North Shore High School graduate Richard Cook of Glen Head has tackled every obstacle thrown his way

At only 18 years old, Richard Cook, of Glen Head, has overcome more challenges than many people face in a lifetime.

Despite battling numerous sports injuries, watching his home be consumed by a fire and supporting his mother, Maria Cook, as she dealt with a brain tumor, Cook maintained a 4.0 GPA and was captain of the football team at North Shore High School, and will be attending the University of Chicago this fall.

Cook, known as Ricky to his friends and family, is a triplet, with two sisters, Page and Faith, who made their way through the North Shore School District with him. Their mother described them as always having a special bond, and said they have always included and supported one another in everything.

Ricky’s sisters especially supported his football career, attending every one of his games since he started playing in eighth grade, and throughout high school. Although he was a great athlete and the starting cornerback, his career at North Shore was plagued by injuries, from a broken ankle his first year to several concussions.

This year Cook suffered his worst injuries yet, a muscle tear in his wrist, one in his hamstring and another in his hip. Despite these challenges, he helped lead the team to a Nassau County championship. He says his love for the sport is undimmed, in large part due to the camaraderie and rapport that he’s developed with his teammates over the years.

“I just love how a football team is like a family,” Cook explained. “With the bond I’ve had with all these guys, I can just like text any of them right now and they’ll be there for me.”

Dan Agovino, North Shore head football coach, described Cook as one of the hardest working and toughest players he’s ever coached. Agovino said Cook would watch film of opposing teams’ offenses in his free time, and email him and the coaching staff scouting reports of the other team, something Agovino has never had a player do in 22 years of coaching.

Furthermore, Agovino described how despite all of the hurdles Cook cleared, he never once complained or asked for special treatment, although the rest of the team and the staff offered their support. It was his leadership and doggedness that made Cook stand out as a player and a captain.

“You could just see how the entire team rose up to his level every time he walked on the field,” Agovino continued. “That’s a tribute to who he is and what he brought to our team and our program, and his leadership was of course a huge part of that.”

While injuries are common for athletes, Cook and his family also had to deal with a fire that destroyed their home in his sophomore year. When Cook, his sisters and his mother returned home from a birthday dinner at Benihana, they saw smoke pouring from the house and could hear the fire alarm going off.

Knowing that the family’s pet Labrador, Daisy, was in the house, Cook bravely rushed in before the firefighters had arrived, carrying the terrified dog out in his arms.

“Daisy was on our couch, just sitting there because she couldn’t see because of all the smoke and he carried her and took her out,” Maria Cook said. “It was fight or flight, and he just ran right in to save her because he has such a heart.”

He displayed his compassion and resilience again in his junior year, when his mother was diagnosed with a brain tumor “the size of a huge strawberry.” The tumor was thankfully non-cancerous, although she still had to undergo surgery and recovery therapy.

Cook described how throughout the year her son and his sisters worked together to support her and themselves. They visited her daily in the hospital, and worked together to clean, cook and get themselves ready for school, as they lived alone since their mother was hospitalized and their father, also named Richard, was divorced and lived separately.

“It was just the three of them in the household, and they had to take care of the house and clean it,” Maria Cook said. “He would send me pictures while they would eat dinner, and he would barbecue for them and everything like that.”

Despite all of these challenges, Cook graduated with his classmates on June 23, and will be attending the University of Chicago, where he will continue to play football and plans to study to become an orthopedic surgeon. He attributes his success to his focus on achieving his potential and willingness to never give up, taught to him by his mother, and encouraged others who face their own challenges to do the same.

“I know I’ve been through a lot, both on and off the field,” Cook concluded, “but no matter what, keep pushing through the struggles, keep fighting to reach your goals.”