Black America Cooks, a Web site dedicated to celebrating healthy soul food and southern cooking, would like to honor Dr. Dorothy Irena Height, civil rights activist and chair and president emerita of the National Council of Negro Women (NCNW), who died April 20 of natural causes at Howard University Hospital in Washington, D.C. She was 98 years old.

Born in Richmond, Va. on March 24, 1912, Height was an administrator, educator and social activist. She joined NCNW in 1937 at age 25 and was president of the organization for 40 years. She created the NCNW Black Family Reunion, an annual celebration of black American families, which she attended every year until her death. She was a longtime supporter of preserving family traditions and recipes by passing them on to future generations, and helped write The Black Family Reunion Cookbook, which was published in 1992.

Height's funeral will be held on April 29 at the Washington National Cathedral. For more information about Height and her accomplishments, visit blackamericacooks.com or www.ncnw.org.