Shirley Hendricks, left, will be inducted into the East Orange Hall of Fame this month. She is pictured here with Theodore N. Stephens II, who is chairman of the Hall of Fame Committee.
EAST ORANGE — The East Orange Hall of Fame will be inducting 17 new members on Nov. 29.
The ceremony, starting at 1 p.m., will be held at the Cicely L. Tyson School of Performing and Fine Arts on Winans Street.
The inductees include:
• Betty H. Neals, Clarence Waldron and Jordan Scott Wells in the Arts and Letters category;
• Capt. Irving R. Carter III, Shirley Hendricks, Ralph N. Milteer, William H. L. Oliver and Matthew T. Sellitto Jr. in the Civic and Community Service Category;
• Thomas Finch, Fields Jackson Jr., Mark Scotland and Wilson Woodridge in the Enterprise category;
• The Rev. Darryl E. Harris, Dennis K. Motley, Dennis Ross, Charles William Smith and Charles G. Zontonas in the Performing Arts and Sports category.
The purpose of the Hall of Fame is to recognize great people in a distinguished and visible way that also brings honor to the community and schools, and reinforces the message to children that they can and should strive for excellence in any endeavor of their choosing. The East Orange Hall of Fame is a source of learning, inspiration and East Orange pride, according to its website.
Shirley Hendricks, who is being honored for a lifetime of bringing people together, said she was surprised and honored by the recognition.
“It’s interesting and very humbling to realize that the things you did from your heart, not for aggrandizement, that people appreciate what you did,” Hendricks said.
Hendricks organizes a “Dutch Lunch,” which brings together more than two dozen women every month for a meal with a guest speaker. She also organized an “Up the Way, Down the Way” reunion bringing together people from her neighborhood and people who had lived there but moved away.
She went to East Orange High School and graduated with best friend Dionne Warwick and over the years when Warwick would return home, Hendricks would bring their old friends together to hang out.
“I’ve always been a social activist, bringing people together,” Hendricks said.
Current and former East Orange residents are invited to recommend deserving East Orangeans at any time, year round, via the organization’s website; https://eohalloffame.org. Public Recommendations are taken into consideration by the Selection Committee when determining the top nominees for public vote.
The Selection Committee determines a list of potential nominees by March 1. The committee narrows the nominees by April 1 and citizens, who are at least 18 years of age, are invited to vote on the final nominations from April 1 to April 30.
The individuals receiving the most votes in each category are automatically inducted for that given year. The Selection Committee will then deliberate to determine who else should be inducted for that given year.
Inductees are announced in May and the honorees are formally inducted in a red carpet ceremony on Saturday during Thanksgiving Alumni Weekend for that given year.
Official induction into the EOHOF is contingent upon the honoree formally accepting the honor at the Red Carpet Induction Ceremony within three years of the original induction. All inductees are expected to attend, expect when the nominee is deceased then a friend or family member can represent the inductee.
Past inductees include Brig. Gen. Richard G. Cardillo, John Amos, Whitney Houston, Dionne Warwick, Naughty By Nature and Dana Owens, also known as “Queen Latifah.”
The officers of the club include Theodore N. Stephens II, chairman, Fidelia Sturdivant, vice-chair, Romy E. Florence, secretary, Stephen Shaw, treasurer, Theresa “Ginger” Brown, historian, Steven Cooper, sergeant at arms, and Clyde Bradshaw, Vinnie Brown, Anthony Garamond, David “Chip” Humphrey, Ron Manzella, Tracy Munford, David “Chrissy” Orrell, Al Volpe, Troy Webster, William C. Holt, and James Pitchford.
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