RICHMOND, B.C. — When Pope Francis made his historic visit to Canada in July 2022, many stamp collectors around the world expected a commemorative issue from Canada Post.
But when none came, a Catholic stamp collector in Richmond stepped in.
Anthony Sales, a longtime philatelist and follower of papal travels, was surprised Canada Post declined to issue stamps or pictorial postmarks for the Pope’s six-day “penitential pilgrimage,” which focused on Indigenous healing and reconciliation.
Sales said he received inquiries from fellow collectors in Italy, Argentina, and Poland, asking whether Canada Post would be commemorating the event — as it had done for all three papal visits by St. John Paul II.
When he contacted the Crown corporation, Sales was told that due to limited time and resources, no stamp or pictorial cancellation would be produced. While the lack of a stamp was understandable — the process typically requires months of planning and design — Sales said pictorial postmarks could have been possible.
Determined to honour the Pope’s visit in some tangible way, Sales created his own tribute: two commemorative covers. One featured a photo of Pope Francis waving, and the other the official visit logo, “Walking Together.”
Each cover bore a picture postage stamp — either of Pope John Paul II or Marie-Anne Day Walker-Pelletier, a residential school survivor who had met with Pope Francis earlier that year in Rome.
Sales sent the covers by express mail to postmasters in Edmonton, Quebec City, and Iqaluit — the three Canadian cities on the Pope’s itinerary — with instructions to postmark them on the day the Pope arrived in each location.
All three post offices cooperated, and by the end of August 2022, Sales received the marked covers back.
He also mailed blank versions of the covers to a Vatican collector, who affixed official Vatican stamps and secured a cancellation using the special postmark issued by Vatican Post for the Canada trip.
Collectors worldwide responded with gratitude, Sales said. “They were most delighted to receive them and thanked me for going out of my way to have them prepared.”
Sales, who has followed every papal journey since 1979, said the 2022 visit gave Pope Francis the opportunity to meet the faithful in Canada and offer his apology for the Church’s role in residential schools.
The Pope died on Easter Monday, April 21, 2025, at age 88.
“He was a tireless shepherd of the Church, a beacon of hope, and a champion of the Gospel,” Sales said. “His legacy of compassion, humility, and dedication to justice will always be remembered.”
He added that he still hopes Canada Post will honour the late pontiff with a commemorative stamp in future.
Vatican Post Releases Stamp — Canada Post Doesn’t
While Canada Post declined to issue a stamp for the 2022 papal visit, the Vatican Post did.
The Vatican’s souvenir sheet, issued on Nov. 23, 2023, featured Pope Francis and noted the four countries he visited that year: Malta, Canada, Kazakhstan, and Bahrain. The portion honouring Canada showed a First Nations chief welcoming the Pope.
Vatican Post also produced a special pictorial postmark, with a cross, maple leaf, and the Papal insignia in the centre, inscribed: “Visit of Pope Francis to Canada July 24–30, 2022, Vatican Post.”
The stamp reflected the Pope’s words upon arrival: “I have come to your native lands to tell you in person of my sorrow … to express my closeness and to pray with you and for you.”
