DeKALB — We’re six days into November, which means we’re six days into No Shave November as well.

For those who don’t know about this amazing trend, here’s a brief explanation. Every November for the entire month, people stop shaving all body hair in order to promote cancer awareness.

This tradition didn’t officially work toward charity until 2009. It was started by the Hill family after their father, Mathew Hill, died of colon cancer a couple of years before. Now, they’ve donated millions of dollars to cancer foundations and it’s safe to say their father would be proud.

The hair that grows is meant to remind people to be be appreciative of our hair since cancer patients lose theirs due to cancer treatments. Because of this, No Shave November funds many cancer related foundations. The three largest organizations are the Prevent Cancer Foundation, the Fight Colorectal Cancer and the St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital.

For a lot of guys, No Shave November is a fun way to grow out facial hair they’ve never had before. Mustaches, beards, goatees, sideburns, mutton chops or even muttonstaches. 

However, No Shave November isn’t just for men. Women can participate by skipping their monthly haircuts, not shaving their legs and donating those saved expenses to cancer charities. 

There is plenty of merchandise on the official website to purchase as well including bracelets, lapel pins and four different types of shirts. 

Not shaving body hair for a month might seem difficult to some, but it’s nothing compared to the suffering cancer patients put up with. Every little bit helps.