SOUTH ORANGE — Late last month, the New Jersey Hall of Fame’s Board of Commissioners announced a new class of inductees for 2014. While one South Orange celebrity was nominated, unfortunately he did not make the cut this year, although he can always be nominated again in later years.
“The New Jersey Hall of Fame honors citizens who have made invaluable contributions to society and the world beyond,” N.J. Hall of Fame Commission Chairman Bart Oates said in a release. “Recognizing these great New Jerseyans in such a distinguished and visible way brings this honor directly to our schools, and reinforces the message to children that they can and should strive for excellence in any endeavor of their choosing.”
This year’s inductees are writer Dorothy Parker, NBC news anchor Brian Williams, businessman Howard Katz, businesswoman Alice Waters, jazz trumpeter Dizzy Gillespie, actor James Gandolfini, music group The Shirelles, former N.J. Gov. James Florio, Labor Day advocate Peter J. McGuire, suffragist Elizabeth Cady Stanton and basketball player Patrick Ewing.
The 2014 Hall of Famers will be officially inducted at a Nov. 13 ceremony at the Asbury Park Convention Center.
Although South Orange’s nominee did not make the cut this year, he certainly deserves recognition for his contributions to athletics.
South Orange’s Craig Biggio, born in 1965, was, according to the Hall of Fame website, a member of baseball’s prestigious 3,000 hit club. He played for Seton Hall University in South Orange before turning pro and signing with the Houston Astros, where he spent his entire career.
The New Jersey Hall of Fame held its inaugural induction in 2008 and, since then, no one from Maplewood or South Orange had been inducted, despite the plethora of worthy residents.