The Stand
For most, the look was definitely out of character. Their once clean-shaven faces would go untouched by a razor or shaver for up to two weeks. Now, the members of 100 Black Men of Syracuse, Inc. participating in a national competition funded by Anheuser-Busch can see their efforts paid off. They recently learned the chapter, one of 118 worldwide affiliated with 100 Black Men of America, Inc., is one of 25 chapters that will receive $4,000 to support their volunteer community work.
“The award will be used to help our growing mentoring activities this summer,” said Vincent Love, President of 100 Black Men of Syracuse. One of those activities, Love said, is the organization’s first-ever Summer Reading Challenge, which aims to promote reading among middle- and high school students enrolled in its in-school mentoring groups and manhood training program.
The competition that led to the award is the result of a partnership between 100 Black Men of America, Inc. and Anheuser-Busch called “Be A Better Bud: Grow One, Save A Million the 100 Way.” Grow One is intended to spread the word about the 100 Black Men and Budweiser’s commitment to water conservation, Love explained. The Grow One initiative asked men to skip shaving to save water. Participants were asked to submit “before” and “after photographs during the competition and encourage families and friends to vote for them in an online poll.
Chapters were also judged by 100 Black Men of America and Anheuser-Busch using the following criteria:
• Total no-shave days for the chapter
• Creativity of water conservation statements
• Total percent participation based on chapter size