Two-time Grammy Award-winning gospel singer, church choir director, and mother of the deceased iconic pop singer Whitney Houston, Cissy Houston, has passed away at the age of 91. Houston, who was born Emily Drinkard on Sept. 30, 1933, died at her home located in Newark, New Jersey at 10:30 a.m. A statement from Houston’s family revealed she was surrounded by her family at the moment she shed her mortal coil.
A report from The Christian Post revealed that Houston was under hospice care due to Alzheimer’s disease, information shared by the family on social media stated. In the statement, the family referred to the passing of the gospel singer as a time of “deep sorrow.”
“Our hearts are filled with pain and sadness. We lost the matriarch of our family,” daughter-in-law Pat Houston remarked.
“Mother Cissy has been a strong and towering figure in our lives. A woman of deep faith and conviction, who cared greatly about family, ministry, and community. Her more than seven-decade career in music and entertainment will remain at the forefront of our hearts. Her contributions to popular music and culture are unparalleled,” Pat Houston stated. “We are blessed and grateful that God allowed her to spend so many years with us and we are thankful for all the many valuable life lessons that she taught us. May she rest in peace, alongside her daughter, Whitney and granddaughter Bobbi Kristina and other cherished family members.”
The family then went on to issue a thank you to the public for their generosity, but requested a time of privacy while they grieve the loss of Cissy. The singer’s death was also announced by New Hope Baptist Church, where she served as the choir director for over five decades. The church also announced plans to “celebrate her death.”
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“Pastor Joe A. Carter and the members of The New Hope Baptist Church sadly announce the passing of our beloved Dr. Emily Cissy Houston,” the church shared in a statement Monday evening. “Dr. Houston served The New Hope Baptist Church for over 50 years, and we are so grateful for her life and legacy. Please keep her family and friends in prayer, as we prepare to celebrate her life.”
Houston, who spent decades as an influential figure in American gospel music, won Grammy Awards in the traditional soul gospel category for her albums “Face to Face” in 1997 and “He Leadeth Me” in 1999. She was also a recognized soul singer who provided backup vocals for stars such as Aretha Franklin and Elvis Presley. In addition to her iconic daughter Whitney Houston, who died in 2012, Cissy Houston was part of a family of successful singers that includes her nieces Dee Dee Warwick and Dionne Warwick and renowned soprano Leontyne Price. As news of her death spread Monday night, many in the gospel and entertainment industry made public statements grieving her death.
“My deepest condolences to all of the family of Mama Cissy Houston. After Whitney passed Mrs. H and I talked at least once a month until she became too ill,” Gospel singer Kurt Carr said in a statement published on Facebook. “What a blessing and privilege it was to get to know her and to receive all of her wisdom about life, church, the music business, Elvis lol, and her phenomenal baby girl Whitney. Rest well Mama Cissy … Great is your reward.”
Others, like media mogul Tyler Perry, grieved the passing of three generations of women in Houston’s family, pointing to Whitney Houston and Whitney’s daughter Bobbi Kristina Brown, who died in 2015, approximately three years after her mother passed.
“Hard to believe that all three generations of these women have all passed on. Today with a humble heart and much sadness I say goodbye to the incredible Cissy Houston. What a voice, what a laugh, what a heart. Rest well in the arms of the Jesus that you told us all about,” Perry stated in a post on Facebook.
Cissy Houston’s former son-in-law, singer Bobby Brown gave a statement to PEOPLE saying, “Sending love and blessings to the Houston family on this great lo. May she rest in Peace and Power. The Browns.”