Handlebar, pencil, walrus, and horseshoe, those are just some of the moustache trends local men will be rocking this month.
Movember is an annual fundraising campaign that kicks off Nov. 1 with participants growing their facial hair to raise awareness about men’s health, including prostate cancer and mental health.
Locals are stepping up this year to grow a moustache, including the Bonnyville Jr. A Pontiacs, the Bonnyville Lip Ticklers, and the Hearts for Healthcare team.
Breaking down the stigma surrounding men going to the doctors is one of the reasons Cold Lake resident Rob Brassard joined the Hearts for Healthcare Movember team.
“My father passed away from prostate cancer, so it’s one of those things that’s near to my heart. To make sure that people go regularly to their doctors to get regular check-ups. My dad was one of those guys that was always fit and healthy, and he never needed to go to the doctor for anything. Unfortunately, when it came back, it didn’t work out so well for him,” he detailed.
The initiative began in 2003 in Melbourne, Australia. Two friends recruited 30 men to raise funds for men’s mental health and prostate cancer, and it grew to include people from across the globe.
According to the Movember website, more than 170,000 men are living with prostate cancer in Canada.
In Canada, some of the organizations that receive funds from Movember include Canadian Men’s Health and Wellbeing Innovation Challenge and the Testicular Cancer Translational Research Project, among others.
Donations can be made online at movember.com.
Movember encourages conversations about uncomfortable subjects for men, and stresses the importance of getting annual check-ups.
“We make a lot of jokes and comments about doing our colonoscopies and everything, but really, at the end of the day, it’s really not that big of a deal. I go personally every couple of years because of my family history,” Brassard explained. “Had my dad done it sooner, he may still have been around today. People are just scared to go, or to have that conversation with their doctor and it’s really not that big of a deal in the grand scheme of things.”
Also taking part in the worldwide campaign is the local Movember group, the Bonnyville Lip Ticklers, which is made up of men like Gavin Payne, who said the response has been positive so far.
“This is the first year we’ve actually done fundraising. We always do Movember, but we never actually did it where we raised money.”
Payne said he became involved to make a contribution groups addressing issues men face, including mental health and prostate cancer.
He added, “There’s really a lot of men out there that don’t think that something can happen to them, and if it does it would be nice to have some sort of cure or something to help prevent it.”
The Bonnyville Jr. A Pontiacs players have come together to get involved after being inspired by assistant coach T.J. Millar’s involvement over the years.
“It’s a great fundraiser for men,” expressed defenceman Alex Marrocco. “There’s a lot of mental health issues for men out there, and a lot of suicides related to men, especially in Canada. Any little bit that we can do to help is definitely something that we should.”
Forward Justin Stathopoulos noted it was a consensus among the players to abandon their razors for the cause.
The Pontiacs are hoping their fans will either join in by growing their own facial hair or by donating.
“We have a pretty big platform and voice in town. I think when we start doing something, other people want to do it too, and they want to help us out so we can help others. It’s really good when we start to do things like this,” Stathopoulos explained.
Anyone interested in donating to those participating this year can visit the Movember fundraising page online at movember.com.
