Observers will have seen a greater number of hairy faces in Kāpiti over the last month as the Mo Bros and Sistas did their bit to raise funds for men’s health.
Nationwide more than 11,600 Kiwi moustaches have raised over $1.1m for men’s health this Movember, and donations are still flooding in. Together, New Zealand’s Mo Bros and Sistas are contributing to a rapidly rising total of more than $84 million raised worldwide to change the face of men’s health.
“Thank you to all our Mo Bros and Sistas. Each year we’re blown away by the passion you have for creating awareness, raising funds and growing the best moustaches you can. It’s your efforts that make it possible for us to continue our work improving and saving the lives of men affected by prostate cancer, testicular cancer and mental health problems,” says Robert Dunne, New Zealand Country Manager, The Movember Foundation.
Auckland had 4,700 participants this year, the highest of any region in the country, and raised more than $430,000. But Wellington achieved the greatest dollar per Mo ratio with each Mo in the capital pulling in an average of $104.45, almost two times the national average.
In another fundraising highlight, the Movember Platinum Club will welcome more than 100 Kiwis into their arms this year, recognising Mo Bros and Mo Sistas who have raised more than $1,000 during the month.
Further standouts this year include Villa MOria, a team of 64 who have raised more than $16,900 so far, currently topping the team leaderboard. Sean Brown, top of the individual leaderboard, has raised a whopping $7,942 through his unconventional fundraising tactic of recreating iconic celebrity photos which caught the attention of the public.
“It’s the comradery, the competition and the creativity that captures attention, and that’s how Movember first began with 30 Mo’s that stood out and got people talking. Now dedicated Kiwis are taking Movember to the next level with company teams growing to 60-plus members and their creative fundraising strategies helping pull in more money per Mo than previous years,” says Robert Dunne, New Zealand Country Manager, The Movember Foundation.
Globally, more than 715,800 Mo Bros and Sistas have registered online and have raised over $84 million. This money enables The Movember Foundation to fund programmes in research and survivorship for men who are affected by prostate and testicular cancer and mental health.
A substantial global project for Movember is the Global Action Plan, a collaborative research programme that brings together the best researchers in the world to solve key issues relating to prostate cancer and testicular cancer. A portion of the funds raised in each country go towards this programme.
Locally, money raised by Kiwi Mo Bros and Mo Sistas goes to the Cancer Society of New Zealand and the Mental Health Foundation of New Zealand to fund men’s health initiatives.
Prizes for the most funds raised by an individual, a team of 10 or less, and a team of 11 or more, as well as the best Mo space, will all be announced on 9 December 2014, but Kiwis can continue to donate through till Christmas. Donations can be made online at nz.movember.com/donate.