Belleville celebrates life of Dr. James Collip

By Joseph Quigley

BELLEVILLE – The life of Dr. James B. Collip, the local doctor who helped develop insulin, will be celebrated in Belleville on Friday.

The Dr. James B. Collip recognition committee will have a display set up at the Belleville Public Library from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m., which will give information on his life.

Nov. 20, Collip’s birthday, is officially dedicated as Dr. James B. Collip Day within the city of Belleville.

Collip was a skilled biochemist who was part of the research team that created insulin, a crucial medicine for people suffering from diabetes.

In 1921, at the University of Toronto, a team of researchers led by Dr. Fredrick Banting discovered a way to create insulin that was successful for treating animals, but was not able to be used on humans. Collip was brought to the project to help and was able to develop a method to make the insulin suitable for human use. The discovery saved the lives of millions of people suffering from diabetes.

Richard Hughes, who chairs the recognition committee, said that Collip deserves to be remembered.

“Your local heroes should be known. People in Belleville and Hastings County should know that a person born and raised here accomplished great things,” said Hughes. “We hope that young people will see that if you work hard and really aim high, you can achieve great things.”

QNet News will report from the event on Friday. More to come.