what happened to governor abbott

Governor Greg Abbott was seriously injured by a falling tree while jogging in July 1984, which left him paralyzed below the waist and confined to a wheelchair. The accident occurred when a large oak tree along his path cracked and fell on his back, leaving him with several crushed vertebrae splintering into his spinal cord, broken ribs, and damage to vital organs. Abbott underwent a lengthy recovery process, during which he was reminded of lessons he’d learned all his life, especially the lesson of perseverance. Despite the accident, Abbott returned to work and later left the law firm in 1992 to become a state trial judge. Four years later, he was appointed to a vacant seat on the Texas Supreme Court by Gov. George W. Bush. Abbott is the first Texas governor and third governor of a U.S. state to use a wheelchair, the others being Franklin D. Roosevelt and George Wallace.