Faces are growing scruffier in the month of November, or rather, Movember, sometimes groomed in artistic fashion. There are many ways a moustache can take shape, just like the many ways groups on campus are getting involved to support men’s health through Movember.
Participants can collect donations online, and the funds raised go to the Movember Foundation, a charity which aims to reduce the number of men dying prematurely due to prostate or testicular cancer, mental illness and physical inactivity.
For people wanting to get involved by raising funds, growing a moustache, or simply being a part of a team, Carleton’s Healthy Workplace does all three.
Steve Sweeney, manager of computing and communications client services at Carleton, said he doesn’t normally wear a moustache, but he takes part in Movember to show his support for the Healthy Workplace team.
He said it’s a fun way to support the cause, and it has encouraged conversation surrounding what Movember stands for.
Sweeney said he also has personal motivations to participate, as he lost his father at a young age due to health issues.
This is his fourth time participating in Movember, and this year his moustache is styled into the “handlebar” look, he said.
Healthy Workplace also had a Movember scavenger hunt on campus, open to all faculty and students. The rules were simple: use clues to find a famous moustache placed somewhere around campus.
Samantha Munro, the Healthy Workplace co-ordinator, said they’ve had scavenger hunts and other events and they’re a big hit.
“It’s always a lot of fun,” she said. “They really put their all into it and they have a really good time with it.”
Etienne Rollin, a laboratory superintendent at Carleton, is a first-time “Mo Bro.” This year his moustache ends are pointing downwards like a horseshoe.
“I wanted it to be memorable,” he said.
Rollin said growing a fun moustache allows for a good laugh, but he said it is also an obvious way of expressing support.
He said he encourages everyone to donate. Rollin said he has already raised $325 out of his $500 goal for the Movember Foundation.
The Movember movement started in 2003 when a group of men decided to bring back the moustache for a good cause, according to the foundation’s website. Today, the foundation has raised $759 million.
Carleton Relay for Life is also raising awareness for Movember. Like the moustaches, Tania Gomes, one of the Relay for Life organizers at Carleton, said she has noticed a progression in participation. People are even offering to volunteer with Relay for Life, she said.
The Carleton Student Engineering Society (CSES) is also participating in Movember.
“We typically like to have events that involve everyone,” said Yannick Brisebois, vice-president of CSES.
Being an often male-dominated field of study, engineering has been affected by men’s health issues, according to Brisebois.
He said among many events, they’ve had a bake sale, a Movember shave auction, and a hockey game to raise funds.
For the shave auction, willing students can donate their facial hair to be shaved off by the highest bidder.
“Not everybody can grow a beard,” Brisebois said. “But everyone can shave one.”
