Our parents, Evalyn and Rick Merrick, are cancer survivors. Evalyn was diagnosed with Multiple Myeloma in 1997 and Rick was diagnosed with Prostate cancer in 2010.
According to the American Cancer Society, an estimated 1.5 million new cases of cancer were diagnosed in the United States in 2009. In that same year, the US recorded more than a half million deaths from cancer.
Were it not for early detection and critical treatment innovations brought about through research, our parents, and millions of other cancer survivors might not be with us today. That is why we have dedicated the month of November to them – the survivors – and have pledged to work with everyone we know to raise at least $10,000 for Cancer Research.
In celebration of the month we have dubbed “Beardvember,” November will be a little hairy for the Beardvember team and our many friends and family joining in this important endeavor. These men (and women) have pledged not to cut or trim their facial hair (or otherwise) during the entire month of Beardvember in hopes of raising awareness of this important cause.
Join us by committing to grow out your facial hair to increase awareness and/or helping to raise important funds to hire researchers, finance clinical trials and support efforts to find a cure! We invite you to visit our website, www.beardvember.com and join our Facebook group, Beardvember: Curing Cancer One Beard at a Time! to learn more about Beardvember and, most importantly, donate to dedicated site with the Leukemia & Lymphoma Society.
Please contact us at beardvember@gmail.com if you would like to join us as a member of the Beardvember team by dedicating your beard and raising money for a cancer patient you love.
We hope you will follow our daily “Beardwatch” blog, send pictures, donate to these great causes, and join us at the end of the month for an event to celebrate our parents and the millions of patients living with cancer.
Warm wishes for a healthful Beardvember!
The Beardvember Team
Rachel, Scott, and Scott
AND NOW…
Beardvember… for the LADIES!
Due to popular demand, we’ve added a fun way for women to get involved in Beardvember…
If you are a lady, and have a tough time growing facial hair, you can still become a member of the Beardvember team. All you have to do is drop us an e-mail at beardvember.gmail.com, then replace your picture on Facebook with a picture of you donning the fake beard of your choice - feel free to be creative! By leaving this picture up for the month of November, you’ll be able to spread the word about early detection and help raise funds from appreciative Facebook freinds.
In case you are wondering, we already have several women on board… Rachel’s pic will be up by Wednesday!
Happy Beardvember!
