Staff Reporter : On the occasion of the 46th martyrdom anniversary of Father of the Nation Bangabandhu Sheikh Mujibur Rahman, the Bangladesh Consulate General and the New York Blood Center have jointly conducted a voluntary blood donation program. The program runs from noon to evening local time on Friday (August 20) at the Queen’s Place Mall premises. New York State Senator John Chun Yah Liu and Consul General Sadia Faizunnesa inaugurated the blood donation program.
At the beginning of the program, a minute’s silence was observed in memory of the Father of the Nation, other martyred members of his family and martyred freedom fighters and prayers were offered for the forgiveness of their souls.
In his inaugural address, Senator Lew paid deep homage to the memory of Bangabandhu Sheikh Mujibur Rahman, the greatest father of the Bengali nation of all time. He said that during his visit to Bangladesh, he saw the bullet mark of the killer on the wall number 32 with his own eyes and he is remembering that memory on this day. Senator John C Liu voluntarily donated blood in honor of Bangabandhu with the slogan ‘ Joy Bangla Joy Bangabandhu’. He sincerely thanked the Consul General for taking such a humanitarian initiative.
In her speech, Consul General Sadia Faizunnesa said that Bangabandhu Sheikh Mujibur Rahman, the father of the greatest Bengali nation of all time, had devoted himself to the service of humanity all his life. Inspired by the Father of the Nation’s ideals of humanity, She said, the Consulate, in collaboration with the New York Blood Center, organized the voluntary blood donation program in New York to coincide with the 46th anniversary of his martyrdom. She thanked all the blood donors and community members, including Associate New York Blood Center, Senator John Liu, for making the blood donation program a success.
Former President of the United States Awami League Siddiqur Rahman participated and spoke in this blood donation program organized by the Consulate. Also, various respected personalities of the community including heroic freedom fighters and journalists joined the program. Many foreign Americans, including Senator John Liu, consulate staff, and the Bangladeshi community, volunteered for the blood donation drive and learned about Bangabandhu’s life and work. Each blood donor is given a letter of appreciation for blood donation by the consulate.
There is currently a huge blood crisis in and around New York due to the Corona epidemic. To address this blood crisis, the Consulate, in collaboration with the New York Blood Center, initiated this significant blood donation program in August. The Consulate General will continue to provide such services in the future as per the needs of the community, he said.
BP/SM
