On a Movember night at Hughes’s Bar in the heart of Cordal, a group of locals will give up their oul moustache hair for the cause of men’s health awareness issues. They had a pre-cut-throat meeting with Castleisland based barber, Eoin Brennan and hairdresser, Catheriona O’Connell at Hughes last week and all were declared fit and able to undergo the minor operation.
There wasn’t a shred of fear in any eye as most of the victims have been there and done the deed before. They started out on the Movember campaign as ‘The Noisy Neighbours’ a few years ago in 2011 and have managed to raise totals of up to €7.501.00 through this and associated activity. It’s ‘The Hairy Neighbours’ this year according to the posters – but the cause remains the same.
“A casual chat among a group of men on a random, November, Sunday evening here in the bar ended in 15 of us all joining together to grow moustaches and we managed to raise €7,501.97 from that event,” said Seán Hughes.
The group went on to become the eighth highest fundraising group in Ireland and it’s a feat they were all very proud of.
“We had a great night with the shave-off at the bar. This included an auction of Mick Galwey’s boots which raised €350. We were so overwhelmed by the generosity of people, that we promised we would make this fantastic occasion an annual event and hopefully follow on from the success of the past few years,” said Seán.
The aim of the Movember movement is to raise funds and awareness of men’s health issues and more specifically to promote a greater level of debate around the topic of prostate cancer.
“We are generally slower than our female counterparts in looking after our health and early intervention as we all know is vital. Therefore, Movember not alone raises much needed funds but also highlights that prostate cancer does exist and if caught early can be effectively treated. This year we have another group of eager men who are all busily growing moustaches and we would greatly appreciate any donation however big or small,” said Seán.
The shave-off will be on Saturday night, November / Movember 29 at 9pm at Hughes’ Bar in Cordal. There will be auctions, spot prizes and all for a great cause! Anyone interested in donating can call into the bar.
Since its relatively humble beginnings back in 2003 in Australia, the Movember movement has grown to be a truly global one. It has inspired the backing of over four million supporters around the world.
The Movember Foundation currently runs official campaigns in 21 countries. There are pockets of support in virtually every corner of the world, from Moscow to Rio de Janeiro and from Cairo to Cordal. Regardless of where they live, the supporters are encouraged to feel part of something bigger and to feel united by a commitment to help change the face of men’s health.
The Noisy / Hairy Neighbours in Cordal have kindly decided to donate part of their fund to the Kerry/ Cork Health Link Bus.
