Catholics across the region are celebrating the historic announcement that the first American pope in the 2,000-year history of the church was born and raised in the Chicago area.

In his first words as Pope Leo XIV, Robert Francis Prevost announced “peace be with you,” invoking a message of dialogue and care for those in need from Vatican City on Thursday.

“When I heard the news of the new Holy Father at that moment, at least here in Chicago, the sun came out,” said the Rev. Greg Sakowicz, rector of Holy Name Cathedral.

Some would say the sunny weather was just a coincidence, Sakowicz acknowledged.

But “a coincidence is God’s way of remaining anonymous,” he added.

Prevost’s Catholic roots were planted in Chicago’s south suburbs, where he lived in Dolton with his parents and two brothers. He grew up in St. Mary of the Assumption parish on the Far South Side, attending school there and serving as altar boy.

Marianne Angarola, 69, who was in the same class as Prevost, remembers him as a good singer who “cared about people” and “looked for the good in things.”

St. Mary’s closed and went into a state of disrepair, she said. But Angarola and others have kept up with his career, following along on the Internet for updates as he rose through the ranks of the church.

“He was the pride and joy of every priest and nun in that school,” Angarola said. “Everybody knew he was special.”

Another St. Mary’s classmate, Peggy Wurtz, remembered Prevost singing at midnight Mass with his mother, who was also a talented vocalist. Wurtz said she was intimidated by his intelligence, even in grade school. During their fifth grade science fair, Wurtz recalled being embarrassed to answer a question about her tooth decay project in front of Prevost, who was more deft in explaining his work.

“He won first prize,” Wurtz said.

The class of 1969 has an annual reunion, and she hopes they can see him at one down the line.

“I figure we should have a class reunion in Rome so he gets us all at once,” Wurtz said.

His father, Louis, was an educator who led Glenwood School District 167 and served as principal of Mount Carmel Elementary School in Chicago Heights, which was closed in 1990. He died in 1997, according to his obituary.

His mother, Mildred, was a librarian who worked at Holy Name Cathedral, Von Steuben High School on the North Side and Mendel Catholic Prep. She died in 1990, after decades of service to St. Mary’s Church.

After graduating from St. Mary’s in 1969, Prevost attended St. Augustine Seminary High School in Michigan. He briefly lived at the now-shuttered Tolentine seminary in Olympia Fields before attending Villanova University.

He was ordained a priest in Rome and studied there until 1984, shuttling between church leadership positions in Chicago and Peru until 2023.

Prevost, a longtime missionary and member of the Augustinian religious order, made his first appearance on the loggia of St. Peter’s Basilica on Thursday wearing the traditional red cape of the papacy.

Prevost, 69, was head of the Augustinians from 2001 to 2013, based in Rome. He also served as head of the Chicago province of the order and in 2014 was named apostolic administrator and then bishop of Chiclayo, in northern Peru in a region where the Chicago Augustinians have long had a presence.

In 2023, his predecessor, Pope Francis, named Prevost to take over the Vatican’s powerful bishops’ office that vets nominations around the globe from a retiring Canadian who had recently been accused of sexual misconduct. The critical Holy See office also investigates allegations of abuse or negligence against bishops.

“This is a historic day,” said Robert Orsi, professor of religion at Northwestern University. “Robert Francis Prevost was a favorite of Pope Francis, who made him cardinal only two years ago. The new pope’s namesake, Leo XIII, was known for his outspoken defense of the rights of working people to a living wage. By taking this name, Pope Leo XIV clearly signals his priorities. Pope Leo XIII was also profoundly wary of nationalists, especially those who would divide the church over political disputes. The Pope Leo of the early 21st century, who spent most of his 69 years outside the United States, appears already to be calling Catholics back to a truly global, truly open-hearted faith.”

Close to 100 people were at noon Mass at Holy Name Cathedral in Chicago on Thursday. Near the end of the service, the rector announced who the pope was — an American-born from Chicago. The crowd erupted in applause.

Julie Bartholomae from Lincoln Park stepped outside to take a call from her sister, who was telling her the name of the pope.

Her eyes lit up when she found out the new leader of more than a billion Catholics worldwide was from Chicago.

“I think this is so exciting — a U.S. pope and he’s from Chicago,” she said.

The announcement of a new pope brought Katherine Gehl, a parishioner at Holy Name, tears of happiness. She was walking home from the gym when she heard the news and ran to Holy Name.

“It was extraordinary to be here, you know, in the presence of other Catholics,” she said. “All I all I can say is I’m just praying that this pope brings a call for unity. That’s what we need, because we have so many challenges worldwide and in division, we shall not solve them. They will only be solved in unity.”