Two veterans are among five finalists in a national beard contest, with the chance to win $20,000 for their chosen charity.
BJ Ganem, a Marine Corps veteran from Wisconsin who served in Iraq, and Damon Friedman, a retired special warfare officer who served 20 years in the U.S. Marine Corps and U.S. Air Force, are two of the five finalists competing to win $5,000 for themselves and $20,000 for their charities.
Wahl, a company that manufactures hair clippers, trimmers and other grooming tools, is running the contest. They asked bearded men from across the country to submit a video of themselves explaining how they support a charity.
After the company narrowed the contestants down to five, the remaining contestants now face a public vote conducted through Walh’s website and currently taking place through Sept. 18.
Overall, charitable organizations serving U.S. military members, veterans, and their families raise approximately $3.7 billion annually in charitable contributions.
Ganem and Friedman Make Their Case
Ganem founded the charity Sierra Delta after losing his leg and sustaining a traumatic brain injury (TBI) in Iraq. The charity helps veterans find community, connection and purpose through dogs.
Sierra Delta “works upon our strengths, helps us learn what we need from a dog, besides what training plan we’re going to utilize and then understand what type of trainer we need to hire to achieve those goals,” he said in his entry video.
Freidman, from Florida, founded SOF Missions after he experienced PTSD and TBI, having lost close friends to suicide during his deployments in Iraq and Afghanistan.
The charity provides veterans with healing programs and raises awareness of veteran suicide.
“I spent 20 years serving warriors on the battlefield,” Freidman said in his video. “When I came home, I saw another battle raging right here in our own country. Veterans, active duty service members, first responders and their families carrying these invisible wounds, trauma, pain, isolation, hopelessness, and that’s why my wife and I founded SOF Missions.”
“We help warriors find this healing, gain this resilience and find this purpose,” he added.
The other finalists, all civilians, are Mo Wells, a brain tumor survivor who now trains athletes and is raising money for the American Cancer Society that helped him with his treatment; Robert Cradle, a barber who created a charity to bring grooming services to underserved communities, including homeless people; and Brian Schwartz, a civilian who helps veterans mow their lawns through his nonprofit, I want to Mow Your Lawn, Inc.
