EAST ORANGE, NJ – Honoring citizens born, raised, or employed in East Orange is more important now than ever, given the impact of Covid on the loss of so many lives in East Orange, surrounding communities, the state, and the nation. That is why the East Orange Hall of Fame Committee has decided not to postpone and instead host the 2021 Hall of Fame, virtually, after a one-year hiatus due to the devestating impact of the Coronavirus on the lives of many. The 2021 HOF will be held virtually on Saturday, November 27, at 7 p.m.

Chairman of the HOF Committee, Theodore Stephens, Esq, said, “Coronavirus cannot dim the monumental contributions by the 2021 class of East Orange Hall of Fame honorees. More now than ever, we must honor people for their contributions to East Orange and for the foundation they have laid for others to follow.”

Chairman Stephens added that the HOF Awards are historically presented during the Thanksgiving holiday weekend. Also, Stephens indicated that the Hall of Fame inductions occur on a weekend that is all about fun, family, with a special focus on football, as one of the nation’s oldest football rivals East Orange Campus High School and Barringer High School, battle. As you must know, the East Orange Jaguars enjoy a perfect season of 11-0 and are headed to the NJSIAA, North, Group Five championship.

SIGNUPSCRIPT

For the 2021 East Orange Hall of Fame, 11 outstanding honorees have been selected in the categories of Civic & Community, Arts and Letter, Performing and Fine Arts, Sports, and Enterprise. The honorees in Civic & Community category are Goldie Burbage, Joseph W. (Yusuf) Jenkins and Thomas H. King; honorees in the Arts & Letters category are Sterling Brown, Anthony Gartmond and Solari Jenkins; and honorees in the Enterprise category are Karen Hunter, The Shauger Group and Douglas Smalls. Honorees in Performing and Fine Arts are The Givens Family and the Sports inductee is Coach Gregory Tynes.

In the Civic & Community category, Goldie Burbage broke through the glass ceiling in government leadership and has been a renowned community activist. Joseph Jenkins was one of the longest serving city administrators for East Orange directing the future of the city and Thomas H. King was the groundbreaking basketball coach who impacted thousands of students lives in East Orange as a mentor and advisor.

In the Arts & Letters category, artist Sterling Brown is one of the nation’s most prolific artists and sculptor; he is in high demand on the African American art circuit. Anthony Gartmond, a former Essex County Assistant Prosecutor and prolific artist, has been recognized in New Jersey and abroad for his drawings in pencil. While Solari Jenkins is an author, global traveler and veteran. His highly regarded book, "In Quest of That Elusive Thing Called a JOB," written for intergenerational job seekers, hiring managers, and professionals looking to further and progress in their careers, has been widely read and used in employment circles**BULLSEYE.

In the Enterprise category, Karen Hunter, a Pulitzer Prize winning journalist, professor, publisher and ‘change agent’ according to Essence magazine, which named her one of the “Woke 100” of 2018 and she was selected to the 2020 Ebony magazine’s Power 100 List will be honored; Donald Shauger, founder of The Shauger Group, Inc. the project contracting company who continue to be headquartered in East Orange, where they serve customers and deliver their philanthropy to non-profit causes in East Orange and across Essex County and Douglas T. Smalls, who was born and raised in East Orange before starting a career UPS, where he served as a national executive before being named in 2021 as one of the top 25 African Americans in UPS’s 116 years in business.

In the Performing Arts and Sports category, Greg Tynes and the Givens Family will be honored. The Givens Family has graced both stage and screen as the dancing and singing siblings who gained fame from the 1980s into the 2000s, including key appearances on TV’s “What’s Happening” and Broadway’s “Bubbling Brown Sugar.” Last, but not least, basketball coach Gregory Tynes followed his career as an East Orange nemesis by becoming the winningest basketball coach in the history of East Orange.

Chairman Stephens said, “I want to thank the Class of 2021 for their many contributions to the City of East Orange. These are the latest group of inductees who represent the history, the legacy and the success of people who have lived or worked in our great city. They truly have made a difference in and to our city, state and country.” **STANDARD;

Tickets for the Hall of Fame event are $25.00 and can be obtained online by visiting Info@eohalloffame.org.