Jack Parow

One of South Africa’s most loved rugby teams, the Vodacom Blue Bulls, have partnered with Movember and their long-term ambassador Jack Parow this year to help raise awareness and funds for men’s health issues including prostate and testicular cancer, as well as male mental health.

In support of the annual Movember campaign which sees men grow moustaches to raise awareness and funds the team have set up a Blue Bulls network on Movember.com and are encouraging fans to support them and join their team on the website. To raise funds, the Vodacom Blue Bulls will also be selling raffle tickets in aid of Movember in conjunction with ticket sales for the upcoming ABSA Currie Cup home game at Loftus against Eastern Province Kings on Friday 2 October 2015.

Along with a variety of prizes including a weekend away for 2 at a Tsogo Sun resort, an SAB hamper, an AFGRI hamper and signed Vodacom Blue Bulls merchandise, rapper Jack Parow has donated a bespoke limited edition Parow Pythons Rugby jersey.

“Jack Parow has been a Movember ambassador for a number of years and the Parow Pythons jersey that he donated for our cause is a truly unique prize as only 40 jerseys were produced,” says Garron Gsell, Country Manager of Movember South Africa. “The design of the jersey is a collaboration between Parow and Puma for his fantasy rugby league and would make a very valuable addition to any collection.”

The draw for the Parow Pythons jersey as well as the additional prizes will take place on the field at halftime during the match against the EP Kings and tickets can be purchased on bulls.ticketpro.co.za under ‘Match Day Tickets’.  Each ticket will cost R 50.00, with no limit to the number of tickets purchased and all proceeds from the tickets will go to Movember.

In addition to the action on the field, proud partner Sharpie will be presenting their Sharpie Expression Session Wall at the game where fans canwrite their messages of support to their favourite players and favourite teams.

“We are really excited to have the Blue Bulls on board for Movember this year with a number of players committing to growing a mo for the campaign,” says Gsell. “Fans of the team can support their favourite players by joining the Blue Bulls network challenge on www.movember.com.”

The Movember Foundation is a global charity committed to men living happier, healthier, longer lives. Globally there is still a stigma around diseases that affect men and often men don’t talk about issues they are experiencing and concerns they may have which impacts on early detection and essentially life expectancy. The Movember Foundation works year-round with their global men’s health partners and academic and clinical institutions to ensure their programmes accelerate improvements to some of the biggest health issues faced by men.

In South Africa, all funds donated are managed by the Men’s Foundation, which holds the license agreement with the Movember Foundation in the country. These funds are used to create awareness for male specific diseases and to fund programmes developed in conjunction with Movember’s South African men’s health partners, the Cancer Association of South Africa (CANSA), the Prostate Cancer Foundation and the South African Depression and Anxiety Group (SADAG).

Besides purchasing raffle tickets for R 50.00, men and women can also support Movember by signing up for the campaign on www.movember.com. Men start 1 November clean shaven and grow and groom a moustache for the 30 days of the month. Through this action of growing a mo, and encouraging others to do the same, they prompt private and public conversations around the often ignored issues of men’s health.

This year Movember has also added an additional aspect to the month-long campaign which will tackle physical inactivity – when signing up on the Movember website, there is an option to make a commitment to MOVE for the 30 days of Movember. Studies have proven that incorporating more exercise into one’s daily routine has many benefits and often makes a person feel better, gives more energy and could possibly add years to their life. This commitment to MOVE can include anything from a daily brisk walk or taking the stairs instead of the lift, to surfing, cycling, swimming or anything that gets the heart rate up.

Sign up, grow, give, move – join us! Together we can Change the Face of Men’s Health.

For more information or to sign up as a Mo Bro or Mo Sista visit www.movember.com or download the Movember app on your mobile device. Follow Movember on social media: @MovemberRSA on Twitter or facebook/MovemberSouthAfrica.