[Congressional Record (Bound Edition), Volume 158 (2012), Part 2]
[Senate]
[Pages 1881-1882]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office, www.gpo.gov]




                 REMEMBERING WHITNEY ELIZABETH HOUSTON

  Mr. LAUTENBERG. Mr. President, on Saturday, February 11, 2012, New 
Jersey lost one of its proudest daughters and our country lost one of 
its

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brightest stars when Whitney Houston died at the untimely age of 48.
  Whitney Houston's New Jersey roots run deep. She was born in Newark 
in 1963. She moved to East Orange at age 4 and attended high school at 
Mount Saint Dominic Academy in Caldwell.
  The daughter of noted gospel singer Cissy Houston, Whitney spent her 
young life singing in the choir of the New Hope Baptist Church in 
Newark. She never forgot her roots, and even after she became a star, 
she sometimes returned to New Hope Baptist Church to sing on Easter 
Sunday. Fittingly, it is at New Hope Baptist Church that Whitney's 
family and friends will mourn her loss and celebrate her life this 
Saturday, February 18.
  Virtually from the moment of the release of her debut album, 
``Whitney Houston,'' Whitney was an international superstar. The album 
spent a record 14 weeks at the top of the Billboard charts, and it was 
the first album by a female artist to yield three No. 1 hits. One of 
those hits, ``The Greatest Love of All,'' became an anthem and a symbol 
of hope. For all of us who work to make a better world for our children 
and grandchildren, the song's opening line, ``I believe the children 
are our future,'' is a constant reminder of our mission.
  Much more than just a great singer and performer, Whitney was a great 
patriot and humanitarian. Her performance of the ``Star Spangled 
Banner'' for Super Bowl XXV in 1991--during the first gulf war--has 
been hailed as the yardstick for other singers performing our national 
anthem. Whitney donated her proceeds from that performance to the 
American Red Cross Gulf Crisis Fund. When her rendition was re-released 
in the wake of the September 11 attacks, Whitney donated those proceeds 
to firefighters and victims of the attacks.
  For her many accomplishments, Whitney received numerous awards, 
including 6 Grammys, 2 Emmys, and 22 American Music Awards. But no 
achievement meant more to Whitney than the birth of her daughter Bobbi 
Kristina in 1993.
  Though her loss will be felt far and wide, Whitney's powerful words--
``I believe the children are our future. Teach them well and let them 
lead the way''--live on in New Jersey, across the country, and around 
the world.

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