YVR Chapel was delighted to welcome Archbishop Richard Smith, installed as Roman Catholic Archbishop of Vancouver in May 2025. His tour of YVR began at the Chapel, where he warmly greeted Drew Pankrath, Manager of Guest Experience, and the other airport and chapel staff who welcomed him. The Archbishop was pleased to meet Deacon Wilfred Victoria, the Catholic chaplain at YVR, and the small team of volunteers who assist Father Mark Bautista during the Catholic Mass offered for employees and passengers in the chapel every Sunday at 4 p.m.

The Archbishop’s tour of the airport included YVR’s little-seen Integrated Operations Centre. Leading the tour, Chapel board member Nick Anderson explained how the banks of CCTV monitors in one of its rooms display live airport activity, including gate operations, passenger congestion points, baggage systems, aircraft movements, weather conditions, and security issues. Another room, the centre’s emergency response room, usually sits empty, but it quickly fills with personnel when dealing with emergencies like the Westjet aircraft that recently had landing gear trouble. The aircraft landed safely, but the incident offered a glimpse into the airport’s emergency response team.

Strongly committed to Canada’s Truth and Reconciliation process, Archbishop Smith expressed his appreciation for YVR’s many beautiful Indigenous art installations. The Archbishop was pleased that his visit to YVR enabled him to get to know his new home city a little better, and the Chapel was honoured to be able to host Archbishop Smith and thank him in person for the Catholic Church’s support through the years.

Archbishop Smith’s visit to YVR Chapel was reported on in more detail by B.C. Catholic editor Paul Schratz and our own Deacon Wilfred Smith. See their articles here.

Photo credits: All photos by Paul Schratz/The B.C. Catholic photos