WASHINGTON — Pope Francis took a break from official duties on his first full day in the United States on Wednesday to greet thousands of admirers — including one little girl who slipped past security.

Sophie Cruz, 5, of California, sneaked through a barricade along the Washington route and was walking toward the pontiff when a guard intercepted her.

But Francis beckoned to the girl, and a bodyguard brought her to him.

She delivered a letter asking that her mother and father and millions of others who are in the United States illegally be allowed to remain in the country, according to Gloria Saucedo, head of an advocacy group that arranged Sophie’s visit.

“I’m scared that the ICE will take my family away,” Sophie said later, referring to US Immigration and Customs Enforcement.

Her parents emigrated from Mexico about 10 years ago. Sophie and her sister were born in the United States and, therefore, are American citizens.

The man-of-the-people pope wore a broad smile and waved to the throngs, many waving white-and-yellow Vatican flags and chanting, “Papa! Papa!”

At one point, Francis had his Jeep Popemobile stop when he spotted a baby.

A member of his security team handed the pontiff 5-month-old Loukas Chavez, the son of Salvadoran immigrants living in Virginia. The pope kissed the boy on the head and blessed him.

“I just thought it was an unbelievable moment,” said the baby’s mother, Iris Chavez, 25, who held her daughter, Emely, almost 2, in her arms.

Along the parade route, street vendors were doing a steady business selling pope T-shirts, pins and Vatican flags — while a few protesters carried banners denouncing the pope and the Catholic Church.

With Wires