By Tyler Kennedy
Staff Writer
As November came to a close, so did No-Shave November. The end of the month allowed for many of those who participated in the awareness campaign to reach for the razors they had previously set aside. However, there is still a group of individuals who can’t quite get rid of their facial hair progress. At least, that’s the case until the afternoon of Dec. 6.
On Dec. 6, UNH’s Sigma Phi Epsilon and Kappa Delta will be hosting “Grow and Mow for Marrow” in the Strafford room of the MUB from 12 to 3 p.m. This event will be the inaugural swab drive for UNH’s Gift of Life.
Gift of Life is a new organization at UNH that works with the Gift of Life Bone Marrow Foundation to find potential matches for cancer patients in need of life-saving bone marrow transplants. The group has a goal to swab the cheeks of at least 500 people during this three-hour event.
At the event, those who participated in the No-Shave November aspect will have the opportunity to shave for the first time since the end of October. Also, the groups involved will continue to fundraise by selling raffle tickets and food items.
According to Jacqueline Marshall, who has served as the student ambassador for Gift of Life at UNH since the beginning of this fall semester, the goal for the organization as a whole is to add 100,000 people between the ages of 18 and 45 to the bone marrow registry. Another goal Marshall listed was the effort to raise at least $100,000 in order to offset the $60 lab-testing fee per swab kit.
According to Marshall, the process of being added to the registry involves the participant taking a simple cheek swab and filling out a small amount of personal information.
“We say it takes about 60 seconds to save a life,” Marshall said.
In preparing to organize this event, Marshall knew she wanted to partner with an organization that was already established and would be committed to the cause. With that in mind, she reached out to Sigma Phi Epsilon, who came aboard for the event and later brought on Kappa Delta to help with the process.
Chris Leonardi, a sophomore majoring in business and a brother of Sigma Phi Epsilon, is one of the individuals working on organizing the event.
Leonardi remarked that the No-Shave November aspect of the event is more of an advertising front and also a way to get more people involved.
Leonardi also noted that there will be superlatives given out for multiple categories related to facial hair growth.
The members of Kappa Delta will take the duty of shaving participants during the event.
In preparing for Sunday’s event, Kappa Delta has been attending weekly meetings gathering sponsorships and making banners and advertisements, along with other such duties.
One of Sunday’s participants being shaved will be David Manzo.
Manzo, a sophomore who has a dual major of sociology and justice studies, noted that the feedback he’s received on his mustache has been both negative and positive.
However, Manzo noted the point of his ‘stache isn’t entirely about style.
“Although many people can say growing out my facial hair isn’t going to save any lives, I think differently knowing that the out of control mustache I have will raise questions and the answers I give to those questions will be the first step in saving lives; awareness,” Manzo said.
