Pope Francis' 2015 visit to NYC: FLASHBACK

Now to more on the breaking news this morning. Pope Francis has died at the age of 88. In 2015

of course, he visited New York City, and during that visit, he presided over Mass at Madison

Square Garden. I was lucky enough to be one of about 18,000 people in attendance on that mild

September day, and it was the honor of a lifetime for me to get to meet the Holy Father. Here's that

story from nearly 10 years ago. As Pope Francis processed to the altar at Madison Square Garden

he was close enough for me and my camera to touch. I was fortunate to be invited to the Mass by Adrian Pajarols

a master silversmith and longtime friend of the Holy Father. Pajarols made the chalice that his holiness used to celebrate Mass

We first told you about the chalice in a story leading up to the Pope's visit

And there he was, holding it up for the world to see. The chalice was made of melted silver jewelry that people from all across the U.S. donated

so the Pope held a part of each in his hands. For Paya Rolls, it was emotional and unforgettable

all his work and more than a decade of friendship culminating in that moment

He, along with the rest of us at the Garden, stood and applauded for a long time to show our appreciation for the Holy Father

Almost as soon as the Pope walked past me at the end of the Mass, a guard whisked us to a private room behind the altar. And there he was, the Holy Father

ever humble, ever gracious. I shook his hand and hugged him. I asked that he pray for my loved

ones and I promised to pray for him too. I also wished him safe travels. One of his guards handed

me a set of rosary beads. Then we left the room and allowed him to greet a few more people. It had

been a very long day We saw him one more time in the back seat of his Fiat A light illuminated his face perfectly so a bit of a smile was clearly visible as I stood and took this photo just a few feet away Then he left to turn in for the night

Pia Rolls had given the Pope the gift of the chalice, and he gave me a gift for which I will

never be able to adequately thank him. Just lovely, both of you exchanging gifts, you receiving

something from the pope his presence uh his eminence um and then the chalice that you were

able to bring those two together yeah and the chalice that that adrian made from all that

jewelry was so symbolic because it was from common people and that's what will stick with me about

pope francis he was so extraordinary and yet so common at the same time he was humble he asked for

just common everyday people like you and me to pray for him as he had this massive responsibility

of being at the head of the Catholic Church. And I think that's how he will be remembered both

extraordinary and ordinary simultaneously. Absolutely. And if you're just waking up and

just joining us, Pope Francis has died at the age of 88. This may come as a surprise to some

because just yesterday he was in St. Peter's Square greeting the faithful. He also had an

opportunity to meet, better yet, with Vice President J.D. Vance. So waking up to this

news was certainly something that many of us did not expect, especially since he seemed to almost

rebound from his hospital visit where he was hospitalized for a month with double pneumonia

It was so touch and go for that month or so. We were all checking minute by minute

hour by hour for updates. And then I think whenever he got out of the hospital, we all

exhaled, we breathed a sigh of relief, but you know, he was 88

years old and we were never ready for this day. And we are definitely sending our

prayers. So many Catholics around the world are