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Dear Colleague:
The recent visit of Pope John Paul II was not only an important event in the history of our city, but in the lives of each of us who participated or watched the events on television. Well more than 1,000 of our students and many of our faculty and staff, myself included, had the wonderful opportunity to attend the youth rally, the liturgy at the Trans World Dome or the prayer service at the Cathedral. Many left the events with a wonderful energy and renewed spirit.
There also were hundreds of Saint Louis University students, faculty and staff who participated on a different level in the papal visit. The Frost campus served as the staging area for the 4,000 concelebrants, ushers and other VIPs participating in the papal liturgy celebrated at the Trans World Dome. The University also served as headquarters for most of the major television networks and their affiliates.
These visitors to the University, many of whom were here for the very first time, were very complimentary of the professional and efficient manner in which they were guided through parking, registration and transportation to and from the TWA Dome for the papal Mass. Almost 400 representatives from CNN, ABC and CBS called Busch Memorial Center "home" during the visit. Affiliates from television and radio stations from across the world reported live from the University and relied upon the considerable and diverse talents of the University community.
These activities were virtually flawless. Many of the Mass participants and our media guests, who spent more than a week at Saint Louis University, took the time to congratulate me on the professional and enthusiastic manner in which they were treated at SLU.
An undertaking of this magnitude is successful if every person involved gives it his or her best. SLU employees and volunteers did so, and the results reflected their commitment to excellence. The complexity of staging and hosting these events required planning, ingenuity, teamwork and long, long hours of work. I wish to thank everyone for all that they did, especially the many student volunteers and the staffs of public relations, facilities services and public safety. I also commend our faculty experts, who made the events so very successful and helped the University gain very positive exposure in St. Louis, across the United States and throughout the world.
The papal visit is now history, but for those of us at SLU Ñ whether you attended the youth rally, were interviewed by CNN or ensured that the parking garages were available for the concelebrants to park Ñ it created remarkable memories and renewed the spirit of collaboration within the University. In typical SLU spirit, the University rose to the challenge. I pray that this same spirit will be reflected in our work at Saint Louis University, as we continue to fulfill our Catholic, Jesuit mission of preparing our students for lives of significance and success.
Larry Biondi, SJ
President
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