Movember at Trader Todd’s: Silly Mustaches for a Good Cause

It’s that time of year again where men endure a constantly itchy face and women hide their rolling eyes for the greater good.

It's called Movember, and a group of guys at Trader Todd’s in Lake View are joining in on the fun.

Movember, a mash-up of the words “mustache” and “November,” is a global fundraising initiative where men shave their faces completely on Nov. 1, then grow silly mustaches to benefit prostate and testicular cancer research. With pledges from friends and family, the more than 850,000 participants in 2011 raised more than $126 million.

And that’s why employees at Trader Todd’s are getting involved. Bartender Jeff Graveline says eight co-workers at the tiki bar near Belmont and Sheffield avenues are dedicating their facial hair to the initiative, and he’s hoping to raise some money.

“We’re all doing this just for fun,” Graveline said. “I’ve had friends do it before, but this is the first time I’ve done it… But we’ll see how it goes. I would love to say we’re going to raise $1,000, but realistically we might reach $100. That would still be awesome.”

“One is going for the pencil thin, another is going for the handlebars, and so on. We’re pretty jazzed up to do it."

The group registered as a team with Movember.com, so if locals like the mustaches enough, they can donate online. However, most of the money is planning to come out of the crew’s own pockets. With a promise to donate a portion of their tips from serving at Trader Todd’s to the cause, the guys are certainly ready to put their money where their mustaches are.

Graveline says all eight men had full beards before shaving them off completely on Nov. 1, and now they’re getting ready to shave and wax their ‘staches to look pretty silly, and unique from one another.

“We’re all going for different styles of mustaches,” Graveline said. “One is going for the pencil thin, another is going for the handlebars, and so on. We’re pretty jazzed up to do it. It’s fun for us because with this group of guys, it all makes sense because we’re all weird.”

Let Patch save you time. Get more Lake View news like this delivered right to your inbox or smartphone with our free newsletter. Fast signup here.

And to cap the whole adventure off, Trader Todd’s will be hosting a party on Nov. 24 to celebrate with mustache-loving neighbors in Lake View while donating to their Movember team.

With salt on only half the rim, the bar will be serving up mustache margaritas and donating $1 for every one sold. In addition, the karaoke bar will be asking singers to donate $1 every time they perform.

Want to donate to the Trader Todd's team? Check out their page on Movember.com here. 

Follow Us on Facebook!