***UPDATE, September 2, 2015 at 3:30PM -- Due to significant demand for tickets, all requests moving forward will now be placed on a waiting list.***

PROVIDENCE, RI – U.S. Senator Jack Reed’s office is now accepting requests from Rhode Islanders for tickets to be a part of His Holiness Pope Francis’ address to Congress on Thursday, September 24 at 10:00 a.m.  This will be a historic address, as Pope Francis will be the first pope to ever address a joint meeting of Congress.

Outdoor jumbotrons will be installed on the U.S. Capitol’s West Front lawn and ticketholders will be able to watch Pope Fancis’ address to Congress via a live broadcast.  After the speech, Pope Francis is expected to make a brief appearance on the West Front of the U.S. Capitol.

The tickets are outdoors and standing room only.

Rhode Islanders wishing to request a ticket may do so here or by calling (401) 943-3100.  The deadline for requests is Thursday, September 10, at 6:00 p.m.  Those receiving tickets will be notified via e-mail and must pick them up in person at the senator’s DC office.  Tickets are non-transferable. 

Ticket-holders are responsible for their own transportation and other trip expenses.

Pope Francis is scheduled to visit the United States from September 22 through 27.  Washington, DC will be the pontiff’s first stop.  He is scheduled to spend two days in our nation’s capital, where he will meet with President Obama at the White House, attend a prayer service with U.S. bishops at St. Matthew’s Cathedral, and a canonization Mass for Junipero Serra -- an 18th-century Franciscan missionary -- at the Shrine of the Immaculate Conception.  Pope Francis will then travel to New York City and Philadelphia.

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