"You duped me, O LORD, and I let myself be duped..." Jeremiah 20:7a Hi friends! I am glad that you found my site! Allow me to introduce myself and tell you a little about what I do. I am Catherine Benskin. I have been a Washington Metropolitan resident all my life. I live with my fabulously supportive husband, two awesome kids and Molly, my Pug. "I can't complain, but sometimes I still do. Life's been good to me so far....(Joe Walsh)"
Officially, I am baptized and live my faith in the Catholic Church. I began my ministry of "Liturgical Songleader" or "Cantor" in 1997. For those who are unfamiliar with these terms, it basically means I have been trained to lead music and engage the assembly in song during Sunday mass, weddings, and funerals. I have benn blessed to have trained and worked with some exciting names in the field of Catholic music including Jeannie Cotter and John Angotti and Cantor Mentors Joe Simmons and Mary Lynn Pleczkowski. In 2008, I was thrilled to sing under the directorship of Tom Stehle for the Papal Mass in Washington, DC. I have earned my Basic Cantor Certificate from the National Association of Pastoral Musicians (NPM). Currently, I am on the cantor rotation at St. Raphael's Catholic Church in Rockville and plan to return in the fall for another season of singing in the choir under the direction of Vince Natali. I am also enjoying my role assistant directing the children's choir. You can also find me at several other parishes in the MD/DC/VA area including my home parish, St. Rose of Lima in Gaithersburg where I try to sing every third weekend at the 5 PM Mass.
Besides specializing in singing for Catholic masses, I also have experience in Protestant and secular weddings, funerals and bilingual liturgy. I am also available to come in and lead workshops if you have new cantors or your cantor ministry needs a little shot in the arm.
In February 2005, my music partner Alan Marcinek and I released our first CD, You Are Child. In December 2010, I released two original singles, You Welcome Me and Lily, So Beautiful. It's been an exciting process watching and hearing my own words make it to the page and our to the digital world! They are both available for download on CD Baby and iTunes.
*And please, I am curious to know who is visiting my site. Please do me the favor of taking a minute to either sign my guestbook or join my mailing list!