Nine-year-old Andrew dreams of becoming a priest someday. Instead of playing video games, he opts for celebrating Mass. His grandmother, mother, Theresa and sister, Emily, made vestments for him to wear in each color in accordance with the Catholic liturgical calendar. “I have them all—white, purple, red, green and pink,” he says.

Andrew enjoys carrying his Bible, singing songs from the Catholic missal and using a homemade incense burner to offer special blessings. Recently, Andrew received a blessing of his own from Pope Benedict XVI thanks to the Make-A-Wish Foundation of Greater Ohio, Kentucky and Indiana chapter.

The third-grader who attends a St. John the Evangelist Catholic Church, is fighting a rare genetic disorder called citrullinemia. His family is forced to monitor everything he eats because Andrew’s body does not produce one of the enzymes necessary to digest protein. Too much protein could cause Andrew to begin vomiting or to go into a coma. When he was three days old, he suffered brain damage and almost died.

“We pinned a cross to his bed and told him that Baby Jesus and Mary would be with him,” shared Theresa. It was at that moment where Andrew’s spiritual journey began which would lead him ultimately to the Vatican nine years later.

On November 18, Andrew also became sick moments before he and his family were to meet the Pope. Seated in the VIP section behind the cardinals and bishops, Andrew was moved to the front of the line where the pontiff placed his hands on Andrew and blessed him. The Pope also blessed several religious artifacts Andrew brought with him for the visit.

Andrew said, “I love you” to the Pope. After the visit, Andrew was taken to the hospital by ambulance where he spent the next four days.

“Shaking the Pope’s hand and getting a physical blessing from his consecrated hands brought our faith to a whole new level,” she said.

“Andrew’s faith is passionate…he is just so on fire with love for Jesus,” shared Theresa. “I’m thankful beyond words to the volunteers and staff at the Make-A-Wish Foundation for the once-in-a-lifetime blessing they gave our family.”