WHO?
Candice S. Cook (Col ’00) is an attorney at Bickel Brewer in Dallas.
The University of Virginia was never supposed to be where I attended college. For as long as I can remember, my mother had her heart set on my attending a “sister school” and I was groomed for Wellesley College in Massachusetts. I excelled in high school, got admitted into the Ivys and thought I was well on my way to living out “the plan.” But fate intervened and before you could say Charlottesville, I was moving—sight unseen—to Virginia.
Three things occurred within one week’s time that led me to believe that I was meant to be a Wahoo:
First, Michael Mallory, a former U.Va. dean, visited my high school. He was kind, friendly and seemed genuinely interested in recruiting me to the University. I liked Mr. Mallory and felt that his energy was both sincere and dedicated. If the rest of the faculty at U.Va. were like him, then that was good enough for me.
Cook with her mother.
Second, my high school sweetheart’s older brother, Cabral, was a U.Va. student and coincidentally, during the same week as Michael Mallory’s visit to my high school, he described his life at college. He put the Ringling Bros. to shame with his testimony that life at U.Va. was the greatest show on earth. I trusted Cabral and, as an only child, secretly liked the assurance of knowing that someone—a big brother of sorts—would be there for me if I needed him.
Third, throughout my tenure at Benjamin E. Mays High School in Atlanta, I was always compared to a young woman named Rosegenee McLarin. People asked me if I was Rosegenee’s little sister. Her name was on everyone’s lips during my four years. My math teacher even went so far as to say, “You remind me so much of my former student Rosegenee—except Rosegenee was great at math.” I took the compliment as best I could. I found out that the legendary Rosegenee attended U.Va. and thought if my purported sister was a Wahoo, maybe I was meant to be as well.
Cook (left) with her family.
It felt to me that these three things were more than mere happenstance. In hindsight, it may seem rash, but my gut told me that I was destined for U.Va.
I informed my parents that I had changed my mind and no longer planned on attending Wellesley. I didn’t mention the coincidences that had led me to my decision, but instead quoted statistics from U.S. News & World Report. My father was agreeable, but my mother took some convincing.
By the end of summer, however, I was packed up and sent off to start life in Charlottesville—a city I had never seen where I didn’t know a soul. Yet, when I arrived on Grounds and I saw the green expanse of the Lawn and the gorgeous buildings, I felt I’d made the right decision. Even now, 13 years later, I still feel the same way. It’s true what they say: no guts, no glory.
During my second year, fate stepped in once again. I finally met Rosegenee. Though in high school, I’d always had to explain that I did not know her and was not her little sister, when I joined the Kappa Rho Chapter of Delta Sigma Theta sorority, I became her sorority sister.
Over the course of my years as an undergraduate, I loved laying out on the Lawn reading. I remember with nostalgia hiking up the hill to Balz with my group of girlfriends. I laugh with fond memories at my attempts to channel Tyra Banks as I sashayed in the Spring Fling fashion shows. I’m grateful for every snowball fight behind Lambeth and I will never forget being selected by Julian Bond to attend the Nobel Peace Prize Laureates Conference, where I was able to see the Dalai Lama, Desmond Tutu, and many others engage in discourse about individuals’ accountability in bettering society and the world.
I firmly believe that The University of Virginia is a place where a young woman can grow, learn, live, love and play with reckless abandon in an atmosphere where she feels safe, nourished, enriched, challenged, appreciated, valued and inspired. As I continue my life, steadily moving forward, the experience has remained embroidered in my heart and will forever be cherished.
Cook (second from left) with friends.
Comments
Nice hat.
Wow Candice! That was great! Very informative and obvious that you received a great education and really enjoyed yourself.
SEL
Well put! It seems like you had an awesome time, and the article was very informative especially for those contemplating the decision to attend UVA.
A cliché is a cliché but I mean it- “I’m very proud of you” and proud to say I was around while you were growing up to become the actress, attorney, model and exciting young woman you’ve become.
Cabral was my boy.
Love the FOREVER404!!!!!!!
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