He performs for her medical bills

When his wife got cancer and had no insurance, the singer decided to use his talent to pay.

By CAMILLE C. SPENCER, Times Staff Writer
Published November 17, 2007

HUDSON - On a cloudy Thursday afternoon, patients filtered in and out of the waiting room at the chiropractic office.

Some didn't seem to notice Stan Prinston in a canary yellow shirt and dark sunglasses, standing in the corner behind a sound mixer, belting out a set of soft rock hits.

"Sweet Caroline ..."

"Miss Betty? Miss Karen?" said a nurse to two women in the waiting room.

"Good times never seemed so good ..."

Prinston's concert wasn't an impromptu event. It was a daylong benefit to raise money for his wife's breast cancer surgeries.

He is 63, and Stephanie is 60. They met in New York, moved to Florida and got married six years ago.

He is a professional singer. He spends his evenings on stage at restaurants in the bay area, or singing for events sponsored by WDUV-FM, an easy listening station.

She was an opthamologist's technician until work got slow in February and she started booking her husband's gigs from home.

Last month, Stephanie was diagnosed with breast cancer.

She doesn't have health insurance, and Prinston knew her medical bills would be expensive. So Prinston talked to his chiropractor, Brian Dahmer, about doing something to raise money for her bills.

The two decided to have an event that featured Prinston singing, and the chiropractic office decided to donate half of the day's profits to Stephanie. Plans came together for a raffle, and local businesses donated items such as oil changes and gift baskets.

On Thursday, the standard cookout fare of hot dogs and hamburgers filled a table in the small waiting room at Family Chiropractic Center for Wellness.

"You'll never find ... another love like mine ..." crooned Prinston, belting out a Lou Rawls tune.

Stephanie sat in the waiting room next to her husband, just a week after surgery that removed a small tumor from her left breast.

Chatter buzzed in the air.

She sat quietly, filling out new patient forms to treat back pain she's had since before the surgery, and tilting her head periodically to look at Stan.

"Stephanie?" called the nurse.

"September morning, still can make me feel that way ..."

A few minutes later, after Prinston wrapped things up with James Taylor's How Sweet It Is, his singing hour was over. Prinston had a gig later that night in Spring Hill, and wanted to save his voice.

"How sweet it is for everybody to show up today," he said, as the music faded.

Camille C. Spencer can be reached at cspencer@sptimes.com or 727 869-6229.

[Last modified November 16, 2007, 21:33:18]