‘Beard Off’ Participants Sacrifice Whiskers for GLCC Scholarships

By Jim Nieman 

A lot of whiskers hit the floor at the finale of “The Beard Off” fundraising event to raise scholarship monies for Great Lakes Christian College. Every participant who was able to attend the event Saturday went under the razor. 

In total, The Beard Off raised $22,190, said event organizer Caleb Weller on Monday morning. Weller was among those to sacrifice his beard for the good of the cause. Also coming away clean-shaven was his father, Frank Weller, president of GLCC in Lansing, Mich. 

“The Beard Off was a huge success,” Caleb Weller said. “I’m incredibly grateful for all the participants and all of the generous donors who contributed along the way. To all of them I say, thank you.” 

GLCC alum CJ Powell, lead minister with Christ’s Hope church in Fort Wayne, Ind., raised $6,535 in contributions, the most of anyone. Richard Westerlund, athletic director and men’s basketball coach at GLCC, was the second-highest individual fundraiser at $1,110.  

Perhaps not coincidentally, Powell and Westerlund were deemed by Caleb Weller as having probably the two best-looking beards leading up to the event. 

Other individuals to raise more than $1,000 were Caleb Weller and Jonah Weller (a complete list is below). 

Another major source of donations came via a challenge by three GLCC professors (Sam Long, Ron Peters, and John Nugent) who produce the After Class Podcast. The podcasters raised an impressive $6,225, but had they raised $311 more to surpass the highest individual fundraiser (CJ Powell), the trio had vowed to “clean shave” on Saturday and then to grow out their beards for the remainder of 2022. (Nugent has not grown facial hair for 30 years.) 

Here is a listing of the money raised by these friends of GLCC and the fates of their beards (people who donated could designate whether a competitor’s beard should be shaved or kept, but some of the participants shaved their beards anyway). 

Bryan Lung: $225 (shave) 

Caleb Weller: $1,090 (shave) 

Chase Hall: $210 (shave) 

CJ Powell, GLCC alum: $6,535 (shave) 

Duke Gray, GLCC trustee: $545 (keep) 

Frank Weller, GLCC president: $720 (shave) 

Greg Stauffer, GLCC VP of enrollment management: $775 (shave) 

Jeremy Brummel: $585 (shave) 

Jonah Weller: $1,095 (shave) 

Justin Lundy: $345 (shave) 

Kris Bargen: $460 (keep) 

Matt Vainner: $465 (shave) 

Mike Giles: $610 (keep) 

Richard Westerlund, GLCC athletic director/men’s basketball coach: $1,110 (shave) 

Ross Fitzpatrick: $350 (shave) 

Taylor Hamm: $145 (shave) 

Walter Neuenschwander: $510 (shave) 

After Class Podcast: $6,225 (did not out-raise CJ Powell, so professors Sam Long, Ron Peters, and John Nugent are not required to grow out their beards through the end of the year). 

Caleb Weller noted that about $8,000 in donations came in during the final 24 hours leading up the finale at the Wind Jammer restaurant in Lexington, Mich. 

“God is hard at work at GLCC, and I can’t wait to see what he has in store for the future,” he said.