Italian postal service sees surge in mail for Pope Francis, much sent from children

ROME (AP) — The Italian postal service has seen a huge increase in mail addressed to Pope Francis since his Feb. 14 hospitalization, with some letters clearly written by children, bearing stamps from around the world and simply addressed to the pope at “Gemelli Hospital” in Rome.

Postal workers sort the mail into big yellow boxes, labeled “Papa Francesco.” Each day hospital workers come to take the letters away to make sure they get to the 88-year-old Francis at the 10th floor hospital suite where he is recovering from double pneumonia.

The mail arrives first at the primary sorting center at Rome’s Fiumicino airport, where it is checked to make sure it is safe to be delivered.

Normally, the Vatican receives around 100 kilograms (220 pounds) of mail a day, said Antonello Chidichimo, the director of the Fiumicino sorting center.

“Recently, we have had peaks of 150 kilos (330 pounds). Naturally this includes mail arriving from abroad,” he told The Associated Press. “We have also seen that many of these letters have been written by children.”

Once cleared at Fiumicino, the mail is sent to the Belsito distribution center in Rome. In a vast sorting area, it is divided into a mechanized sector with noisy machines, conveyor belts and optical readers, and a quieter one where the post is sorted manually and put into pigeon holes by workers.

Addresses vary greatly, with some letters destined for “Gemelli” and others correctly sent to “Casa Santa Marta” in Vatican City, where the pope chose to live after his election in 2013, instead of in the papal residence in the Apostolic Palace.

Some of the letters are ornately written in calligraphic script, while others have address labels printed by computer. But many are in the writing of very young children.

“It is not an everyday experience to have to sort through and deliver letters addressed to the Holy Father,” said Andrea Di Tommaso who is in charge of the Belsito distribution center. He said the huge increase in mail for the pope has been a deeply moving experience.

“We hope he gets better soon,” he said.

He appears to be doing just that.

Doctors reported Wednesday that they had “suspended” the use of the noninvasive mechanical ventilation mask that Francis has been using at night to help him breathe, in a sign his lungs were working better.

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