For the past month, Jasper’s streets have been overrun with moustachioed men, each doing their part to raise awareness and funds for prostate and testicular cancers as part of the annual Movember campaign.
To celebrate the month of whiskers and awareness, the Sawridge Inn and Conference Centre—which had a team of Mo Bros growing ‘staches and collecting funds—hosted a Movember Gala Nov. 21 to crown the man with the best 30-day mo and raise additional funds for three cancer-related charities.
This year, Dan Anselmo’s upper lip foliage garnered the loudest cheers, deeming him the 2015 moustache champion.
In total, the gala raised just shy of $19,000—nearly $9,000 more than last year’s inaugural event.
This year, as well as supporting the Movember Foundation, the Sawridge Inn is also donating funds to the Jasper Cancer Action and Support Group and the Alberta Urology Institute Foundation.
The $9,640 raised through the live auction will be donated to the Movember Foundation, which funds local health programs, as well as groundbreaking research projects; the $5,000 raised through the silent auction will go to the cancer action group; and a portion of the ticket sales, as well as proceeds from drink specials offered throughout the month of November, will go to the urology institute. That donation is expected to exceed $4,000, however it hasn’t yet been tallied, as drink specials will continue in the hotel’s restaurants until Nov. 30.
Pierre Frigon, sales manager for the Sawridge Inn and an organizer of the event, said it was important to him that this year’s Movember campaign be broadened to include local charities.
The cancer action group helps Jasperites who have recently been diagnosed with cancer, providing them support, and presenting them with a cheque to help with the cost of travelling to medical appointments in the city.
“It’s a real financial hardship,” said Joanne Sommers, a member of the action group and a cancer survivor herself.
She said the $5,000 donation will allow the group to help 10 people, providing each of them with a $500 cheque.
The Alberta Urology Institute Foundation raises funds for the Alberta Urology Institute in Edmonton to carry out research and education pertaining to urologic diseases, like prostate and testicular cancers.
Frigon said he’s thrilled with the community’s support for the event, whether it was through silent auction donations, attendance at the gala or bids on the auction items.
“We couldn’t have done this without the support of the community,” he said, noting that 56 businesses donated to the silent auction.
Frigon spearheaded the creation of the Movember Gala last year, after his own cancer diagnosis. He said, after the success of the past two years, he’s ready to hand over the reins to his team, allowing them to run with it in 2016.
Nicole Veerman
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