Brandon Benson

Brandon Benson

Current Graduate Student, PhD Applied Physics
President, Graduate Catholic Student Association

“Since I joined the Church in Easter of 2018, I’ve learned to call this community home.”

While I was first considering the Catholic Church, a friend brought me to Mem Chu, and we ran into Lourdes Alonso. Even during this first encounter, she listened to my situation and shared her own experiences with me. A few months later, she organized a silent retreat where Fr. Xavier was my Spiritual Director. Later that year, Easter of 2018, Fr. Xavier smeared chrism oil on my head as I received my Confirmation in the Catholic Church.

Little did I know how much I would feel at home in CC@S. I found a connection to my pre-Catholic faith experience attending an Evangelical Catholic conference with Lourdes. Other memories come to mind: my Marian Consecration surrounded by friends, a service trip to Las Vegas, and a pilgrimage to Panama for World Youth Day. Even the community house I currently live in developed out of a morning prayer group in CC@S. Through these experiences, my faith has grown, especially under the Spiritual Direction of Fr. Bob SJ. I thank God for His abundant blessings through this community which I have learned to call home.