
Lilli: So, what did you do after you retired?
Black Bear: I went on vacation, of course! First, I visited the Baby Bears, Blue and Pink. They'd never admit it, but they were teddy bear celebrities with speaking engagements and a trailer! After I traveled with them for awhile, I joined Chubby Cubby in Alaska (he was an old-time friend who'd retired in December of 2000). The snow was cold, however, and I had short fur, so I moved down to Chicago and took a job with the Chicago Bears (I coach their mascot).
Lilli: Thanks for coming, Black Bear! It's been an honor having you here on the show. I'd love to publish more of your stories sometime!
Black Bear: Anytime, Lilli. I'll see you later.

This and all other Build-A-Bear Buzz stories are Copyright (c) 2008 by the writer of this blog.
If you have a photo of Black Bear, please e-mail it to me for blog consideration at buildabearbuzz@gmail.com