Tourists at Ritz find solace in chat with Roger Daltrey
Tags: Manalapan, Palm Beach Ritz-Carlton, Roger Daltrey, The Who
| Friday 30 October 2009 1:08 pm
Roger Daltrey in the surf near the Ritz-Carlton in Manalapan this week (Mavrixphoto.com/Special to Page2Live)
For all the evil at the Ritz-Carlton Palm Beach earlier this week, when a Holocaust denier’s lecture was disrupted by a bloody fight between two followers, there was plenty of good will.
That came courtesy of Roger Daltrey, the voice of the British rock band The Who.
The pop culture icon, 65, who’s been resting here while on break from his solo tour, met a couple from New Jersey staying in the hotel lobby and ended up in a hour-long conversation that the duo, Joe and Joan Vrola, won’t soon forget.
The topic was the Vrolas’ 22-year-old son, Joey, who just came out of a bout with cancer. Teen cancer happens to be what Daltrey calls his life’s work. He started the Teenage Cancer Trust in England and funds the work of the foundation yearly with a week-long series of concerts at the famous Royal Albert Hall in London.
By the end of the chat, Joan Vrola was in tears in Daltrey’s arms. Finally, someone understood!
“This was probably the most therapeutic conversation we had with anyone since our son was diagnosed (three years ago),” Joe Vrola said. “Our son is doing much better physically, but he’s not the same kid. There’s an anguish associated with the disease that teens, especially, need to deal with.
“Bad things happen to them when it comes to drinking and drugs and isolation. The hospital may be good at curing, but they provide no psychological counseling. No one in this country seems to understand that, but Roger Daltrey does.”
Daltrey’s Trust indeed provides counseling and moral support to afflicted teens.
Hours later, Daltrey was on the phone with the Vrolas’ son, who at first didn’t know anything about Daltrey. Hope, Vrola said, is what Daltrey was passing on.
“Besides close family, there aren’t too many people who actually care,” Joe Vrola said. “But here you have this total stranger who does.”
“That’s Roger,” said his friend in West Palm Beach, Realtor Leslie Linder. “He wants to change the world one person at a time.”
Joe Vrola wanted to know why Daltrey made teenage cancer his cause, so he asked the singer of Behind Blue Eyes, Who Are You and Pinball Wizard if any of his nine children ever had the disease.
“He said no,”Vrola said,“but his answer had the hair on the back of my neck stand straight. He said teens made him what he is. They were his biggest fans. He said he just wants to give back to those who supported him all these years.”
What a class act!!!
Outstanding, indeed a class act,and he looks damn good for 65…..Wow
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AWESOME!!!
Finally a good piece of news from Lambiet. It took a few thousand articles but I knew he had a good one in him somewhere.
Roger Daltry is a true superstar. Many years ago when
I was a young, naive woman, I met Roger. It was at the Parker Meridian lobby in NYC. He had just flown in from a concert in Canada.I was petrified to meet him because I had (have} such great respect for his work. So I was pretty,much tongue tied. He was such a gentleman that night. He said, ” Hi! How are you? Are you OK?”I thought that was so sweet!He knew that this silly,young woman was uncomfortable and he tried to make me feel at ease. He obviously loves his wife and his family! What a man!!
What a guy. Classy, sincere, grateful, empathetic. God Bless that man 100 times over.
The WHO is one of the all-time greatest rock bands ever… that’s an opinion… but what is a fact is Roger Daltry is an amazing human being that is making an impact on other people’s lives! I venture to guess that RD would be doing such even if he hadn’t been filling up stadiums, arenas, our ipods, etc since the 60’s.
What a wonderful, uplifting and inspiring story about the pain and isolation that parents endure when a child gets stricken with cancer. Roger Daltry is a true humanitarian who has taken a very real but often ignored topic and put a face to it through the Vrolas. What a strong and determined family. I’m sure that with parents such as they, and friends like Roger Daltry, their son will have nothing short than total success in battling this deadly disease all all that goes with it.
The best thing I’ve read about in months-what a great story of compassion towards those struggling, in an effort to make a difference.
Roger Rules!!
They don’t make em’ like this anymore!
Great, touching story.
exactly. he’s a product of socialism. this means every one gets care and inclusion. so many are still in this frontier-lone wolf mentality-in this country. like the guy said our system was good on the physical end but did nothing about the phychic fallout. it’s also the reason there are so many great bands from england. a kid can try to be an artist without being homeless and having his teeth and brains fall out. and by the way, there are millions of stories worse than this that are going on, people in misery, who are dying with nowhere near the care thats available.there at wal-mart not the ritz-carleton
Great story. You should write more stories like this one. I’m sure he’s not the only celeb that does great things.
It is so nice Roger did not forget who made him famous and to give back to teenagers is just heartwarming. I hate that we hear so much negativity about teens when there are millions of teens who are awesome people.
What a gift for so many that Roger “didn’t die before he got old.”
Roger has always been devoted to his fans, and the extension of that is the TCC. He has been a tireless advocate for teens with cancer for many many years. He may have rough tough stage persona, but he is true softy inside, and as evidenced by this article-a true gentleman. LONG LIVE ROCK !!
What a hottie
Roger Daltrey is nothing but a class act. I’m grateful he was able to make a family feel a bit better about something that has made them feel so bad for so long.
I must tell you….I was given my “dream come true” as a surprise at the VH1 ROCK HONOURS THE WHO ….was given the best gift in the world to finally meet my idol of 40 years, I am inflicted with Muscular Dystrophy and flew to the VH1 HONOURS to see the concert and attend the WHO SUMMITS, but was surprised with a wonderful meeting with Roger Daltrey, CBE. My friends worked it out and all kept the secret. He was so sweet with me the entire weekend. Saying such wonderful things to me and coming over to the stage that I was leaning on where he came out and told me, “I looked great”…he gave me his harmonica after using it on Baba O’Reily and if you see the end of the VH1 concert…..he came over to me, knelt down (I am wearing the light blue cap) he brushed my cheek and arm and told me the sweetest farewell. A farewell that I will never forget..I started to cry as I left the arena.
Roger Daltrey CBE is the greatest man alive…you know what…I miss him so….Alyce Johnson, Pembroke Pines, Florida
Roger is a class act. Loyal, kind and true to his fans, friends and causes- just my opinion, but …. I had backstage passes to a Ft Lauderdale concert in 2006. The first person I met as I went backstage was Roger. He was so sweet. He made me feel as if I was the celebrity. A short time later, I was told to enjoy myself to the max by my host(not a band member), but not to talk to “the talent”. When I told him I had already spoken with Roger and found him to be quite receptive, I was then told okay, but no pictures. Too late! I have a picture of me with Roger to treasure always. Roger even took the time to autograph a copy of it at a later date. His kindness impressed me then and always! Great Guy! I welcome him to WPB–hope he stays here every time he is in the states. It would be my pleasure to meet him again!
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This post was mentioned on Twitter by BrianInAtlanta: Roger Daltrey provides solace for parents of U.S. teenage cancer victim. http://bit.ly/4eZmN0 #thewho…
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