Today we’d like to introduce you to Rene Cook.
Alright, so thank you so much for sharing your story and insight with our readers. To kick things off, can you tell us a bit about how you got started?
My name is Rene Cook and I’m a native Nashvillian who’s also a two-time graduate of Belmont University– with both my Bachelor’s and Master of Business Administration. Second, to be a wife and mom, I absolutely LOVE serving as the Executive Director of Every Girl Counts, a small non-profit I co-founded with my husband and three daughters in 2014. Every Girl Counts is based in Franklin TN and operates a high school education program for girls in Nairobi Kenya. I never set out to start a nonprofit–the goal was to find a way to make a difference in the world that also demonstrated to my daughters what it looked like to help others. Being a mom to Georgia (age 22), Sadie (age 20), and Celia Tate (age 16) helped me become acutely aware of struggles that other girls face in different parts of the world that my own daughters would never face.
This led me on a research journey to hone in on the best way to make a tangible difference in the lives of disadvantaged girls. Education is something that, once you have it, can never be taken away from you. My journey into the nonprofit world was unexpected but has been so richly rewarding. I love being part of changing girls’ lives with education; I love being part of changing communities with education; and I love taking trips to work with our program in Kenya. But I especially love doing the work of Every Girl Counts with my husband and daughters, who have all made the journey to Kenya. There’s something so profoundly humbling in being a part of something bigger than yourself and doing that with the people you love.
I’m sure you wouldn’t say it’s been obstacle free, but so far would you say the journey has been a fairly smooth road?
The saying is true: what doesn’t kill you makes you stronger. The journey to present-day Every Girl Counts has had its share of obstacles, but these obstacles have been like a fire that refines metal and reveals beauty as the end product. For starters, I had a lot of self-doubt regarding my ability to lead the organization. When we founded Every Girl Counts, I had been a stay-at-home mom for almost 15 years and the business world had changed a lot since I was in Grad school, so I really felt inadequate early in the life of Every Girl Counts. But being part of Every Girl Counts has pushed me out of my comfort zone in so many beautiful ways: overcoming self-doubt and fear of public speaking, being comfortable traveling overseas alone, trying new and weird foods, immersing myself in a new and different culture, and as hard as it is for an introvert–opening myself up to new and fabulous people along the way!
Every Girl Counts initially built and opened a school in Kenya in 2016 but the partner we were working with at the time was dishonest and we ultimately had the school taken from us in 2018. This ended up being a huge blessing in disguise, but at the time, it was absolutely heartbreaking to have something you worked so hard to create and build be taken away. That difficult situation literally changed the trajectory of our organization for the better and we came out on the other side not only stronger but we had a more sustainable program model that could be replicated anywhere. (And there’s something to be said for maintaining your dignity and integrity in the face of adversity!)
In 2020 when everyone started working remotely due to covid, I felt like I was prepared because I’ve always worked remotely from the US with my team in Kenya. Managing our programming from such a far distance (9-hour time difference and almost 9,000 miles away) is a daily challenge that is what it is, but has enabled me personally and Every Girl Counts as an organization, to be more flexible and adaptable with time, resources, and expectations.
Great, so let’s talk business. Can you tell our readers more about what you do and what you think sets you apart from others?
Since 2016, Every Girl Counts has helped break the cycle of poverty through girls’ secondary education. We also use education as our inroads to sharing the Gospel of Jesus with girls, their families, and their communities. We’re based in Franklin TN with a current ministry focus in Nairobi Kenya. We have a three-pronged approach: Educate. Empower. Sustain.
We partner with local day schools in Nairobi to educate girls at the high school level and provide scholarships for their education. The girls we serve are coming from families living in slums that are faced with the crisis of choosing either to educate their child or feed their family. A girl’s annual scholarship ($570) will cover the cost of her tuition, school uniform, school shoes, monthly feminine hygiene products, daily hot meal at school, access to fresh water and healthcare, any textbooks and supplies not provided by the school, weekly bible study and life skills training, and the ongoing support of our local Kenya team.
I’m very proud of the fact that we accomplished what we set out to do! To date, we’ve had 4 graduating classes totaling 88 girls–the last class of 25 graduated in November 2022. We’re currently in the middle of a recruitment and enrollment campaign for up to 35 new high school freshmen that will start classes in February 2023. I’m also proud of the fact that I’m part of something bigger than myself that I get to accomplish alongside the people most important in my life–my husband and daughters.
What was your favorite childhood memory?
My favorite childhood memory is taking a trip to see my aunt in Florida every summer. We rarely flew there, and instead took our family station wagon for the 14-hour road trip. That car was yellow and brown and HUGE! I LOVED those road trips! Because we would leave in the middle of the night in order to get there at a decent time (probably really for my parent’s sanity!), we would spend the day prior to leaving preparing the car for the trip. For my brother and me that meant laying out our sleeping bags with lots of pillows and stuffed animals in the back of the car so we could stretch out and sleep.
We also packed the car with toys and games to keep up occupied. I always thought it was so cool to be able to sleep in my sleeping bag in the back of our car. Now after having kids of my own, I totally appreciate the convenience of flying! But those were some good memories!
Pricing:
- If you’re interested in sponsoring a girl’s education for a year, the cost is $570. The easiest way to do that is on our donor platform at everygirlcounts.kindful.com.
Contact Info:
- Website: everygirlcounts.com
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/everygirlcounts/
- Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/everygirlcounts
- Linkedin: www.linkedin.com/in/egcrenecook
- Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCPXsQCGFVcw5yzwKvnGiZ1A
- Other: https://everygirlcounts.kindful.com/
