[Episcopal News Service] An Alabama native and member of the Episcopal Cathedral Church of the Advent in Birmingham was remembered by her congregation as “an incredibly grounded and generous and faithful bright light” after she was identified as one of two students killed Dec. 13 in a shooting at Brown University in Providence, Rhode Island.
Ella Cook was a sophomore and vice president of the Ivy League university’s College Republicans. She and fellow student Mukhammad Aziz Umurzokov were killed, and nine others were injured when a gunman opened fire on the campus and then fled. A manhunt is underway, but police have not yet named a suspect.
Cook, from the neighboring community of Mountain Brook, was “engaged and involved in our worship and our community” for many years, the Very Rev. Craig Smalley, dean of the cathedral, said in a message to the congregation that was quoted by WIAT-TV and other local outlets.
“It’s a tremendous heaviness that is upon our congregation today,” Smalley said.
Ella Cook, a member of Cathedral Church of the Advent in Birmingham, Alabama, was killed Dec. 13 in a shooting at Brown University in Providence, Rhode Island. She is seen in a photo shared by the College Republicans on Facebook.
Friends told WBMA-TV that Cook was a joy to be around. “Always a smile on her face, never a frown, never anything negative to say about anybody,” Gavin Thornhill said. “Just a special human, only those that come around once in a lifetime.”
Cook’s death also has been met with expressions of grief at the state and national level. “Ella was a devoted Christian and a committed conservative who represented the very best of Alabama,” Alabama Lt. Gov. Will Ainsworth said in a social media post. “A bright future was ended much too soon. Join me in lifting up her family in prayers of comfort.”
The College Republicans of America released a statement, saying they “are devastated” to learn of Cook’s killing.
“Ella was known for her bold, brave and kind heart as she served her chapter and her fellow classmates,” the organization said. “Our prayers are with her family, our Brown [College Republicans] and the entirety of the campus as they heal from this tragedy.”
Alabama’s two senators released separate statements mourning Cook’s death.
“Our hearts and our prayers are with the Cook family and everyone impacted by this senseless killing,” Sen. Tommy Tuberville said.
Sen. Kattie Britt echoed Tuberville in lamenting the “senseless” violence that took the life of “one of our own.”
“There are no words that can ease the pain Ella’s family and friends are enduring right now,” Britt said. “Her beautiful life was taken far too soon, but those who loved her are comforted in knowing she has joined our Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ, for all of eternity.”
And Birmingham Mayor Randall Woodfin released a statement noting the outpouring of sorrow in the local community at the loss of Cook.
“She was a daughter, a friend, a student filled with purpose and potential. She had dreams worth chasing and a life that deserved to keep unfolding. She should have had more time. To grow, to stumble, to discover who she was still becoming,” Woodfin said. “To Ella’s family, know that the people of Birmingham are holding you close in our hearts.”
– David Paulsen is a senior reporter and editor for Episcopal News Service based in Wisconsin. He can be reached at dpaulsen@episcopalchurch.org.