Raising awareness through facial hair 

Of his own admission, Mohawk Council of Kahnawake (MCK) chief Arnold Boyer is not one to usually sport facial hair.

“I’m not too successful, usually. I don't have too much facial hair,” said the lead on the health portfolio.

But that has not stopped him from suggesting once again that he and others on Council and in the executive of the MCK join him in growing mustaches for Movember, the annual awareness movement for men’s health issues including mental health, prostate cancer, and testicular cancer.

This year, Council chiefs David Diabo and Stephen McComber will be joining him in growing facial hair for a good cause.

Boyer said that the first time he did Movember was last year, along with ex-Council chief Lindsay LeBorgne.

When asked why he first started taking part in the annual movement, Boyer said, simply: “Why not?”

“I said to my fellow chiefs, ‘hey, it's Movember. We should do something, and so we did,” said Boyer.

As the lead on the health portfolio, Boyer said that it is important for himself and other chiefs on council to participate in these kinds of social movements in the community – Boyer also took part in the Purple Ribbon Walk in August and fundraised for it among Council members.

Fundraising in the MCK is also happening for Movember, with the money going towards the Kateri Memorial Hospital Centre and it’s Cancer Support Group.

As for his mustache, Boyer said that it’s already starting to come in.

“At the Council meeting on Monday, when I brought this up, it had been a couple of days of growing, so it was noticeable,” said Boyer.

The MCK is not alone in taking part in Movember this year. Some community members are also taking part, including Travis Jacobs, who has been participating for almost a decade now.

At first, Jacobs participated just to say he did it, but has recently added a fundraising element to his mustache growing.

“Facebook offers a feature when you have an upcoming birthday where you can have your friends on Facebook donate to whatever social cause that is close to you,” said Jacobs, whose birthday is in November.

As such, since 2022 he has used the functionality to raise funds for the Movember Foundation directly.

Through Facebook, he has received donations of a few hundred dollars since starting the fundraising, and while he has not achieved the fundraising goals he has set up for himself through the application, he is still happy with what was raised for the Movember foundation.

“Every dollar, every cent matters when it's going to that kind of cause,” said Jacobs.

He also has a personal reason to participate in cancer awareness: close family members having gone through cancer treatment, including his mother, who has been in remission since 2016.

To Jacobs, awareness of the issues tied to Movember are important for everyone, not just men.

“Cancer transcends gender,” he said.

But, for men specifically, it can be challenging to talk about them and seek help.

“Mental health issues are stigmatized for men. (Movember) is good to raise awareness of the cause and for men to be open, to talk about whatever is bothering them. Health-wise, physically, mentally, just to be open about that,” said Jacobs.

“When you do notice abnormalities or an issue with your health or body, something that needs medical attention, they need to be aware that they can and should seek proper or appropriate medical attention from a healthcare practitioner or a mental health practitioner.”

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