The Movember 2010 launch
While I am not personally a fan of moustaches (I wouldn’t grow one even if people paid me to do so!), I’m very much a fan of the Movember campaign. My good friend Gus Fosarolli will be growing a Mo again this year to raise funds for cancer research (but hey, he DOES look good in a ‘mo). I will be supporting the Movember Canada campaign with promotion and will obviously donate to my friends’ campaigns.
I had a chance to chat with Adam, the founder of Movember. He’s such a fine fellow! I also got an opportunity to see several of my good friends at the event (and I even made a new friend there – hi Phil!)
The Mo, slang for moustache, and November come together each year for Movember.
Movember challenges men to change their appearance and the face of men’s health by growing a moustache. The rules are simple, start Movember 1st clean-shaven and then grow a moustache for the entire month. The moustache becomes the ribbon for men’s health, the means by which awareness and funds are raised for prostate cancer. Much like the commitment to run or walk for charity, the men of Movember commit to growing a moustache for 30 days.
The idea for Movember was sparked in 2003 over a few beers in Melbourne, Australia. The plan was simple – to bring the moustache back as a bit of a joke and do something for men’s health. No money was raised in 2003, but the guys behind the Mo realized the potential a moustache had in generating conversations about men’s health. Inspired by the women around them and all they had done for breast cancer, the Mo Bros set themselves on a course to create a global men’s health movement.
In 2004 the campaign evolved and focused on raising awareness and funds for the number one cancer affecting men – prostate cancer. 432 Mo Bros joined the movement that year, raising $55,000 for the Prostate Cancer Foundation of Australia – representing the single largest donation they had ever received.
The Movember moustache has continued to grow year after year, expanding to Canada, the US, UK, New Zealand, Ireland, Spain, South Africa, the Netherlands and Finland.
In 2009, global participation of Mo Bros and Mo Sistas climbed to 255,755, with over one million donors raising $47 Million for Movember’s global beneficiary partners. We are proud to announce that last year’s Canadian campaign was the second largest in the world behind Australia, with 35,156 Mo Bros and Mo Sistas coming together to raise $7.8 million for Prostate Cancer Canada.
Consider donating to the Movember movement, changing the face of human health.
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Raul- Thank you so much for your support. It was wonderful that you could come out to the Vancouver launch event to kick off the Movember campaign. We understand that moustaches are a tricky thing to some people
, so thank you for choosing to support men’s health and the fight against prostate cancer. Many thanks.
Thanks for the support Raul. Should be an interesting Movember