Loreal is a junior at St. John’s University majoring in International Management with a minor in Social Justice: Theory and Practice in the Vincentian Tradition. She is also the President of the student club, Women on Wall Street.
In Spring 2025, she spent a week in Paris, France, on the Vincentian Heritage Tour before heading to Rome, Italy, for a study abroad program for the remainder of the semester. In the following, Loreal recounts when she learned about the passing of Pope Francis.
Studying abroad in “The Eternal City” and experiencing a pope’s passing was the last thing I could have ever imagined. I will never forget the day that I found out Pope Francis had died. I had just come back from a mother-daughter trip around Italy and Marrakech, Morocco. I had returned from dropping my mom off at Rome Fiumicino Airport and was in front of my favorite church when I looked down at my phone and saw, “Pope Francis has died at age 88.”
I couldn’t believe it. I started hearing “Papa! Papa!” from a store nearby. The moment felt incredibly surreal—the location, the early hour, the knowledge that I was standing just a 10-minute walk from the Vatican.
I remember continuing my walk toward campus and immediately seeing all my peers gathered and in shock by the news. None of us could believe that we were in Rome during such a momentous and unfortunate event. It was without hesitation that everyone took action with the intention of paying their respect. So many went to the Vatican that night to pray and wait for the news about what would happen next. I personally did not attend his funeral, but did attend the last possible day to view his body.
I remember going with three of my friends and waiting for four hours in the blazing hot Roman sun to pay our respects. It was incredibly crowded, and the line moved slowly every hour. No one hopped off line, however, because this was a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity to pay our respect in person to Pope Francis.
When we were nearly inside, a wave of silence overtook us. Phones and cameras were completely prohibited, and we heard individuals getting scolded if they pulled them out. They were also getting scolded for not viewing this as a religious moment, but rather as an opportunity to get close to a pope. After waiting for four hours, each individual was only able to see the body for half a second as they had to continue moving in the line. Since it was so quick, all that I can remember is seeing the paleness and the blue tones apparent in the pope’s skin. It was truly a sad sight, but also an incredibly moving one because of how many people from all over the world had come to pay their respects. It reflects how truly loved Pope Francis was.
I remember leaving the inside of the Vatican that day and when I went a short distance down the path outside, I saw a sign that read “Grazie, Papa Francesco.” To me, that said everything that it needed to say and encompassed what everyone was feeling—gratitude.