The 45th anniversary celebration of the Perpetual Hope Gospel Choir was marked by guest choir appearances, inspirational music and fellowship. (Photos by Troy C. Hull | Catholic News Herald)CHARLOTTE — In 1980, June Chavis Davenport, a member of Our Lady of Consolation Parish, talked to her pastor, Father Wilbur Thomas, about forming a gospel choir at the historically Black parish, and the Perpetual Hope Gospel Choir was born.
Decades of ministry through music at the parish as well as performances at other Charlotte churches followed. The choir traveled around the country to perform at gospel competitions and events. There were ups and downs in the parish and the choir, but the music continued.
On Nov. 16, people packed into the gymnasium at Our Lady of Consolation Church to honor the Perpetual Hope Gospel Choir’s 45th anniversary and witness a rousing performance from its 22 members.
Two other choirs – the Charlotte Interdenominational Mass Choir and St. Mark’s United Methodist Church Choir – came to pay tribute and perform.
The evening also included recitals by the parish’s Francophone Gospel and Cameroonian choirs, both formed through the parish’s growing Francophone ministry. Formed in 2023 and led by
Father Yves Ilapi, the ministry serves French-speaking Catholic immigrants from the Democratic Republic of the Congo, Togo, Senegal, Ivory Coast, Guinea, Senegal, Cameroon and Haiti.
The concert drew parishioners and fans from across the city.
Two of the choir’s original members were there, praising God through song as they’ve done for 45 years. For alto Pearline Reid and tenor Amanda Hines, the choir is not just a ministry but a family affair – Hines is Reid’s niece.
Reid grew up at the parish, attending kindergarten through eighth grade at Our Lady of Consolation School, which closed in 1988. Her siblings used to sing in the choir alongside her, and she remembers the days when the group had 50 members and traveled to sing in other cities.
“I’ve seen music in the Church come a long way, from the days when we sang in Latin to the gospel music today,” Reid said. “We’ve always been the only Black Catholic gospel choir in Charlotte, and everybody loves the choir. It makes me so proud to be part of it.”
Singing has been part of Hines’ life since childhood. She joined the glee club at Our Lady of Consolation School when it was under the direction of the Oblate Sisters of Providence. Her mother, aunts and uncles all sang in the parish choirs, but it was her mother who prodded her to join.
“Her name was Juanita McGowan, and she sang first soprano,” Hines said. “She used to have to drag me, and now here I am today – I’m her legacy. My aunts and uncles and my mom have all passed on, but I’m still here. I left the choir for a while, but when I came back it was more powerful – sometimes the Lord removes you from a place so you know what you have to do, and I knew I had to be singing for the Lord.”
Hines remembers the first solo she did, for a song called “He Looked Beyond My Fault.” Since then she has come to regard her singing as a ministry.
“Once the Spirit takes me, I’m flying – when I know I have a solo, I fast and pray before because I want the Lord to use me for His glory. When I’m out there singing, it’s all about God.”
Erick Massey started playing the organ at Our Lady of Consolation in 1996 and became its music director in 2002. He said the Perpetual Hope choir occupies a special place in church music in the Charlotte area.
“It’s one of the few Black Catholic gospel choirs and the only one here,” he said. “I learn something from everybody who is in this choir – everybody has their own style.”
Throughout the concert, people in the audience stood to dance, clap along with the music, and lift their hands in prayer. During one song, Joyce Wilson of Charlotte reached into her purse, pulled out a tambourine decorated with an image of a dove, and began to play it joyfully in time with the music.
Wilson’s family has members who are both Catholic and Pentecostal, and her tambourine skills come from the Pentecostal tradition.
“I came out here tonight to support the choirs – we’re all one here with the music,” she said.
— Christina Lee Knauss
Enjoy the music
Watch a video highlight from the Perpetual Hope Gospel Choir’s Nov. 16 performance