The employees of the City of Miami Beach Fire Rescue Department are fighting more than just flames these days. By growing out their mustaches, they were able to raise more than $2,000 for Mount Sinai Medical Center. The fundraising campaign was for Movember – an initiative where men grew out their mustaches during the month of November to help raise awareness and funds for men’s health issues, such as prostate and testicular cancer.
“It is absolutely spectacular to think that the people we work with every day dealing with emergencies are now working with us on the prevention of illnesses such as cancer,” said Mount Sinai President and CEO, Steve Sonenreich.
To make the check presentation, approximately 30 City of Miami Beach Fire Rescue employees arrived to Mount Sinai on fire trucks, sporting full mustaches and light blue T-shirts, the color for prostate cancer awareness.
“If we can help someone wake up healthier and happier by just growing out our mustaches for a month, then so be it,” said firefighter Anthony Wilson, who helped spearhead the fundraising initiative within his department.
The men ended the month with one final fundraising initiative at Finnegan’s on Ocean Drive where they accepted donations to shave off their mustaches. City of Miami Beach Fire Chief, Javier Otero and Assistant Chief, Jorge Sanabria, took it one step further and agreed to shave their entire heads for the cause. All proceeds from this event were also donated to Mount Sinai.
Prostate cancer is the second leading cause of death in men. The American Cancer Society estimates that there will be over 241,000 new cases of prostate cancer in the United States this year alone.
To learn more about what you can do to reduce your risk of prostate cancer, visit www.msmc.com or call 305-674-CARE (2273).
