It’s that time of the year again, Westhampton Beach.  The month where beards can be seen from down the halls, where moustaches flourish, and where testosterone prevails over all.  This, ladies and gentleman, is the month of Brovember.

Brovember is widely known at our school as the month where all the guys forgo shaving to grow out their facial hair, but how many of you actually know what Brovember is?

Originally started in 1999 by a group of young men in Australia who coined the term “Movember”, the event has now spread to South Africa, Europe, and North America.  Movember’s main goal was to raise prostate cancer awareness by having men grow out their beards and moustaches.  Since 2004, the Movember Foundation has raised a total $174 million that was donated to fund prostate cancer research.

Another legitimate organization for Brovember is the American Cancer Society, however, they have their own name for the event: No-Shave November (“Noshember” for short).

There is only one simple rule those must abide by in order to participate, the sacred rule of NO SHAVING.  Those who cannot bear to show-off their hair with honor shall not receive the righteous feeling of completing Brovember.

In our school, several students make attempts at participating in Brovember, and many fail.  “It takes about three weeks for my beard to fully come in, but then it gets all gross so I shave it off,” quitter, John La Mura said, as he played with his peach-fuzzed cheeks.

Brovember deserter Connor Federico played off his loss by saying, “Even though my beard grows faster than Mr. Moran’s, an easy milestone for facial-hair enthusiasts everywhere, I too fail to complete Brovember.  Ladies want a man with clean cut class, not scruffy, untamed ‘swag’ on their face.”

With the losers of the event, winners are also born.  WHBHS’s own Mr. Bookamer (a.k.a. the Bookbeard of Power) and Mr. Berkhout (a.k.a. The Red Beard of Bio) are among those who participate and emerge victorious.  However, the stakes are higher than ever before.  The two faculty members are in a heated competition to see whose beard is the better.

The Battle of the Beards has taken our school by storm and is above all else, for a good cause.  The victor will be revered as King of Brovember based off of how much money each candidate raised in the donation fundraiser.  Students can place their “votes” by putting money in the collection jugs during their lunch periods.  All proceeds will be given to help fund prostate cancer research.

Both Mr. Bookamer and Mr. Berkhout seemed pretty confident in the symbols of their manhood.  “If you’ve seen his orange-ish beard, he could grow it for two months and I would still beat him,” Bookamer challenged arms crossed in his well-known, masculine stance.  Against this claim, Berkhout responded with familiar laidback ease, “A longer and darker beard doesn’t necessarily mean it is better; there are some qualities like the redness of a beard that inherently carry weight.”

Remember, Brovember is not just a time to strut that peach-fuzz and flex that ‘stache, it is also a time of awareness and caring which can make a huge difference in finding a cure for prostate cancer.