‘The George Tiller I Remember’
Some things you may not have known about Dr. George Tiller: The George Tiller I remember.
In the week since his murder, Dr. George Tiller has been variously described as a hero or a lightning rod. I knew him well for more than a decade and I want to let you know what drove George Tiller.
He was born during World War II to a comfortable middle class family in Kansas. His father was a physician and a pillar of the community. George grew up in middle America, played sports, went to church, studied medicine and served in the army. He intended to become a dermatologist and to continue to live the kind of life he knew.
Then, in 1970, his parents, sister and brother-in-law died in a plane crash. George moved back to Wichita to take care of his baby nephew and to close out his father’s family practice. While doing so, neighborhood women approached him and asked if he would continue to secretly provide abortions, as his father had done.
