Archbishop-designate Ronald Hicks is preparing to be installed Friday as the 11th archbishop of New York. Hicks held a news conference Thursday at St. Patrick’s Cathedral in Midtown, where the special installation Mass will take place.

The archbishop-designate comes to the Archdiocese of New York after spending the last five years leading the Diocese of Jolliet in Illinois.

Hicks was born and raised in the south suburbs of Chicago – just 14 blocks from where Pope Leo the 14th grew up.

Hicks previously served as a missionary in Latin America, including five years in El Salvador.

He said part of his theme during the installation Mass will be about building bridges and a stronger faith. “New York is a place where the whole world lives and calls home; and the Catholic Church is universal, gathering and engaging everyone,” said Hicks.

The 58-year-old succeeds Cardinal Timothy Dolan, who served the Archdiocese of New York since 2009 and reached the church’s mandatory retirement age of 75.

The celebration at St. Patrick’s Cathedral kicks off Thursday night with a special prayer service known as vespers, and the official installation Mass will be held at 2 p.m. on Friday.