Ross Cooper remembers the overwhelming feeling while in the presence of Pope John Paul II three years ago during World Youth Day in Toronto.

Standing some 35 metres away from the Pope, amongst a crowd of 400,000 who turned out to greet the pontiff in the summer of 2002, the Whitehorse resident could feel an aura emanating from the head of the Catholic church.

'I don't know how to describe it; you kind of get butterflies in your stomach,' he said. 'It was just amazing to see him sitting up, and he gets so much respect.'

Cooper said the most memorable moment he remembers about the trip to World Youth Day was a quick quip from John Paul II. As the crowd cheered, he came out with something like, 'Let's hear it for the Pope!'

Cooper laughed, the hundreds of thousands laughed along with a man who became frail in his later years but maintained his commitment with a sense of humour.

'He was in his 80s, and he was crippled, but man, he still had his mind.'

John Paul II died Saturday, as Catholics and the faithful of other religions mourned.

He is remembered for many things, including his commitment to youth and social justice around the globe, and fostering communications with other faiths.

Father Jim Bleackley of the Sacred Heart Cathedral in Whitehorse said he was impressed in the later years of the Pope's life with his willingness to apologize for the past wrongs of the Catholic Church.

When he visited Fort Smith, N.W.T., several years ago, Pope John Paul II recommended that Canadian society move ahead to reach settlements with the country's native people, he recalled.

Bleackley said the Pope also reminded Canadians while here of their obligation to share their abundance with the Third Word, the sick and the poor.

'There was a certain sadness because the Pope had died,' he said of the feeling among parishioners attending church Sunday.

'But at the same time, there was a realization he was an elderly man, and he was very ill at the end.'

Bleackley saw the Pope in Fort Smith and in Toronto as part of the Whitehorse delegation for World Youth Day. He said the Sacred Heart Cathedral will likely hold a special mass or liturgy on Friday, the day of the Pope's funeral.

'It is certainly a time of transition in the church,' Sister Edith Elder of the Koinonia Association of Whitehorse said this morning.

'I think Pope John Paul made a good contribution, not just to the Church but to the world around him.'

It was this Pope, Elder pointed out, who is credited with helping end communist rule in his home country of Poland.

Elder also recognized Pope John Paul's dedication to youth.

He provided them with encouragement and respect while taking strength from them as well, she said.

'To him, I think the youth gave him energy, even when his health was really failing.'

Elder said while it is a time of sadness, it's also a time of happiness for the selection of the Pope's successor.

Catholic tradition, said the sister, sees the selection of a new Pope as a time to choose a leader who's meant to bring forward the strengths the Church needs most at this time.