"We wish you all the best and all the love and we hope you really thrive in this new year."
On Friday, January 6, Al Roker and co-anchors Sheinelle Jones, Dylan Dreyer, and Craig Melvin returned to the 3rd Hour of Today. Al's three children—Courtney, 35, Nick, 20, and Leila, 24—took the time to film some heartfelt "welcome back" messages for their father to mark his return to TODAY. Al could not stop smiling as he watched and listened to his kids express their messages of love and support, occasionally gazing down and giggling to himself before turning to look at his kids' recordings.
This is the moment we prayed for. Al fought his way back from a life threatening illness to get back to work and to his life with our family. pic.twitter.com/tEcZmoDqqw
— Deborah Roberts (@DebRobertsABC) January 6, 2023
Courtney, standing next to her husband, Wesley Laga in the video, said, "Hey dad, just wanted to welcome you back to work and tell you I love you." His son-in-law added in the same video, "We are so proud of you and we can’t wait to see you back in action back on the TODAY Show." Al's son, Nick was next in the video, and he said, "We wish you all the best and all the love and we hope you really thrive in this new year." Following Nick was Al's daughter Leila, who said, "We’re all so happy that you’re back in the office — we know how much you love your job, so we’re so happy that you can be back there and with your TODAY Show fam. Just wishing you the best day, and love you!"
Al said that one of the benefits of his harrowing months-long medical journey was "having them all together" while he listened to his children support him. "Leila took time off from her job in Paris and was here for five weeks," he added. "Seeing them all together ... and they just fell back into their rhythms."
Al's blood clot in his leg led to his initial hospital admission in November 2022. He was released on Thanksgiving Day, then went back to the hospital for another procedure, before finally heading home to recover on December 8. Al shared new information about the health problem that had kept him away from the Today show for two months, per PEOPLE. The 68-year-old weatherman told up about his health, stating that he underwent a challenging 7-hour surgery, with his wife Deborah Roberts by his side. It gradually became a terrifying array of medical problems that took Roker to the hospital twice. "Look, I had two complicating things," Roker said on Today. "I had blood clots, which they think came up after I had COVID in September. And then I had this internal bleeding going on, I lost half my blood. They were trying to figure out where it was."
Al talked of the loving gestures his son Nick made for him while he was recovering. "Nick would literally come around every 10 minutes and lean over and kiss me on the head because he just towers over me," Al said, laughing. "I feel like a little Polly Pocket."
Despite the massive health concerns Al had, he said it was "really special" to have all of his family members present, including some who were even in the hospital with him while he recovered from a 7-hour operation. "My daughter Leila spent four nights at the hospital. Nick came in; Courtney came in; My brother Chris, and my sister Lisa flew in from Chicago," he explained. "All of you coming in to visit ... it meant so much."
Al admitted that he misses spending time with his TODAY Show coworkers. “I have missed you all,” he said. “I’ve seen you all at different times but just (to be) together ... and we’re actually wearing pants!”
References:
https://www.today.com/parents/dads/al-rokers-children-welcome-back-today-show-rcna64609
Cover Image Source: Instagram | @alroker
