Donna Benjamin, LMSW, is a founding member and President of ReadBAMARead. ReadBAMARead is one of numerous volunteer organizations Donna founded or worked with all over the United States, including several military support organizations, Christian youth and children’s programs, and special education groups.
Before moving to Tuscaloosa in 2010, Donna lived in Florida, Hawaii, Alaska, Texas, California, Idaho, Mississippi, and Colorado. She held a wide variety of positions at each of these locations including special assistant to the commander, 325th Operations Support Squadron, Tyndall Air Force Base, Florida; Chairperson of Children’s and Women’s Ministries at First United Methodist Church, Panama City; Director of Youth and Children’s Ministries, Kailua UMC, Hawaii; Director of Youth Ministries, Anchor Park UMC, Alaska. While attending First United Methodist Church, Panama City, Donna was selected to serve on the Staff Pastor Parish Relationship Council, which is the highest level of administration governing the church. She also supervised several large scale non-profit programs and organizations including one international trip and two inter-state trips with multiple youth members; several Christmas gala events with over 100 attendees; and two multi-days, multi-location closed circuit events with over 200 attendees. Donna’s education earned her undergraduate degree in psychology and graduate degree in social work, from The University of Alabama. Donna received multiple honors while working toward her degrees, two of which included first runner-up as “Outstanding Graduate Student” and induction into Phi Kappa Phi, for being in the top ten-percent of all UA seniors and graduate students. Donna is married to a former United States Air Force fighter pilot, Lieutenant Colonel Warren Benjamin, who now flies for FedEx. They have three daughters and a son-in-law, Holly, an alumnus of The University of Alabama, Heather, an alumnus of and former cheerleader at Samford University, Hope a graduate of Northridge High School and Crossing Points at The University of Alabama, and son-in-law Sam Hansard, an alumnus of Samford University.