ROGER Gayler, the 65-year-old vicar of St Mark's Church at Mark's Gate in Barking and Dagenham preached, met the scouts, spoke to schoolchildren, studied with his Bishop and collected envelopes door-to-door with just half a beard - all for Christian Aid week.
Roger said he went about all his normal weekly events with half his face shaved, because "Half a beard is a reminder of how the other half lives.'
The vicar said: "It's a bit of a shock when I look in the mirror. Absolutely it looks odd - not quite normal. But I don't mind as much if people laugh at me at this age."
Barber Jason-Lees Riches wielded the razor for the stunt for Christian Aid, whose annual fundraising week took place from May 10-16.
The barber said he had never before been asked to take a razor to just half a face and joked that his Riches surname made him fitting as the man to do the cutting.
Roger said he was doing the sponsored stunt in tribute to two inspirational men: Rt Revd John Gladwin, the Bishop of Chelmsford, who will retire in August and who stepped down as chair of Christian Aid earlier this year, and the late Canon Edward Finch, formerly of St Peter's-in-the-Forest, Walthamstow, who died earlier this year.
He said Bishop John showed him that Christian Aid is an integral part of Christian witness, whilst Canon Finch had been a mentor during his early years.
Roger said the sponsored stunt had come out of a meeting when people were discussing possible events for the charity.
Someone mentioned the possibility of raising money by shaving off a beard - and then he found that he was the only one in the room with one to cut off!
Then he came up with the idea of losing just half of it. He grew his beard when he was at college and says he hasn't been clean shaven for 42 years.
Roger was just one of thousands of people who raised money through their churches and communities during Christian Aid Week.
? Roger can be sponsored by logging on to www.justgiving.com/rogergayler
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