February 22,2012__________________
Portland Observer B la c k H is t o r y M o n t h
Page 5
Life of Stunning Achievement Remembered
Whitney Houston laid to
rest in private ceremony
(AP) — Whitney Houston was
laid to rest Sunday at a brief private
ceremony in New Jersey, the end of
a weekend that saw the pop star's
family and friends gather at a star-
studded funeral to mourn her loss
while celebrating her career.
Fans and onlookers gathered in
several places along the route the
motorcade took from the Newark
funeral home to the cemetery about
20 miles away in Westfield, where
Houston was buried next to her fa­
ther, who died in 2003.
The 48-year-old singer died Feb.
11 in California, hours before she
was to attend a pre-Grammy Awards
party. No cause of death has been
determined.
On Saturday, she was mourned
at an invitation-only funeral at the
church in Newark where she sang in
the choir as a child.
After all the testimonials from
relatives and friends, the songs from
legends and pop stars, the preach­
ing and even laughter, the raw emo­
tion of Whitney Houston's funeral
came down to j ust one moment: The
sound of her own voice.
As the strains of her biggest
record, “I Will Always Love You,”
filled the New Hope Baptist Church
at the end of the nearly four-hour
service and her silver-and-gold cas­
ket was lifted in the air, the weight of
the moment was too much for her
mother to bear.
Gospel singer Cissy Houston
wailed, “My baby! My baby!” as
she was held up by two women and
led out of the church behind her
daughter’s body.
A few steps behind her was the
pop icon's daughter, Bobbi Kristina,
also crying uncontrollably as she
was comforted by Houston’s close
friend, singer Ray J.
It was the most searing scene on
a day with mixed moods as family,
friends and a list of celebrities —
sometimes one and the same —
came to the humble church to re­
member one of music’s legends, but
also a New Jersey hometown girl.
Her death marked the end of a life
of stunning achievement. Blessed
with a voice of great power and
beauty, Houston became one of pop
music’s most successful artists over
a career that spanned nearly three
decades.
But her life was not without
struggles. An addiction to drugs
and a tumultuous union with ex-
husband Bobby Brown saw her tum­
bling from grace.
Both sides of Houston were re­
Candles burn at a memorial to Whitney Houston outside New Hope Baptist Church In Newark, N.J.,
where she sang in the choir as a girl. (AP photo)
called at the service at New Hope,
which was filled with about 300
mourners, including Oprah Winfrey,
Tyler Perry, Alicia Keys, Mariah
C arey, M ary J. B lige, Forest
Whitaker, Jennifer Hudson, Diane
Saw yer and H ouston’s cousin,
Dionne Warwick.
"She w as so m eo n e w ith a
charmed and a beautiful life, some­
times misunderstood, even by her­
self,” said her sister-in-law and man­
ager, Patricia Houston. “But a life
nevertheless that gave joy, happi­
ness, enthusiasm, peace and beau­
tiful music to millions of people
around the world.”
Kevin Costner, her co-star in
“The Bodyguard,” said that for all
of Houston’s beauty and success,
she was still yearning for approval
from the public and somewhat inse­
cure, a superstar who ‘still won­
dered, ‘Am I good enough? Am I
pretty enough? Will they like m e?” ’
continued
A lm ost always, the creative d edicated m inority
has m ade th e w o rld better.
- Martin Luther King Jr.
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