“Kindness and empathy are never overrated,” says Angie Hester Cook, co-founder and executive director of the Wonderful Life Foundation, which provides financial support to families fighting pediatric cancer.
Angie is more than empathetic to families struggling with childhood disease. She and husband Robbie Cook, the entrepreneurial team behind Hester & Cook design group, experienced the anguish themselves when their 2-year-old son was diagnosed with an inoperable brain tumor. Their son is now a thriving 21-year-old, and the Wonderful Life Foundation, which emerged from the Cooks’ experience, has been helping families in similar crises for 18 years.
“When a child is diagnosed with cancer, it is a trauma. It is emotionally, physically and financially devastating,” Angie says, adding that one parent must often quit their job in order to manage treatment and care of their child. “This adds an immense amount of pressure to an already traumatic situation. We witnessed so many families struggling financially. We wanted to serve these families in some way.”
Today, the Wonderful Life Foundation works closely with the Monroe Carell Jr. Children’s Hospital at Vanderbilt to provide grants to families in pediatric health crises, helping cover expenses related to transportation, rent, mortgage, utilities and other financial demands. “We are very focused on taking financial pressure off these families,” Angie says. “We want them to breathe a bit easier.”
In addition to community fundraisers — including a holiday screening of the classic film It’s a Wonderful Life at the historic Franklin Theatre — the Cooks direct a portion of proceeds from Hester & Cook stationery and paper product sales to the Wonderful Life Foundation.
Eventually, Angie hopes to operate a Wonderful Life home that supplements the work of organizations such as Ronald McDonald House.
“It is such an honor to be able to serve these families and take some pressure off of their already stressful situation,” Angie says. “I stand in a grateful place, and I am truly honored to serve families through the Wonderful Life Foundation.”
Dress: Zimmermann Hypnotic sheath dress (Gus Mayer)
Shoes: Romy mules (Saint Laurent)
Earrings: Chalcedony and tanzanite halo earrings (Patricia Marie Fine Jewelry)
Ring: Blossom Motif purple sapphire rings (Patricia Marie Fine Jewelry)
Florist: Studio Izrada
Commented
Sorry, there are no recent results for popular commented articles.