This bra-wearing moose is a memorial to raise money for cancer
Have you ever seen a moose wearing a bra?
That sounds like the setup to a joke, but for Jackie O'Connell the reason for the unusual sight of a moose statue in a brassiere is a serious one.
The moose statue in front of O'Connell's business, S&S Supply and Crosstown Rentals in Mount Pearl, is there in memory of her late husband, Brad Smith.
The statue, and the colourful building it stands in front of in Donovan's Business Park, represents Smith's fun and outgoing personality.
"He was a very positive person. Very outgoing, loved life. He was a burst of energy," O'Connell told CBC Radio's St. John's Morning Show.
"Anybody that knew him, I think, probably thought the same thing about him."
'I want to put a bra on a moose'
Now that moose statue is being used to raise money to support people living with breast cancer, thanks to the combined efforts of O'Connell and her moose, along with Dana Metcalfe of the Breastless and Beautiful Calendar Campaign.
Metcalfe wanted to find something cute and funny to promote sales of the calendar and get her closer to her goal of raising $500,000 to support breast cancer patients and their families.
"We took over an airplane, we took over a Walmart and then a couple of weeks ago I woke up and I'm like, 'I want to put a bra on a moose,'" she said.
"I know that sounds kind of random, but random thoughts are what people generally resonate with, and the moose is a patriotic symbol."
Two for the show
At first, the mission to get a bra on the moose was a covert one. Metcalfe and a small group of women set out to outfit O'Connell's moose without knowing it had sentimental value.
"My cousin called and said, 'I hope you contacted the owner of the building because it's a memorial for her husband.' Well, my heart hit the floor. I was devastated," Metcalfe said.
She immediately called O'Connell, whom she'd never met, to apologize. But Metcalfe said she was met with an unexpected response.
"They loved it. They loved the idea of it. She said her husband would have been laughing from heaven because he had a great sense of humour," she said.
Considering Smith's fun-loving spirit, and that he died of cancer, the combination of his memorial and her fundraising efforts is a logical one, Metcalfe said.
"It's bras. It supports breast cancer, it supports the province and it supports the disease that he deceased from."
With files from The St. John's Morning Show
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