A clean shave for Andrew Painter, courtesy of Sam Albadri at BARBER 88.
Photo by
Megan Fisher
Don’t flip it, reverse it.
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This Movember, Andrew Painter has done just that, shaving his long-standing beard in stages as he reached fundraising goals to support the global men’s health campaign.
The final transformation came on Monday, November 24, when barber Sam Albadri at BARBER 88 in Shepparton took off the last of it.
Sam Albadri at BARBER 88 did the honours of shaving Andrew Painter for Movember.
Photo by
Megan Fisher
“It was a bit of fun, which is kind of the point of the whole thing — it’s a light-hearted way of looking at a pretty big problem,” Mr Painter said.
“Even as Sam was shaving big clumps off, I could start to feel the cool air from the air-con on my face — it’s been a while.”
The cool air wasn’t the only reminder that it had been a while.
Call it fate, destiny, or something a bit hair-raising, but while sitting in the barber’s chair, Mr Painter received a Facebook memory notification, reminding him that his last clean shave, about six years ago, also took place during Movember.
Before then, he hadn’t touched a razor in 15 years.
This was Andrew Painter’s second shave in nearly 20 years — and it shows.
Photo by
Megan Fisher
A loss of hair and a nip in the air is worth it, though, for a cause that drives and inspires.
The mo gains momentum each November, generating funding and conversation about men’s mental health and suicide prevention, and prostate and testicular cancer.
Normalising these tough conversations was central to Mr Painter’s campaigning.
“We hear all the bad stuff about men … so this is a good way to promote men’s health, specifically mental health,” he said.
“I’ve worked with older blokes all my life, and it was always, ‘Why would I go to the doctor? I’m not sick’ and other things like that, which I’m guilty of as well — that ‘she’ll be right’ mentality.
“Well, sometimes it isn’t right, and you need to go and get checked ... or talk to someone.
“And if you are that mate, and you know something’s not quite right with them, ask the question, ‘What’s going on?’”
At the time of writing, Mr Painter had raised $645.
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