Alvin Joseph Benjamin was born October 28, 1936, to Anthony and Rose Pitre Benjamin in Lafayette, Louisiana and passed away on May 27, 2025. He was one of 5 boys and one daughter. He attended Immaculate Heart grade school and had a newspaper route and also worked as a school janitor and kept up the church and graveyard. He also played the trumpet in school.

In 1954, he joined the Army Reserves and enlisted June 4, 1955, in Lafayette. He went to Fort Chaffee, Arkansas for 16 weeks of basic training and then was flown to Baumholder in Germany where he spent the rest of his time and achieved the rank of Specialist Third Class. After he came back home, he stayed in the Reserves for a year. He was honorably discharged in May of 1957. He was very proud of his time in the Army.

In 1957 he came to Portland on a Greyhound bus which took 3 to 4 days and started working at the Multnomah Hotel in 1958 doing janitorial work from 11 PM to 7 AM. He also worked for A. B. Smith, a car dealership, from 8 AM to 5 PM. On the weekends he was a waiter at the Sheraton Hotel. No one can deny he was a hard worker. In 1964, he began working at Heitzman Body & Paint as a painter and worked there until 1999.

Everyone knows about his love for basketball. He and his brothers joined a City League and played with them in 1957 and 1958 and remembers playing the young men going to Seminary at the Mt. Angel Abbey.

He and Norma made many trips during their life together, including a trip to Israel along with many trips to Hawaii and Norway. There was also a visit to Rome and visiting the Vatican.

He was very involved with his church and attended Immaculate Heart of Mary for 67 years. He and his wife lived in Aurora for many years and over the years raised chickens and beef cattle. In later years, he and Norma were involved with Night Strike, and he was the best clean-up guy in the world, cleaning up after Norma's baking. He was a quiet man but so enjoyed the company of his brothers at their weekly lunches and the time spent with his children and grandchildren.

Surviving him are his wife, Norma, sister Marie Breaux of Louisiana, and his children Alvin Benjamin, Jr., Darryl Benjamin, Althea Benjamin, Susan Benjamin, Eric Robinson and Antonio Benjamin, along with 21 grandchildren and great grandchildren. His daughter, LaQuita Steward, predeceased him, along with his four brothers.