President Ronald W. Reagan meets with Pope John Paul II at the Vatican June 6, 1987. Reagan, 93, died June 5 at his home in Bel Air, Calif., after a long struggle with Alzheimer’s disease. The pontiff paid tribute to Reagan, noting his important role in the fall of European communism. (CNS file photo) (June 9, 2004) See POPE-REAGAN (UPDATED) June 8, 2004.