A friend of Robert Prevost for more than 40-years, now known as Pope Leo, spoke recently at a church in Naperville, sharing insights.
He told a story about the Pope’s exasperating experience with a customer service representative at a local bank and talked about the Papal sweet tooth.
The Pope’s long-time friend, Father Tom McCarthy, was speaking at Saints Peter and Paul Catholic Church.
He said two months into his Papacy, Pope Leo called his Chicago-area bank and identified himself as Robert Prevost.
He wanted to change the phone number and address the bank had for him on file.
Fr. McCarthy said Pope Leo answered the security questions and he was told, "I’m sorry, sir, you have to come in person."
"Would it matter to you if I told you I’m Pope Leo?’" he said, according to Fr. McCarthy.
“She hung up on him,” McCarthy said, to laughter from his audience.
“Could you imagine being known as the woman who hung up on the Pope?”
Fr. McCarthy said another priest got involved and contacted the bank president, who was told the Pope would move his account to a different bank, if his information wasn’t updated.
The president said, "Well we don’t want to lose the account of the Pope," according to McCarthy, and the priest said, “well then change his phone number,” and that was successful.
Fr. McCarthy also talked about bringing Pope Leo gifts from home.
He arrived with two duffel bags.
He said the Pope asked, "what are you doing, moving in?"
McCarthy said he told Pope Leo it was all for him, and when he saw that the gifts included Fannie May Turtles, he said, “I love these.”
He also noted that the Pope has a good supply of Peeps, those marshmallow candies popular during Easter, in two closets in his apartment at the Vatican.
