First- and second-year medical and dental students at the U of A combined to raise over $27,000 for Movember. The second-years alone raised over $20,000. That number puts them in the lead for the top campus fundraising team in Canada.
Movember is a fundraising campaign which supports prostate cancer research and awareness, and, new this year, men's mental health.
To honour their achievement, Douglas Miller, dean of the Faculty of Medicine & Dentistry, and his colleagues helped to shave off the students' moustaches on November 30.
"It's gone completely beyond what I even imagined at the beginning of the month," said Vikram Karnik, a second-year medical student who organized his class's team. "I'm so happy we can raise this much money for prostate cancer and men's mental health. Being future health-care professionals, we wanted to do something that was both fun and for a good cause."
Last year the group raised $7,900. Karnik attributes this year's success to persistence, with people going after sources they wouldn't have last year. They're also getting help from the "Mo sisters" in their class who organized a fundraising bar night and a bake sale, designed and made T-shirts, and crocheted coffee sleeves.
The dean of the Faculty of Medicine & Dentistry, Douglas Miller, couldn't be more impressed with the students' efforts.
"This is something we as a faculty should be very proud of," said Miller. "This speaks volumes about the character of the students going through our medical and dental programs."