‘Today’s Al Roker Shares Emotional Birthday Tribute to His Late Father
What To Know
- Al Roker shared an emotional Instagram tribute to his late father, Al Roker Sr., on what would have been his 94th birthday.
- Fans and Roker’s family shared their love for Roker’s late father in the post’s comments.
- Roker continues to honor both his late parents on social media while preparing for significant family milestones, including his daughter Leila’s upcoming nuptials.
Before celebrating Valentine’s Day with his wife, Deborah Roberts, Al Roker took to social media to celebrate the memory of an important loved one.
In a Thursday, February 12, Instagram post, Roker paid tribute to his late father, Al Roker, Sr., on what would have been his birthday. “94 years ago, the man who shaped my life was born,” the Today host wrote. “Al Roker, Sr. meant so much to so many. 25 years have passed since he left us and his family still misses him. I am so proud to be his namesake.”
Roker’s post featured a montage of photos of himself and his father from over the years, as well as snaps of Roker Sr. with Roker’s mother, Isabel, and with his two daughters, Courtney and Leila. Roker shares Leila with his late ex-wife, Alice Bell, and Leila with Roberts, whom he married in 1995. Roker’s father died in 2001 after a battle with lung cancer, just one year before he and Roberts welcomed their son, Nick.
“Happy Birthday, Pop Pop 💗,” Leila wrote in the post’s comments, while Today‘s Sheinelle Jones commented three red heart emojis. Hundreds of fans shared their own birthday wishes to the late Roker Sr., with one person writing, “Happy Heavenly Birthday to your Dad -Al may you always enjoy those amazing memories you all shared💙.”
Another person wrote, “May your marvelous Dad rest in peace and his memory always be a blessing to you and your family. 🙏.” Someone else shared, “Happy birthday to your wonderful dad! And yes, he would be so proud of you.” A different user commented, “A beautiful tribute, happy heavenly birthday to your Dad, Al. ❤️.”
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Roker previously honored his dad with a sweet Father’s Day post via Instagram in June 2025. “This #fathersday I’m really missing Al Roker, Sr.,” he wrote at the time. “While no Dad is perfect, he was a loving, caring, funny Dad who pretended to be this tough guy (who was when he needed to be) but was really a soft touch his kids and a doting grandfather. And oh, how he would have loved Sky. Miss you, Pop-Pop.”
Earlier that year, Roker also celebrated his late mother’s birthday by sharing more throwback family photos. “For the first time I can remember, Easter coincides with Isabel Roker’s birthday. I always think about her raising her arms up during the Easter hymn, ‘I Am The Bread Of Life,'” he captioned the Instagram post. “Deborah and the kids always watch me during the song in case I lose it and they console me. Happy Birthday, Mom.” (Isabel died at the age of 73 in 2007.)
As Roker continues to honor his parents’ memory via social media, he is preparing to celebrate a major parenting moment later this year. Leila announced her engagement to Sylvain Gricourt in March 2025, and the couple is expected to walk down the aisle later this year. (Roker’s eldest daughter, Courtney, married Wesley Laga in 2021, and the pair welcomed their daughter, Sky, in 2023.)
“We have to do a small ceremony in France because she lives in Paris,” Roberts shared on an October 2025 episode of Live With Kelly and Mark. “And so they have to do something small there, and I said, ‘Let’s keep it teeny tiny’— and then she wants to come home.”
She went on to joke, “I think we’re gonna survive. We have plans going and we, I think we’ve got everything done.”
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