Catholic Spirit writer Maria Wiering reports on the National Catholic Youth Conference in Kansas City, MO.
Above: Nancy Stockhaus, Claire Leiter, Rob Shaver and BSM religion teacher Alison Frank.
They were clearly exhausted from a long day of rehearsal, but the eyes of two Benilde-St. Margaret’s students were shining with excitement as they spoke to me during a music break. They had just gotten done with a jazzy number, and Jesse Manibusan was slated for the stage next.
Claire Leiter, 17, and Rob Shaver, 16, are in the “pit choir,” which is right next to the main stage in the Sprint Center.
There are 12 BSM students singing in the choir this year; that means they are the ones singing back-up and creating these amazing harmonies to accompany the main singers.
They’re also the ones often on the jumbotron, inspiring the other youth to sing loud and proud.
Benilde-St. Margaret’s has sent their students to sing in the choir since the 1997 conference in Kansas City, said BSM choir director Nancy Stockhaus. Musician Kate Cuddy directed the choir then, and she began the relationship between the school and the conference.
Claire, a senior, sang in the choir at the last NCYC in Ohio, but this is Rob’s first time (he’s a junior). Last night, when he saw the Sprint Center fill to the gills with high schoolers, the only thing he could think was “Wow,” he said.
Singing in the choir is exhilarating, Claire said. And when the entire arena is filled with cheering, it’s so loud that it rings in their ears.
A soprano, Claire thinks the whole experience has been great, because she gets to see what it’s like to be on the inside of a production.
She sings during adoration at her parish, St. Raphael in Crystal, and she said that leading worship while also worshipping can be a challenge, but it’s away of serving God in his presence, she said.
That’s how she felt as she sang this morning as thousands of youth prayed together before the Eucharist.
Even though they’re not able to go to the workshops like the other youth at the conference because of rehearsals, neither Rob nor Claire would exchange their experience, they said.
Seeing all the youth from the opposite angle — looking up into the arena, rather than looking down onto the stage — has been awesome, they added. They also like meeting the “Catholic celebrities” who are going on and off stage — “They might not be Taylor Swift,” Claire said, but you can go up and give tem a high five. They’re totally approachable, she said.
Singing in the pit choir has helped Rob, a tenor, see his Catholic faith in a new light, he said. Since the experience is aimed at youth, he feels more excited about being Catholic.
A parishioner at Hoy Name in Medina, Rob has practiced for two weeks every day after school for an hour or two. Now he and Claire get to shine.
