The first Chicago native to become the city’s archbishop, George grew up in a working class neighborhood on Chicago’s northwest side. A five-month bout with polio at age 13 left him with a lifelong limp.
He was initially rejected from a high school seminary because he was disabled, but went on to become an intellectual leader within the church. George earned two doctorates, spoke Italian, Spanish, French and other languages, and wrote several books. A member of the Missionary Oblates of Mary Immaculate, he eventually helped lead the religious order as vicar general based in Rome. In 1990, he was appointed Bishop of Yakima, Wash., then archbishop of Portland, Ore., before being assigned to Chicago.
George’s appointment to the Archdiocese of Chicago, the third-largest diocese in the U.S. with 2.2 million parishioners, underscored the shift under John Paul toward upholding orthodoxy and drawing a more definitive line about what could be considered truly Catholic.
via Raymond A on EWTN
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WqExW14GA3U
Cardinal George interview he discusses his health