NJ Hall of Fame Adds Whitney Houston

Whitney Houston and her cousin, singer Dionne Warwick, are among the newest members of New Jersey's Hall of Fame.

Cissy Houston accepts Whitney Houston's induction into the NJ Hall of Fame (Gary Gellman)

The 2013 inductees were honored during a ceremony at the Newark Museum Tuesday. Houston's mother accepted the honor on behalf of her daughter, who died in 2012. "I'm sure she would've been thrilled," Warwick said of Houston according to the Star-Ledger. "I'm excited to know that she's not forgotten."

The late salsa singer, Celia Cruz, who lived in Fort Lee, also was honored. Former Gov. Tom Kean was inducted into the hall along with President Grover Cleveland, comedian Joe Piscopo, Common Sense author Thomas Paine, filmmaker Alice Guy Blache, businessman Raymond G. Chambers, NBC and RCA founder David Sarnoff, boxer "Jersey Joe" Walcott, sculptor J. Seward Johnson Jr., Olympic runner Joetta Clark Diggs and makeup expert Bobbi Brown.

Community Food Bank Kathleen DiChiara was recipient of the "Unsung Hero" award, according to the Newark Patch. “I’m not special. I just care a lot,” she said of the honor.

The web-based New Jersey Hall of Fame has operated since 2008 but doesn't have a physical location of its own. It's members also include Toni Morrison, Buzz Aldrin, Bruce Springsteen, Yogi Berra, John Travolta and Queen Latifah.

2014 inductees into the NJ Hall of Fame. (left to right): Joetta Clark Diggs, Cissy Houston, Dionne Warwick, Kathleen DiChiara (the Unsung Hero Award recipient as founder of Community FoodBank of New Jersey), Bunny Jenkins (Grover Cleveland), Bobbi Brown (Gary Gellman)

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