Charles W. Denko was born to immigrant parents. He entered first grade speaking only Russian. A teacher devised assignments that brought him to a level of excellent English in a single year. Polio at age one had left Charles with a severely crippled leg. A passing stranger noticed him struggling while at play. The man, a member of the Shriners Society, arranged for Charles to be sent to the group's hospital for a surgical procedure that enabled him to walk.