by Curlan Campbell
- Dr Charles Drew pioneered preserving blood plasma
- Junior Benjamin first individual to ever receive Dr Charles Drew Lifesaver Award
- Columbia University received Dr Charles Drew Lifesaver Award
On 12 February 2024, Grenadian Junior Martin Benjamin was given the Dr Charles Drew Lifesaver Award, named after renowned surgeon Dr Charles Drew, a pioneer in preserving blood plasma that proved instrumental in saving lives during World War II.
Dr Charles Drew, commonly referred to as “Father of the Blood Bank”, is arguably one of the most influential scientists of the 20th century, known for his medical innovation at a time in the US when racial segregation hindered the progress of African Americans.
89 years after Dr Drew innovated transfusion medicine, Benjamin became the first person to receive this individual award. At the same time, Columbia University, where he serves as Director, Community Outreach and Human Resources Administrator, also received the award.
Junior Benjamin, born in Gouyave, St John, was an active member of the Spanish Club and debate team during his time at the St Rose Modern Secondary School. In 1990, he received a scholarship from the Cooperative Association of States for Scholarships (CASS) programme based in Washington, DC, which is administered by Georgetown University’s Centre for Intercultural Education and Development (CEID), to pursue an associate degree at Broome Community College in Binghamton, NY.
After receiving his associate’s degree in Industrial Technology in 1992, Benjamin returned to Grenada, and for 6 years, taught Principles of Business, Office Procedures and Social Studies at Happy Hill Secondary School before permanently migrating to the US in 1998 to pursue his lifelong dream of higher education. There, Benjamin began his extensive work as a volunteer, helping to organise campus blood drives at Baruch College within the City University of New York.
“I served as a volunteer during March of Dimes walks to help improve the health of all mothers and babies,” Benjamin said. “Because of my involvement in these activities, I was inducted into the Golden Key International Honour Society, receiving the “Junior Initiate” scholarship for outstanding scholastic achievement and excellence (2000); the Beta Gamma Sigma Society for high scholastic achievement (2001); and the Ficurelli Family and Baruch College Alumni Association Scholarships in 2001 for high academic achievement and community involvement.”
After graduating from Baruch College with a Bachelor of Business Administration degree (magna cum laude) in 2001, Benjamin began working at Columbia University in the City of New York. He shifted his focus from individual voluntarism to organisational involvement in civic engagement, especially in blood drives.
Reflecting on his past endeavours, Benjamin mentioned that he managed institutional campus initiatives as a part of his community outreach portfolio. These initiatives included university-wide blood drive campaigns, bone marrow drives, skin cancer screening events, participating in ALS Lou “Ride for Life” to raise awareness for those living with Lou Gehrig’s disease, and the Read Ahead Volunteer Lunchtime Reading Programme, specifically designed to match Columbia volunteers with students in local K-8 schools for reading mentorship.
Benjamin is an active volunteer with several organisations outside Columbia. He volunteers with New York Cares in adult literacy and computing technology areas, and is also a mentor with the iMentor organisation, where he fosters relationships with first-generation students to help them graduate high school and succeed in college. Additionally, Benjamin provides basic adult literacy instruction at the Brooklyn Public Library, and is an Auxiliary Police Officer at the 67th Precinct, East Flatbush, Brooklyn, where he volunteers with the NYPD.
“Becoming the first individual to ever receive the Dr Charles Drew Lifesaver Award, and being the driving force behind Columbia University’s recognition as the first institution to be so honoured, fills me with so much pride and gratitude,” he said.
He attributes a significant portion of his success to the hardworking faculty, staff, and students of Columbia University. He expresses his appreciation for their positive response to his calls for blood donations. Additionally, he is grateful for the support he has received from the Office of the President, Provost’s Office, and his superiors at the Office of Government and Community Affairs. Their unwavering and unequivocal support has enabled him to design and manage this initiative effectively. The initiative aims to maximise donations while engaging the entire Columbia community in acts of service.
Benjamin recognises the value of receiving the award at the optimal time and is motivated to keep up with his work even more passionately.
“The awards conveyed during Black History Month is of special importance because Dr Drew was not only the first African-American to receive a Medical Science Doctorate (MSD) from Columbia, but also the first African-American to do so in the United States. Over the years, Columbia University has become a leader in the lifesaving act of blood donations, raising over 22,000 pints and bringing awareness to the need for a diverse blood supply that affects the lives of recipients from all backgrounds, including accident and burn victims, heart surgery and organ transplant patients and others undergoing cancer treatments. This impact has been felt more deeply during periods of natural disasters, such as Hurricane Sandy, and mass shootings, such as the Orlando Nightclub massacre when I organised emergency campaigns to aid the victims and ensure a ready supply for hospitals and medical facilities in New York and beyond,” he explained.
According to the federal National Blood Collection and Utilisation Survey, blood donations among 16–18-year-olds dropped by 60%, while donations among 19–24-year-olds dropped by nearly a third between 2019 and 2021.
“A growing remote workforce with fewer workplace blood drives is proving to be a huge challenge for maintaining a ready blood supply, exacerbated by the reluctance of younger donors to donate blood and the effect of natural disasters on people’s ability to travel to blood donation locations,” Benjamin stated.
“While I’ve increased the frequency of blood drives on our campuses to help alleviate some of these challenges while making individualised and personal appeals to our targeted demographic, we are often confronted by the fact that Columbia University is an institution with an expanding global presence that attracts a large population of international students whose willingness to donate are sometimes hampered by FDA restrictions, medical issues, or travel outside of the US,” he continued.
To address the challenges, Benjamin is utilising his current donor base from the students. He is working together with student groups to sponsor and host donation drives. Furthermore, he is collaborating with the university’s communications and social media teams to advertise and promote these drives through various channels. To encourage more donations, he also offers incentives like gift cards to local restaurants or blood drive T-shirts to all donors, in partnership with the New York Blood Centre.