An Atlantic City woman said her recent meeting with the pope reenforced her commitment to helping others.
Phyllis Lacca, president of Masterpiece Advertising, traveled to Rome as part of her involvement with the Ausilia Foundation, an organization led by Cardinal Giuseppe Versaldi that is dedicated to expanding educational opportunities for students without the financial means to pursue them.
"Meeting Pope Leo XIV was a profoundly spiritual, once-in-a-lifetime moment," she said. "It felt surreal. I couldn’t hold back tears, and it’s something I’ll carry in my heart forever. I feel incredibly blessed to have had this audience, which reinforces my lifelong commitment to giving back."
During her visit, Lacca noted the personal connections she shares with the pope, who studied at Villanova University. Lacca was raised in nearby Gladwyne, Pa., and attended St. John Vianney, a parish Pope Leo knows well.
As a St. Augustinian priest, his path also overlaps with her nephews’ ties to St. Augustine Prep, where they attended high school.
The trip coincided with seeing her friends Meghan Hudock, AJ Mattia and Julius Nasso Jr. inducted to the foundation's Board of Directors.
Over the past few years, Lacca has visited Italy in connection with her ongoing support of the Andrea Bocelli Foundation, which focuses on education, opportunity and empowerment worldwide.
She plans to return to Rome later this year for further collaborations with both the foundation and Pope Leo XIV at the Sistine Chapel.
Lacca visited Havana, Cuba, in 2015 as part of a pilgrimage that included attending Pope Francis’ Mass at Revolution Square and supporting local children’s education through donations of school supplies, healthcare items, and other necessities.
That trip helped shape her ongoing approach to philanthropy, both internationally and in her own community.
"My time in Cuba was very meaningful,” Lacca said. “This private meeting in Rome with Pope Leo XIV, however, brought an entirely new level of humility and spiritual connection, something I could not have imagined I’d be blessed to experience.”
