Dartford Giving

By Kate Hargreaves

This month I’m writing about ways of helping charities that require very little dedicated time, but a bit of planning and commitment to the cause. For those people able to grow a moustache, I’m writing this in the October issue so that you have enough time to psyche yourself up for growing your mo throughout November Movember. And for those of us with lower abilities in the facial hair-growing department, an alternative is to consider donating long hair (from your head rather than upper lip!) to Little Princess Trust to make wigs for young people who have lost their hair.

Movember “What is it?” This involves leaving your moustache hair untrimmed for the duration of November in the name of a good cause. Movember is a charity that promotes the conversation around men’s health issues, focussing on mental health and suicide prevention, prostate cancer and testicular cancer, which are the biggest causes of premature death in men. Therefore, proudly growing your mo and being open to those conversations is a great step in itself; raising awareness of these important issues could save a life. “Are there other ways I can help?”

Either as well as growing a mo or instead of doing so, you can raise money for Movember, which is a charity that has supported a range of projects over the years, including research into prostate and testicular cancers, support groups for people living with those cancers, and building various mental health support groups for men. Little Princess Trust “What is it?” This involves cutting your hair and donating the hair you’ve cut off to a charity that uses it to make wigs for children and young people who have lost their own hair due to cancer treatment or other conditions. There are specific requirements about the quality and length (at least 7 inches) of the hair, but different textures and colours are welcome. Note that you don’t have to go as extreme as shaving your head, just going from long hair to a bob could be enough.

“Are there other ways I can help?” As with Movember, you may also choose to fundraise for Little Princess Trust. As well as making the wigs for young people who have lost their hair, the charity also funds pioneering research into childhood cancers.

“This sounds great, how do I get involved?” Go to https://www.littleprincesses.org.uk/ for information about the charity and tips on how best to cut your hair to be able to donate it.

Let me know how you get on by emailing kate@ dartfordliving.com. Happy hair-growing!

“This sounds great, how do I get involved?” Go to https://uk.movember.com/ for more information.

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