Father Chris Bugno, pastor of Sacred Heart Parish, Rockne and St. Mary’s Parish, String Prairie, and the only Polish speaking priest in the Austin Diocese, had a special connection with Pope Paul II, which goes all the way back to Poland.

Father Chris is from the same region in Poland where the pope grew up. They were both Highlanders, from the mountain area in Southern Poland. Father lived in Poland during the communist regime when the Pope was known as Bishop Karol Josef Wojtyla. Father said, "I served as an altar boy for the Pope several times," and said "this was something very special."

When Father was 14 years old, he became involved in a Youth Movement known as "Faith and Light" organized by the Pope, developed to combat communism and keep the youth faithful to the Catholic faith. Said Bugno: "The Pope, then Bishop, attended these youth camps and I was very inspired by this movement for youth freedom. He was an inspiration to me. He was someone I looked up to."

"He was my mentor and role model, and had a great influence on me becoming a priest. During the communist times we had to hide our religious convictions from the communist spies. Spies would go into churches and record what the future Pope had to say. The Pope was a very nice and gentle person filled with humor. I remember one day at the services held in the Cathedral of Krakow he said I welcome all my brothers and sister, especially those of you who came here with a different purpose. God bless you, too."

When Archbishop Wojyla was elected the Pope, people from all over Poland danced in the streets celebrating, ringing bells, singing and rejoicing. In addition to being the Pope’s altar boy while he was Bishop, father met with the Pope 11 times between 1979 and 2003. Three of these times were at the Vatican. The last time he visited with the Pope was at the Vatican in February of 2003, just before coming to Rockne.

Father said the Pope had a very personal relationship with Jesus and he had one set of values. He lived an angelical life, responding with love to combat evil. He was able to communicate to everyone from the young to the old, from the sick to the healthy. He saw Jesus in each person. "The world will probably remember him most because of how he viewed people. He saw dignity, greatness and opportunity in everyone," said Bugno. "His death was a very emotional but peaceful time for me and I believe that Pope Paul II will become a saint quickly."