Students From Vandalized Long Beach Catholic School Meet Pope: Report

LONG BEACH, CA -- A group of students from Holy Innocents School who were devastated when their school suffered a massive case of vandalism, have now had their spirits lifted by none other than Pope Leo himself, ABC7 reported on Sunday.

Although the vandalism occurred just before the students were scheduled to go on a pilgrimage to the Vatican, the trip was not cancelled and they still made their way to visit the home of the Pontiff.

And according to ABC7, a friend of the school helped arrange an audience with Pope Leo while they were there.

"When we first walked into the room, I had heard a little bit that ... maybe you guys will get to meet the Pope and I was like, 'No, I don't think so. There's so many people here'," student Sophia Gutierrez reportedly said.

Instead, the students received a personal welcome from the Pope himself and spoke with him for a few moments.

"He asked us how we were, he asked us where we're from ... He felt like a human being -- easy to talk to, very humble," student Carlos Martinez said.

Regarding the vandalism, which occurred early this month, a life-size Virgin Mary statue that has been at the school since it opened in 1958 was decapitated, and vandals ripped the church tabernacle from the sanctuary and threw it to the ground, Tony Tripp, the Catholic school's director of advancement said in the aftermath of the incident.

However, good Samaritans have so far raised more than $153,000 through a GoFundMe campaign to give to the school for repairs and other needs.

Police have said that they've collected blood samples, fingerprints, shoe prints and other evidence and are searching for suspects.

The ABC7 report, which includes video and images of the students meeting Pope Leo, can be seen here.