Retired businessman, volunteer Norman Rolfe dies

Every Wednesday for the past six years, Norman Rolfe volunteered at the Massey Cancer Center's Stony Point office, pushing the cart that brought snacks and drinks to patients receiving chemotherapy.

Diagnosed himself with splenic marginal non-Hodgkin's lymphoma about 15 years ago, "he felt so strongly about where he was," said Polly Cole, coordinator of Massey's volunteers and the patients' library.

"I've seen him go into a room, smile, sit on a chair and just be quiet. Maybe he would reach over and touch a hand. He gave you the impression that he had all the time in the world to spend with you, to talk or to be quiet with you," Cole said. "Having him come into your room while you were having chemotherapy was like having your own teddy bear come in. He was a gift to our patients. You don't have volunteers like Norman."

When times were tight and there was no money to stock the cart, "Norman would sell raffle tickets -- hundreds of raffle tickets" to raise the money, Cole said. He recruited volunteers.

Mr. Rolfe, retired president and co-founder of Southern Distributors Inc., a wholesale Business, died Sept. 28 at VCU Medical Center.

Private services will be held for the 85-year-old New York native, who grew up with extended family in the Bronx and Manhattan during the Depression. During high school, he worked in the Garment District for 35 cents an hour, said his son, Robert M. Rolfe of Richmond.

When he was 17, friends talked him into attending the University of Richmond.

The Army drafted him during his sophomore year, and he served with the 90th Infantry Division in Patton's Third Army during World War II. He was hospitalized for a year after the concussive force of an explosion injured his knee during the Battle of the Bulge.

In 1948, he went into the wholesale business with his father-in-law and brother-in-law. "If you walked into a drugstore, they wholesaled everything except the drugs," his son said. He retired in 2001.

"He really enjoyed people," his son said. "He helped a zillion people along the way but would never tell you who he helped."

Polly Cole recalled that "the spotlight was never on Norman. He always turned it around so it was always on you. He was such a gentleman and so genuine with turning it around that you felt good."

In addition to his son, survivors include his wife, Bertha Cohen Rolfe, also a cancer survivor; a daughter, Robin Partin of Henrico County; a sister, Adele Safran of New York; and six grandsons and one great-granddaughter.

Contact Ellen Robertson at (804) 649-6115 or .