Most, if not all, of us are familiar with the Movember movement, where men grow out their facial hair during the month of November to raise awareness for prostate cancer. When I first saw MoDairy pop up in my Facebook news feed, I thought it was going to take me to a post promoting the Missouri dairy industry. Lo and behold, I was mistaken. It promotes men’s health throughout the entire dairy industry…not just the Show Me state.
You see, healthcare and medical needs are a bit of a sticking point in rural America, where hospitals are often far away and men’s health specialists can be hard to come by. Throw in the fact that many farmers – especially those with smaller farms – either devote the bulk of their disposable income to paying for health insurance or don’t have health insurance at all, and it creates a serious problem. In addition, the ‘stubborn farmer’ mentality that many of us country people possess may keep the men in our lives from seeking medical attention for a funny symptom before it snowballs into something more serious.
So how does MoDairy work? According to their website, it seeks to change the face of men’s health in the dairy industry by urging men to grow out their facial hair and for women to support the beards and mustaches that emerge as a result. If you want to get involved, it’s fairly simple and can be done by following these steps:
- If you’re a man, grow out your facial hair. If you’re a woman, please don’t, but instead lend your love to the cause with a false mustache. This can be made with fur, felt, makeup, or one of those cutesy mustaches on a stick. Hypothetical extra points go to milk mustaches!
- Post a mustache photo (real mustache or not) to the MoDairy Facebook page. For every photo MoDairy receives, $5 will be donated to the Movember Foundation.
- Done.
MoDairy appealed to me particularly because I’m engaged to a dairy farmer. My fiancé also has a pretty awesome beard. Every month is Movember for Sam! But his righteous facial hair is not the only thing I love about my almost-husband. He is brilliant, hilarious, hardworking and kind, and the cows and I want him to stay here on this Earth with us for a long time. I know I’m not the only woman in the dairy industry and agriculture as a whole for that matter who feels that way. So grab a mustache, whip out your smartphone and snap a selfie. The men in our lives deserve it.
Leave a Reply