By Stacy Nielsen | [email protected]

Sandy - In the spirit of ‘No-Shave-November,’ Sandy officers were allowed to grow beards to raise money for a co-worker who is battling cancer.

“Our grooming policy says we have to be clean shaven, and the only option for facial hair is to have a mustache. Our generation is more into having a goatee or a beard. It’s nice when you’re not having to shave every day,” officer Greg Moffitt said.

Moffitt is the president of the Fraternal Order of Police and helped with the program and ensuring a clean process by handling the money.

“We did have to set forth rules. They had to be neatly groomed, a goatee or a full beard,” Moffitt said.

The officers were shown a photo and told they had to keep it trimmed, and the neckline had to stay trimmed and look neat. Officers that wanted to participate then had to buy a ‘beard card’ for $20 and had to keep it with them at all times. After two weeks, officers could also purchase a ‘shave card’ for $20 for themselves or they could serve the card to a fellow participant. If someone was served a ‘shave card,’ they had to come in the next day clean shaven. 

“One officer’s beard, was not quite full, some people in the public knew what we were doing, not from the police department, or the city, but happened to work in the city and bought a shave card to give to the officer,” Moffitt said.

Moffitt also explained that officers could purchase another ‘beard card’ that would trump any ‘shave card’ that was given.

“The employees really enjoy the month-long event and look forward to it each year,” police chief Kevin Thacker said.

“It was a morale boost, to do something that is not typical, and to be able to help out with something in a non-traditional way,” Moffitt said.

“This was our second year for the fundraiser and both have been amazing. Last year, we gave half the money, (about $1,000) to a firefighter who was suffering some medical problems and the other half to Millie’s Princess Foundation, which is a child cancer charity.  This year, we gave the money to an employee who has been suffering from cancer and recently received a liver transplant,” Thacker said. “Total this year was exactly $1,800. We will continue to do this each year and donate to whom we feel can best benefit from the money.”