Gospel brunch in Pine features reunited ensemble

The reunion concerts continue for a gospel ensemble that once performed at Cleveland’s Rock & Roll Hall of Fame.

Praise, Worship and Deliverance traces its roots back to the late 1980s and a tuneful Martin Luther King Jr. remembrance at Penn State New Kensington, where musician Roberta Breninghouse was an adjunct professor at the time.

She particularly was impressed by the talents of a group of singers and joined them for a spontaneous encore.

“From that point, we connected, started to have weekly rehearsals, started to sing in local churches and a few in Pittsburgh,” she said. “And that’s when we had the opportunity to sing at the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame, which is our claim to fame.”

A representative of the institution who heard Praise, Worship and Deliverance invited the ensemble to perform during a gospel brunch on a bill that included soon-to-become-famous duo Mary Mary.

Now, Breninghouse is bringing the gospel-brunch concept to Cross Roads Presbyterian Church in Pine, featuring her reunited group. The event is scheduled for 1 to 3 p.m. Aug. 3, with music starting at 1:30, and a freewill offering will be taken.

Breninghouse explained that various personal considerations led Praise, Worship and Deliverance members to taking what turned out to be a performing hiatus.

But we all kept in touch, and then last year, we kind of started to connect again and sang for a couple of events,” she said. “We all still had that yearning to keep this ministry going, and so we’re kind of going full circle right now.”

Joining Breninghouse, who plays piano and sings, are vocalists Roxanne Harris, Vicky Jerry, Andrea Morman, Pam Morman, Venus Rogozinski, Drasha Walker and Diane White, along with bassist Perry Pinto and percussionist Joe Pencak.

Their repertoire includes songs from the catalogs of gospel stars Richard Smallwood, Hezekiah Walker and Andraé Crouch, plus some jazzy instrumentals performed by Breninghouse, Pinto and Pencak.

A Highlands High School graduate and Lower Burrell resident, Breninghouse has served for six years as Cross Roads Presbyterian Church’s organist, choir director and music director.

“I started playing in church when I was in third grade and haven’t stopped,” she said.

She earned a bachelor’s degree in piano performance from Penn State and is pursuing a master’s degree at the University of Pittsburgh to enhance her work as director of recreation therapy/activities at Sherwood Oaks, part of UPMC Senior Communities, in Cranberry.

Praise, Worship and Deliverance received a warm reception for a Sherwood Oaks performance early this year, and Breninghouse already is working on a holiday concert for the community featuring impressionist classical music.

“I’m merging it and creating my own version of Christmas music with it,” she said. “It’s a very cultured campus here, so I always like to challenge myself in seeing how I can create different things.”

She has created a different event for her church — and regarding the brunch aspect:

“Our ladies do a great job with the cooking.”

Cross Roads Presbyterian Church is 3281 Wexford Road, Pine. For details, visit www.crossroadsgibsonia.org.