Today is November 1, and I just had a close shave.  No, I didn’t avoid an accident.  I actually had a close shave… with a razor and some shaving cream, and at least for my upper lip, that will be my last close shave this month.  November is “Movember,” with the “Mo” standing for “Moustache.” As a writer for Dad-O-Matic I have been interested in supporting a charity that is focused on Men’s health issues. I am pleased to say, “hair it is!” Movember can “help change the face of men’s health” by raising money for prostate and testicular cancer. This is one cause worth giving lip service to, especially if it means covering your lip with hair!

What is Movember? It’s the laziest charity in the world! No walking, no running, you don’t even shave!

Movember, the month formerly known as November, is a global charity event where men lose their facial hair inhibitions and commit to grow and groom a “Mo” (Aussie slang for moustache) for the entire month while building teams to support their Mo-growth efforts.  Much like the commitment to run or walk for charity, or uniting around a pink ribbon, now men have a hairy ribbon of their own to mobilize around and change the face (literally) of men’s health.

The funds we raise during our Moustache journey go to the Prostate Cancer Foundation and the Lance Armstrong Foundation (LIVESTRONG).

What many people don’t know is that 1 in 6 men will be diagnosed with prostate cancer in their lifetime and that testicular cancer is the most common cancer in men aged 18-35.

While I am fortunate to say I have not had anyone experience prostate cancer in my family, my dad is a colon cancer survivor (as he likes to say, he is now a semi-colon).  All cancer is bad, and I encourage you to help me support this effort of fund-raising by hair-raising.

I made a short video to introduce my Movember team, which I hope you will join.  You can contribute by donating, and you can also do “mo” by growing your own Mo!  If you send me pictures of you and your Mo (in it’s varying stages of growth) I will include your pictures in my video updates here on Dad-O-Matic.

To join my Movember team called “Dad-O-Moustache” go to www.dad-o-moustache.com or www.dadomoustache.com to register and make a donation.

Please help and get growing as part of my Movember team.  If you too decide to “grow a Mo” please email me update pictures of you and your growth along the way, and I will include YOU in my update posts during the month of Movember!

Learn more about Movember by watching the mofficial Intro Video at http://us.movember.com

Together we can change the face of men’s health!

Prostate and Testicular Cancer Facts:

• Prostate cancer is the most common non-skin cancer in men and it will strike one in six men in their lifetime
• The death rate has fallen 40% compared to what was once projected; however the number of new cases is expected to grow with the aging of “baby boomers,” with the potential to reach 300,000 per year by 2015
• More than 192,000 American men will be diagnosed with prostate cancer in 2009.  More than 27,000 will die from the disease
• Testicular cancer is the most common cancer afflicting men aged 18-35. The message is clear: more research is needed
• Within the next decade, cancer is likely to replace heart disease as the leading cause of death in the US. It is already the biggest killer of those under the age of 85

Jeff Sass is the proud dad of ZEO (Zach, 21, Ethan, 19 and Olivia, 17).  He is also a seasoned entertainment and technology exec and active social media enthusiast.  You can see more of Jeff’s writing at Sassholes! and Social Networking Rehab.