Over a decade ago, when Pope Leo XIV was still just a priest named Robert Prevost, he married local Chicago couple Heather Schmit-Jaroch and Dominic Jaroch
As a favor to Heather’s late father, the future pope flew from Peru in order to make it to the ceremony before flying out immediately to return to his missionary work in South America
“Every time we talk about it, we just cry,” Heather tells PEOPLE
The news of Pope Leo XIV’s election hit one suburban Chicago couple a bit differently. Why? Because he married them over a decade ago!
Heather Schmit-Jaroch and her husband Dominic Jaroch were on a camping trip when her sister Heidi called her to share the unexpected news.
“I said, ‘Well, it’s probably just my sister telling me we got a new pope and I was like, ‘I’ll find out later once I get my cup of coffee made,’ ” Heather tells PEOPLE. “And then my phone kept on ringing and ringing, so I checked to make sure nothing’s wrong. And she’s like, ‘We got a pope! And it’s Father Bob!’ “
“My husband and I just started crying immediately,” Heather adds.
Pope Leo, then known as Robert Prevost, or even as “Father Bob,” married Dominic and Heather on July 19, 2014 at St. Rita of Cascia Shrine Chapel in Chicago.
As a favor to Heather’s late father Ed Schmit, the future pope flew from Peru that morning in order to make it to the ceremony. As soon as the service was done, he immediately flew out to return to his missionary work in South America.
“At the time, we didn’t know he was coming,” Heather remembers. “My dad was saying he had a surprise for me and it was about who was going to marry us.”
Shortly before the ceremony began, the future pope walked through the door and presided over their wedding in front of roughly 75 family and friends inside the St. Rita chapel.
“Every time we talk about it, we just cry,” Heather says. “It’s like happy tears, you know? I wish my dad was here to see it, because that was one of his good friends.”
Dominic, still dumbfounded days later, chimes in: “I mean, what are the odds? It’s like one in a million. I can say that I got married by the pope!”
His only wish was that Pope Leo XIV had stuck around for their wedding reception later that night. “Maybe I could’ve had a couple cocktails with the pope,” Dominic laughs.
