Pope Leo XIV: A Signed Baseball for the Collection

Father Richard Kunst

In October of 2025 I had the opportunity to greet Pope Leo after a Wednesday audience, and I brought a baseball that I had hoped he would sign for me like Pope Francis did a decade earlier.  Unfortunately the Holy Father turned down the request. 

Fast Forward to early January of 2026 while we were setting up for The Vatican Unveiled at the Mall of America the very ball Pope Francis signed for me in 2015 was stolen due to scaled back security by the Archdiocese of St. Paul and Minneapolis.  Needless to say I was a bit crushed as the signed ball came as a result of my lone interaction with Pope Francis, and now it was gone.

On the first day that the exhibit was open to the public I met Pastor John and Polly Snider. Their friendship truly became the biggest blessing from the entire Vatican Unveiled event. 

I helped organize many of the details surrounding their May trip to Rome to visit their old friend, Bob (Pope Leo XIV), and unbeknownst to me they brought a baseball they intended to ask him to sign for me.  And he did, as can be seen in this picture!  Only after the pope signed it did they tell me of their plans. 

Needless to say I was beyond excited and beyond grateful to my two dear friends for being so thoughtful.  They also asked the Holy Father to sign one of the booklets from the Vatican Unveiled, which he graciously did.

I want to thank the Sniders for being so thoughtful and gracious in asking their friend of almost 50 years to sign a baseball for their friend, the priest!