Papal Aura a Blessing for Mission’s Gift Shop

A day after Pope John Paul II’s visit to the San Fernando Mission, 72-year-old Sister Elena de los Santos and her nephew and sister scooped up nearly $140 worth of souvenirs from the mission’s gift shop.

“I would like to take everything blessed by the Pope back home with me,” De Los Santos of Bogota, Colombia, said Thursday in Spanish--beaming at the array of merchandise she and her two family members had purchased.

“Others almost have,” harried saleswoman Laura Olson said, referring to the candles, rosaries, pins, bookmarks, posters, banners, souvenir books, T-shirts and other mementos bought at the gift shop.

She said the gift shop was packed with people all day, and that she and manager Nancy Hennelly had barely had time to look up from their cash registers.

Prices ranged from $2 for empty wine bottles and candles to $30.95 for a framed photograph of the pontiff.

Among the more popular items were the wine bottles, which had contained wine consumed at the papal luncheon at the mission on Wednesday and whose labels commemorated the Pope’s visit. Of the 200 wine bottles from the luncheon, about a dozen remained by mid-afternoon.

Although she had attended the Mass at Dodger Stadium Wednesday night and spent about $25 for calendars, banners and photographs of the Pope, Gloria Amador said she will most treasure the green glass bottle she purchased at the mission.

“You never know who touched this,” she said fingering her purchase. “I keep thinking maybe the Pope did.”

The gift shop had never seen such a booming business, employees said.

“Today’s an exceptional day,” Hennelly said. But she would not divulge how much money the mission took in Thursday.

The most money spent by one customer was $150, employees said. “They just want something of the Pope,” Hennelly said.

Robert Lohr, who lives in La Puente and works in Van Nuys, was scrutinizing the merchandise carefully, after purchasing a pair of papal banners.

“I tried to get close to St. Vibiana’s yesterday,” Lohr said. “I was just curious. I’m a collector really--I just like to go to big events.”

He said he was captivated by the Pope’s personality. “I admire him and am fascinated by the amount of people that follow him, even though it’s not my faith,” said Lohr who is Jewish.

Local residents who frequent the mission, such as Wayne Bauder of Reseda, were shaking their heads in amazement. Said Bauder, “I’ve been coming here for 30 years, and I’ve never seen as many people here as I did today. And it’s out of vacation season, during the week and in the afternoon. It’s going to be a sellout if it keeps up.”

Bauder’s wife, Rose, was contributing to the mission’s bonanza, having bought about $25 worth of “little goodies” such as commemorative wine bottles, papal necklaces and crucifixes.

“We thought maybe we could pick up some good vibrations from yesterday,” Rose Bauder said. “There’s an aura of blessing here today,” her husband agreed.

Lillian Marsh of Lake View Terrace, who visited the mission four times this week, said she also felt there had been a special atmosphere.

Marsh bought $13 worth of papal souvenirs Tuesday. She returned Thursday for gifts for her grandchildren--among them 2-year-old Megan. The toddler, who accompanied her grandmother, was decked out in the Vatican colors of yellow and white.

“I’m not Catholic, I’m Baptist, but I feel the Pope’s outflow of love and human kindness,” Marsh said. “I even feel it here today, even after he’s gone.”