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The final bill before me today is Introductory Number 885, sponsored by Speaker Vallone, Council Members Foster, Berman, and Carrion, in conjunction with my Administration. The bill would add the name "John Cardinal O'Connor Way" to East 50th Street, between 5th and Madison Avenues, in Manhattan.
John Cardinal O'Connor was born on January 15, 1920 in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. After graduating from West Catholic High School, he entered St. Charles Borromeo Seminary and was ordained a priest of the Archdiocese of Philadelphia on December 15, 1945. The Cardinal went on to earn a Master's Degree in Advanced Ethics and Clinical Psychology, and he completed the course work for a Ph.D. in Political Science.
In 1952, at the request of the Archbishop of Philadelphia, the Cardinal entered military service during the Korean War, as a chaplain for the Navy and Marine Corps. He remained in military service for decades, ministering to United States servicemen and women around the world, and earning many citations, including three Legion of Merit Awards, the Meritorious Service Medal, and the Distinguished Service Medal. From 1975-1979, Cardinal O'Connor served as the Navy's Chief of Chaplains. When he retired from the Navy in 1979, he held the rank of Rear Admiral.
Pope John Paul II ordained John O'Connor a Bishop on May 27, 1979 at St. Peter's Basilica in Rome. In his first assignment, he served as an Auxiliary Bishop to New York's Terence Cardinal Cooke and oversaw the Military Vicariate. In 1983, John O'Connor took possession of his own diocese when the Pope named him Bishop of Scranton. Soon after, on January 31, 1984, the Pope appointed him Archbishop of New York and, a year later, elevated him to Cardinal.
John Cardinal O'Connor's sixteen-year tenure as New York's Cardinal Archbishop was marked by compassion and vocal leadership. Those sixteen years have accorded him a special and notable place in the City's history and made him an adoptive son of New York. He was a tireless spokesman for the tenets of his faith, ceaselessly urging all people of good will to honor the dignity of workers and to remember the humanity of the poor, especially immigrants. Even those who disagreed with him at times came to respect his tenacious faith and unflagging devotion to human worth. When he passed away, thousands came to pay their respects, and his funeral was attended by political and civic leaders of every stripe. Just before he died, Congress acknowledged his tremendous contributions to the national dialogue on many issues when it awarded the Cardinal the Congressional Gold Medal.
John O'Connor's life was a life of service to his country, to his Church and
to his God. It is fitting, therefore, for the City that became his adoptive
home to honor him with an appropriately humble memorial. Therefore, I am honored
to add the name "John Cardinal O'Connor Way," to East 50th Street,
between 5th and Madison Avenues, right beside St. Patrick's Cathedral.
For the reasons previously stated, I will now sign the bill.
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