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Choir girl’s gift still echoes in Newark church

At the Newark church where it all began for Whitney Houston, heartbroken parishioners yesterday remembered the first time they heard the voice of an angel.

“Every time she sang, your hair stood up,” recalled Earl Best, 64, a member of the New Hope Baptist Church, where Houston sang in the choir as a child.

“Then you could just sit back and relax and listen. Like Martin Luther King and his voice, you just had to stop and hear it. Her energy was so high and natural. She had a gift.”

Churchgoers were shattered at the death of Houston at 48.

Few in the church were surprised that the girl who sang “Have a Little Talk With Jesus” in the Sussex Avenue cathedral would go on to perform “I Love the Lord” on the soundtrack to “The Preacher’s Wife,” the 1996 movie in which she also starred.

“From a little girl, she was always powerful,” said New Hope member Darlene Mathis, 49. “She was always good.”

Houston’s mom, Cissy, an R&B and gospel singer, directed the choir that featured the budding star.

Houston was born in Newark and raised in East Orange, and members of her family — including Grammy-winning cousin Dionne Warwick — have been affiliated with the church for years.

Pastor Joe A. Carter praised the young choir soloist who went on to become a pop diva.

“We thank God for the gift of her unique voice,” Carter said. “Whitney left us so many wonderful memories. We remember, we rejoice for that phenomenal, one-of-a-kind gift.”

Carter and the congregation were joined by the Rev. Jesse Jackson, who was on his way to help comfort the family.

“I saw her sing on many stages,” Jackson said.

“But watching her grow up as a child and see that special something, it was clear she had that special pep in her step.”

Arleatha Harrison, 59, a member of the congregation who remembered Houston as a girl, said, “She sounded like a little singing mockingbird.

“She had a beautiful voice. I feel that there will never be a voice like Whitney Houston’s, ever.

“She had the greatest voice of all time.”

Across the Hudson River, in Harlem, the Apollo Theater summed up the terrible news on its marquee: “In Memory of Whitney Houston A True Music Icon 1963-2012.’’