Mermaid photos make a splash
Models ‘step outside their comfort zone,’ raise $300K for mental health
ST. JOHN’S, N.L. — A calendar of bearded, mermaid-tailed Newfoundlanders has raised hundreds of thousands of dollars for mental health.
Last year, around 30 burly guys donned sparkly mermaid tails to pose as “merb’ys” — a portmanteau of “mermaid” and “b’y,” a Newfoundland term meaning “boy” or “buddy.”
The whimsically dressed models posed by the sea, at a barber shop and in a pumpkin patch for the 2018 calendar.
The Newfoundland and Labrador Beard and Moustache Club said it would donate proceeds from their sales to a Newfoundland therapy service.
Organizer Hasan Hai tweeted a photo on Sunday of people rejoicing around a giant cheque for more than $300,000 made out to Spirit Horse NL, a service that builds mental health and life skills for children and adults as they ride and care for horses.
“Fins well-donned, me Merb’ys,” tweeted Veterans Affairs Minister Seamus O’Regan, who is the MP for St. John’s South-Mount Pearl.
Before the grand total was revealed at an event Saturday night, Hai told the crowd that the project was intended to break down barriers and promote a broader definition of masculinity.
“We’d take our shirts off, and put some tails on,” Hai said, according to a Facebook video of the event. “We stepped outside of our own comfort zones, sometimes showing our lumps and our bumps.
“We presented ourselves in a very vulnerable way physically and emotionally, and showed the world that it’s OK.”