Jakab Antal House Renovated for Pope Francis’s Visit to Șumuleu Ciuc

On 1 June 2019, Pope Francis, head of the Catholic Church, visited Șumuleu Ciuc. The Vatican delegation chose Jakab Antal House as the place where the Holy Father would have lunch and rest. Although 80% of the building’s renovation had already been completed, it was also important to improve the surroundings, upgrade the facilities and complete the works that had not been covered by previous funding, thus making the House worthy of this special occasion.

To carry out these works, the Government of Hungary provided financial support of 67 million Hungarian forints through Bethlen Gábor Alapkezelő Nonprofit Zrt. The renovation of the courtyard was completed between 15 April and 30 December 2019.

The implementation of the funded project was coordinated by the Health and Social Care Department of Caritas Alba Iulia, as this department of the organisation operates Jakab Antal House.

The funding was intended to upgrade the facilities and surroundings of Jakab Antal House and to complete the outstanding repair works, including:

1. Renovation of the courtyard walkways and paving of the terrace
2. Modernisation and expansion of the facilities and equipment
3. Improvement of the Kalot building to facilitate the use of its conference rooms
4. Extension of the building through the installation of a lift