'Holy Father, God bless you'.
Pope Francis walked among nuns of the Missionaries of Charity who were singing to celebrating the saint that bears his name, St. Jorge.
The Pope was visiting the vaccination center organized by the Vatican for the homeless and those without resources.
'Happy name-day.'
'Thank you, thank you. I see what you all have done, Sister Maria and her group'.
There the second dose of vaccines were distributed to those invited by the Office of Papal Charities and other charitable organizations in Rome.
'I am happy because receiving the vaccine is already a great gift in itself. But then to also see the Pope...'.
'It was a beautiful gesture, a beautiful surprise, if I may say so.'
'We all had to remain seated so as not to cause crowds but I felt like going and shaking his hand, because seeing him there is something that happens to you once in a thousand years.'
'I got to see him up close and I even greeted him. I shook his hand.'
One of the priests in charge of the Office of Papal Charities wanted to give a special touch to the meeting.
'Alright. The two of us at the same time.'
There was even a giant chocolate Easter egg to distribute among those present, which the Pope even took a small piece of.
Throughout the day the Vatican administered the second dose of vaccines to 600 people. Its goal is to fully vaccinate 1,400.
In addition to the Vatican, many of these vaccines have been paid for by anonymous citizens of Rome when they received their dose.
Javier Romero
