Not sure on the honouring. I think
John on a boy is a bit of a stretch,
Gene on a girl about the same level of stretch (although
Genie is so cute),
Genevieve whoooa lovely name but not really. I think it's sweet as a middle name, and way less fillerish than
Jane (or
Elizabeth,
Grace, etc etc), and it's always nice to have some meaning/family significance in there.
Gwyneth Jean is also rather nice. I wouldn't use it as a first name, but that's me. I like it on little French boys, haha. Baguette.