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Volunteers From Business And Community Groups Preparing For Pope's Visit, World Meeting Of Families

By Mark Abrams

PHILADELPHIA (CBS) -- Volunteers from business and community groups are working behind-the-scenes on the logistics for the visit of Pope Francis and the World Meeting of Families in Philadelphia in September.

Bob Ciaruffoli, president of the World Meeting of Families Philadelphia organization, says with less than six months to go to the pope's visit, a strong team of business and community leaders are already putting together the key components necessary to pull off this historic event. And Ciaruffoli says it wasn't hard getting some key players to step up.

"How can I help is the number one question that we're getting," he says, "as opposed to what I'm going to get. It's how can I help."

This core group of high-powered volunteers come from major corporations, law and communications firms, the city's tourism and marketing community, and a host of government entities. One of the key components in the planning phase is visa and immigration issues for the thousands expected to travel to Philadelphia this fall for the World Meeting congress and the pope's visit.

"With 150 countries involved, and I travel a lot all over the world, and I have a lot of people coming into Philadelphia from around the world it's a big issue," Ciaruffoli says. "It's not easy to do and it's a process that needs to take place right now."

Ciaruffoli says they've already reached out to the region's congressional delegation and various federal agencies for help in expediting visa requests.

Meanwhile, the next phase of volunteer recruitment for the actual events at the end of September is expected to launch soon. Some 10,000 volunteers will be sought. Check here for updates on when that window opens.

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