Satirist extraordinaire Jon Stewart, soccer star Christie Rampone and legendary Yankee Derek Jeter are some of the members of the New Jersey Hall of Fame’s star-studded Class of 2015. Thirteen honorees will be inducted in a ceremony scheduled on October 22 at Asbury Park’s historic Convention Hall.
Lawrenceville native Stewart, the long-time host of The Daily Show, recently announced he would be leaving the show after a 15-year-run. Three-time Olympic Gold medalist Rampone, originally from Point Pleasant, won her second Women’s World Cup against Japan earlier this week. Jeter, born in Pequannock, served as the Yankees’s captain from 2003 until his retirement last year.
This year’s inductees also include ESPN commentator Dick Vitale; R&B band Kool and the Gang; Medal of Honor recipient Jack H. Jacobs; U.S. Senator Frank R. Lautenberg; author James Fenimore Cooper and New York Times columnist Anna Quindlen; Fox Studios founder William Fox; and philanthropists Lewis Katz and Bernard Marcus.
Being honored with this year’s NJHOF Unsung Hero award is Morgan Stanley executive Carla Harris. In 2013, Harris was appointed as chair of the National Women’s Business Council by President Barack Obama. She has also been named among the 50 Most Powerful Black Executives in Corporate America by Fortune magazine.
A total of 50 nominees—10 in each of the five categories—appeared on the official ballot this year. Since its inception in 2008, almost 100 individuals and groups—including Bruce Springsteen, Grover Cleveland and Judy Blume—have been inducted. Last year’s inductees included Sopranos star and Emmy Award winner James Gandolfini and jazz legend Dizzy Gillespie.