Dr. Charles R. Drew knew early what science would take decades to confirm: music has the power to restore the mind, nurture innovation, and provide limitless joy. By day, he was a surgeon at Freedmen’s Hospital, a Howard University medical school professor in the Department of Surgery, and the man history would come to call “the father of blood banking” after leading Blood for Britain and serving as the first medical director of the American Red Cross Blood Bank program during World War II. By night, he came home to a wife, four children and a house filled with music, some of his own making.

The Rest Between Measures

The Drew home on the campus of Howard University in Washington, D.C., was rarely quiet. Whether it was the sound of a trumpet or saxophone played badly, a ukulele strummed without much rhythm or Dr. Drew’s lovely singing voice that would shine when singing around the family’s piano with his children at Christmas, music was his creative outlet.

"He did not have talent, but he thought he did," recalled Sylvia Drew Ivie, Dr. Drew's youngest daughter.

His eldest daughter, Roberta Bebe Drew Price, remembers the ritual that followed every performance: her father turning to her mother, Lenore, mid-song, for a verdict he had already received.

"It was always such a terrible thing that he would play, and he would continuously turn to my mother and say, 'It was good, wasn't it? Was that good?'" Bebe recalled. "He'd already ascertained that it was not. But it didn't stop him. He was sure he was going to get, 'Lovely Dear, lovely,' and we loved it."

Between the Notes

In an era that demanded nearly all of his mind, Dr. Drew used music to protect it while connecting with others. He had a trumpet, a saxophone and a wife who told him, gently, that he had not improved. The cost of a single bad decision in his professional roles was measured in lives. At home, the only stakes were whether his family laughed.

Dr. Drew's love of music predated his marriage. As a young medical student at McGill University in Montreal, he often slipped into the opera house between examinations, a detail his middle daughter, Dr. Charlene Drew Jarvis, learned years later from his letters to his mother.

"He had a very broad interest in sports, in reading and in music," Jarvis said.

A Hymn Still Sung

In the 1920s, while teaching at Howard University, Dr. Drew co-authored a song with his close friend and fraternity brother Mercer Cook that would become the official hymn of Omega Psi Phi Fraternity Inc. The hymn, "Omega Dear," was adopted by the fraternity in 1931. Cook wrote the first stanza. Dr. Drew wrote the last two.

Ricky Lewis, 42nd national president of Omega Psi Phi, said the lyrics of Dr. Drew's stanzas have become foundational to its more than 750 chapters worldwide.

"One of the most poignant lines says: ‘let manhood be our eternal shrine,’" Lewis said. "That means forever enshrined as something you live by. That's what the men of Omega Psi Phi stand for. “

According to Sylvia, the fraternity was central to her father's identity. "He was a very proud Omega," she said. "They loved having him. Today, that song is still a part of their official hymn."

The Light We Hold

This Black Music Month, on what would have been Dr. Charles R. Drew’s 122nd birthday, honor his legacy by rolling up a sleeve to give blood. The Red Cross has an urgent need for blood donors of all blood types, who are essential to keeping the blood supply strong for patients managing sickle cell disease or undergoing gene therapy, bone marrow or stem cell transplants.

Every donation this June helps patients continue to thrive. Make an appointment by using the Red Cross Blood Donor App, visiting RedCrossBlood.org/OurBlood, or calling 1-800-RED CROSS (1-800-733-2767).

Those who come to give June 1-28, 2026, will receive a $15 e-gift card to a merchant of choice, plus be automatically entered to win one of two $7,500 gift cards. See RedCrossBlood.org/June for details. All who come to give June 29-July 12 will score a classic Red Cross x Looney TunesTM T-shirt, while supplies last. Visit RedCrossBlood.org/LooneyTunes for details.