BACKGROUND Caritas operates 10 healthcare clinics in Gaza and employs 126 staff. During the war, Israel has blocked most humanitarian and medical aid from entering Gaza, leaving children to suffer from preventable and treatable illnesses. Caritas aimed to draw attention to the continued restriction of aid and deliver medical aid to children in Gaza. IDEA To highlight the restricted aid by converting Pope Francis’s popemobile into a mobile healthcare clinic for children in Gaza. INSIGHTS & STRATEGY We created an initiative impossible for the media to ignore. Transforming the Pope’s popemobile into a healthcare unit for Gaza’s children carried strong symbolic power – if it received his blessing. Named Vehicle of Hope, it became a symbol of children’s rights and the need for humanitarian aid in Gaza. The initiative was planned to generate earned media at key moments: the announcement, the unveiling of the converted popemobile, and either its entry into Gaza or its denial by Israeli authorities. The message focused solely on children’s right to humanitarian aid. EXECUTION In November 2024, a proposal was delivered to Pope Francis in Rome by Swedish Cardinal Anders Arborelius. A few weeks later, Pope Francis approved and blessed the initiative. In February 2025, Caritas located the popemobile used during Francis's 2014 visit to the West Bank and began converting it in a garage in Bethlehem. Before the conversion was completed, Pope Francis became ill and died. With uncertainty around who the next pope would be, the initiative needed to be publicly launched before the conclave. We pitched it to The New York Times. On May 4, 2025, a week after Pope Francis's funeral, they published the story. It triggered massive global coverage – with a potential earned reach of 14 billion in the first 7 days. The converted vehicle was unveiled to international press in Bethlehem on November 25. The unit is equipped with diagnostic instruments, oxygen supply, vaccines, and antibiotics. The Vehicle of Hope can provide primary care to 200 children per day. RESULTS Earned reach: 18.5 billion (May-Dec 2025) Articles: 5.200+ TV & radio: 2.800+ Social echo: 61k Mentions: 103k Total engagement: 1.67M Published in 187 countries Earned media value: $187 million (Source: Meltwater) The initiative inspired other NGOs to build seven mobile clinics for Gaza. It has increased pressure to allow humanitarian aid into Gaza. The Vehicle of Hope is awaiting permission to enter Gaza.