This is a painful time in our country. It’s unfathomable that tragedies such as the deaths of George Floyd, Breonna Taylor, and Ahmaud Arbery continue to happen. Sadly, as people of color know all too well, they do happen every day. To all people of color in our Cook family and broader community: we stand with you and we support you. We also want to do more than offer words of support and comfort. We want to be part of the solution.
Our Cook Group purpose statement says that we exist to help people and communities reach their full potential. We take that seriously. In the past, that has meant helping small communities, like Bloomington, Indiana and Canton, Illinois, avoid economic downturn. Today, that purpose means building pathways to upward mobility, personal growth, and career fulfillment for the most vulnerable people in our community.
In the past few years, we have put particular emphasis on programs that remove barriers to education, jobs, and housing. We have made it possible for people to join Cook and earn a high-school diploma at the same time. Our employees can get free academic degrees up to a master’s degree. We’re working on affordable housing in the French Lick and West Baden communities. We have partnered with local organizations focused to bring career opportunities to those experiencing homelessness, substance use disorder, or who are transitioning out of prison.
We’re proud of the work we’ve done so far, but moving forward we will do more.
First, our efforts in the past have reached parts of our communities, but we have not been intentional about supporting African Americans and people of color specifically. We will do better at that in the future.
Second, a lot of our work in these areas has been focused in Indiana, where our headquarters is located and where we have the most resources and the longest-standing relationships. That will also change. Our expectation is that moving forward, no matter where we have a facility or a Cook presence, we are deeply connected with and committed to all of our communities.
Racism has no place at Cook. It does not align with our values, our purpose, or our business. We promise to listen and do whatever we can to improve our ability to serve people and our communities.
The Cook Group and Cook Medical Executive Teams