For Benjamin Cohen, ’81, charity “runs in the family.”

The concept of Tzedakah, the Hebrew word for justice, is a simple one: Do what is right.  

In modern Judaism, it’s often used as a synonym for charity or doing good deeds for others.  

“My parents taught me Tzedakah,” said Benjamin Cohen, ’81. “(They) were very happy to contribute to charity, which is what my wife and I like to do.” 

Cohen, a Philadelphia native, recently donated $50,000 to endow a scholarship in perpetuity in memory of his parents, Stanley and Leatrice. The Benjamin, ’81, and Betty Cohen (Stanley and Leatrice Cohen Memorial) Minority Women’s Endowed Scholarship will provide a partial-tuition scholarship award every year in support of current or prospective La Salle students  with the goal of advancing women of color. Available in Fall 2022, these scholarships are awarded based upon strong academic credentials and demonstrated financial need and are open to all current and prospective students. 

“I guess it runs in the family in terms of wanting to give,” he said. 

Ben Cohen, ’81, at left, learned the importance of philanthropy through his parents.

Part of Cohen’s inspiration for endowing the scholarship came from his parents’ ethos. Both were huge proponents of education, and they pushed him toward the goals they weren’t able to achieve. His father enlisted in the U.S. Army in World War II and fought for his country rather than attending college at the age of 17, which required Benjamin’s grandfather’s signature, a World War I veteran. Leatrice worked as a part-time legal secretary. Stanley did not want his son to enlist in the military and, instead, supported his enrollment in college. “One choice was in New England, but he was afraid I’d be skiing too much,” Cohen said with a laugh. “Then of course they were happy with me staying closer to home with La Salle.”  

Cohen’s parents covered expenses, including tuition for his first year and housing for four years, while he worked as a lifeguard at La Salle’s Kirk Pool to earn additional spending money. He started at La Salle as a chemistry major and enjoyed courses taught by Thomas Straub, Ph.D., but once Cohen determined that he did not want to work in labs, he changed his major to business administration after two years. He also took classes in French and military science.  

He was a member of the Phi Kappa Theta fraternity and participated in La Salle’s ROTC program, through which he received a scholarship that covered his tuition from sophomore to senior year. After La Salle, he served as a logistics officer in Korea for two years and liaison officer for the U.S. Army. 

But it was an experience off campus that cemented his love for La Salle and changed the trajectory of his career—and life.  

“If I didn’t go to (the Switzerland study abroad program), I wouldn’t be running in the Alps.” — Benjamin Cohen, ’81

Cohen spent his junior year studying abroad at the University of Fribourg, an opportunity organized by the late Brother Arthur J. Bangs, FSC, Ph.D., ’53, M.A. ’54, who provided on-site leadership to La Salle students. The alumnus remembers Br. Bangs making the program a wonderful experience. The warmth of the people Cohen met while studying in Switzerland stayed in his mind for years after he left, he said—so much so that he returned to the region in 1995 to settle in Fribourg and Geneva. “People treat you like family,” he remembered. “Those types of memories I kept.”  

He jokes that he’s “had about seven business lives,” ranging from a manager position at Diners Club International to opening the Denver branch of Lexus. He’s also worked in real estate and insurance. He also opened the Global Crossing Geneve office as Key Account Manager for the French-speaking part of Switzerland. He finished his full-time career as a special agent for the state government of Geneva with the country’s first bilingual apprenticeship. 

“If I didn’t go to (the Switzerland study abroad program), I wouldn’t be running in the Alps,” he acknowledged. Pre-retired since 2017, “my business is mainly to see tennis tournaments and to climb as many mountains as I can,” he joked.  

To give, please visit lasalle.edu/give or send a check to La Salle University, Development Office, 1900 W. Olney Avenue, Philadelphia, PA 19141.

Following his success in business, Cohen began looking for places to spend his Tzedakah, and a friend mentioned giving somewhere in Denver, a place Cohen had resided for about a decade. Instead, Cohen chose an institution in his hometown—La Salle. It was a place he remembered fondly, especially for his experience overseas. Thinking of his parents’ dedication to education, he landed on endowing a scholarship.  

“It’s best to give to charity until it hurts, just like I learned in sports,” he added.  

Gearing the scholarship specifically toward the advancement of women and minority students was an obvious choice, he said, as BIPOC women experience multiple glass ceilings.  

Cohen has had several experiences throughout his life that made him acutely aware of the injustice in the world.   

At age nine, he experienced a “down-to-Earth meeting” with Muhammad Ali at his home. He witnessed gender- and race-based prejudice experienced by his classmates in the 1960s. And personally, he faced physical violence due to his religious ideology. These experiences shaped how Cohen viewed the world and hoped to make it a more equitable place.   

“I am very sensitive to the injustice of the world,” he said.  

—Rebecca Docter