John George Vlazny (born February 22, 1937) is an American prelate of the Roman Catholic Church. He served as the tenth archbishop of the Archdiocese of Portland in Oregon from 1997 to 2013. Vlazny previously served as an auxiliary bishop of the Archdiocese of Chicago in Illinois from 1983 to 1987 and as bishop of the Diocese of Winona in Minnesota from 1987 to 1997. On January 29, 2013, Pope Benedict XVI announced the acceptance of his resignation, with Bishop Alexander Sample to succeed him in Portland. Biography Early life John Vlazny was born on February 22, 1937, in Chicago, Illinois, to John and Marie (née Brezina) Vlazny, who were of Czech ancestry. His father was originally married to the sister of Vlazny's mother, Hattie Brezina, who died when their daughter, Marcella, was 13. In addition to his half-sister, John Vlazny has a younger sister, Marion. His father, who died from cancer when Vlazny was 18, owned a pharmacy in a three-story building at the corner of 18th and Throop Streets. Vlazny received his early education at the parochial school of St. Gall Church in Chicago After attending Archbishop Quigley Preparatory Seminary in Chicago, he studied at St. Mary of the Lake Seminary in Mundelein, Illinois where he earned a Bachelor of Arts degree in 1958. Vlazny continued his studies in Rome, where he attended the Pontifical North American College and the Pontifical Gregorian University. He earned a Bachelor of Sacred Theology in 1960 and a Licentiate of Sacred Theology in 1962. Priesthood On December 20, 1961, Vlazny was ordained to the priesthood for the Archdiocese of Chicago by Archbishop Martin J. O'Connor in Rome at St. Peter's Basilica. Following his return to Chicago, Vlazny served on the faculty of Quigley Preparatory North, later Archbishop Quigley Preparatory Seminary, in Chicago from 1963 to 1979. He was also dean of studies at Quigley North from 1969 to 1979. In addition to his academic duties, Vlazny served as an associate pastor at St. Paul of the Cross Parish in Park Ridge, Illinois, from 1962 to 1963. He then served at St. Clement Parish in Lincoln Park, Illinois, from 1963 to 1968, and earned a Master of Arts degree in the Classics from the University of Michigan in 1967. Vlazny became an associate pastor at St. Aloysius Parish in the Wicker Park section of Chicago in 1968, and served as its pastor from