His snowy white beard might be instantly recognizable to children of all ages worldwide, but Santa’s mustache proved to be no match for renowned Benton Harbor artist and musician Bruce Bigford Saturday night when both men entered the competition in the 2nd Annual Grand Mustachio Bashio at North Pier Brewing Company in a fundraiser for the Humane Society of Southwestern Michigan.
Bigford, sporting his Snidely Whiplash-style pencil-sharp mustache and foot long rusty beard, was bestowed with the cheesy plastic crown as the “Mustache King of Southwestern Michigan” in another fun affair to help the furry homeless pets of the community to continue to build their new shelter along M-139 south of Scottdale in Royalton Township, while honoring “Movember” participants.
“Santa,” who listed his hometown as Coloma, drew considerable applause from a nearly standing-only crowd largely from those who feared anything less than a robust response would be met with a lesser pile of loot come Christmas morning. Despite missing out on being crowned King, Santa earned “Best Costume” honors from the judges who were also looking out for their own prospects for presents.
The Grand Mustachio Bashio was the brainchild of North Pier Brewing founder and owner Jay Fettig who wanted to do something to help the Humane Society’s bid for bucks to get construction underway on the new shelter which will open sometime after the New Year.
More than a dozen contenders angled for prizes in three categories including “Mustache King,” “Best Costume,” and “Nice Try,” for those more feeble attempts among the crowd who marked “No Shave November — or Movember” by allowing facial hair to accumulate over the past month. The tongue-in-cheek contest was extremely well-received in its inaugural year last year resulting in nearly $6,000 in donations, entry fees, and raffles at the popular brewery in the North Shore neighborhood of the Harbor Shores Resort complex.
Last year’s winner, Daniel Christy of Stevensville, did not show up to defend his crown which was relinquished to Bigford, although Ryan Meagher of Farm Bureau Insurance came a close second for the King’s title, while Jeff “The Super Trooper” from Ann Arbor garnered first place in the “Nice Try” sweepstakes, but had returned to his job as a Michigan State Police Trooper before the prizes were being handed out. Fellow craft brewer Chris Mason from Watermark Brewing in Stevensville finished a tight third in the Mustache King category.
The Chuck Jagers played live throughout the night and the crew from the Lake & Farmer Food Truck was hopping all night long delivered tasty sliders and tacos to hungry celebrants all around the house. The front desk provided stick-on mustaches for anyone incapable of growing (or unwilling to grow) their own so they could feel a closer kinship to the hairy entrants on parade.
Winners earned a number of valuable prizes from Fettig’s crew at North Pier Brewing and Humane Society Executive Director Jill Svoboda will have the final tally for dollars raised early in the new week when donations, fees and other gifts are added up.
