(RNS) — The morning before boarding a flight for Rome, Catholic radio show host and commentator Katie Prejean McGrady had a gaggle of suitcases lining the hallway of her home in Lake Charles, Louisiana, when she awoke Monday (April 21) to the news of Pope Francis’ death.
“My heart sank,” said Prejean McGrady, who hosts “The Katie McGrady Show” on Sirius XM’s The Catholic Channel. “There’s the logistics of the work component of it, for me, the coverage, but from a personal perspective, the past 12 years I’ve encountered Pope Francis a few times up close and personally. And so I very much miss the Pope. I’m very sad at his loss.”
Pope Francis, who died on Monday morning at the age of 88, was known for his pastoral style of leadership and his emphasis on mercy. Recovering from a long hospital stay for double pneumonia, he died of a stroke at the Vatican.
Prejean McGrady is one of tens of thousands of people who had planned to attend the canonization of Carlo Acutis, the first millennial saint, whose canonization had been scheduled for April 27. Acutis died of leukemia at 15 in 2006 and has since generated astounding devotion among Catholics, especially other young believers.
The family of Alexis Love rests on the steps of the Abbey of Santa Giustina in Padua, Italy, Monday, April 21, 2025. (Photo courtesy Alexis Love)
Millions more had already made plans to come to R …