HWS News
30 October 2024 Cooks Honored with Salisbury Award By Andrew Wickenden '09
During the annual Cook Parents Circle dinner, Honorary Trustee Lang Cook P’99, P’05, L.H.D. ’12 and Lyn Cook P’99, P’05 were recognized with the Salisbury Award for their service to HWS.
In 2012, Honorary Trustee Lang Cook P’99, P’05, L.H.D. ’12 and his wife Lyn Cook P’99, P’05 established the Cook Parents Circle to recognize and encourage the philanthropy of non-alumni parents and families. Each year, the Cooks host a dinner in New York City to welcome new members and celebrate the lifechanging opportunities that a Hobart and William Smith education offers students.
During this year’s dinner in October, as the Cook Parents Circle membership surpassed 200 families, President Mark D. Gearan announced that in recognition of the Cooks’ longstanding commitment to Hobart and William Smith and the impact of their leadership, HWS was honoring them with the Charles Salisbury Award. The award celebrates individuals who typify the commitment, drive and exemplary service demonstrated by former Chair of the Board of Trustees and Honorary Trustee Charles H. Salisbury Jr. ’63, P’94, L.H.D. ’08.
Lang Cook, who served on the HWS Board of Trustees with Salisbury, says he was always impressed with “the amount of time and passion that Charlie exhibited toward HWS. When Mark announced the award, all I could think of was how nice it is to be in the same ballpark as Charlie Salisbury. It was a surprise for me and Lyn, but a very meaningful one.”
“Through the Cook Parents Circle, Lang and Lyn have created a remarkable network of enthusiasm, generosity and community for Hobart and William Smith,” says Gearan. “The group’s philanthropic support is only matched by its dedication to seeing our students thrive from the moment they set foot on campus to long after they graduate. HWS is a better place thanks to the vision and outstanding service of Lang and Lyn. The Salisbury Award is a well-deserved tribute to their decades of exemplary support.”
Members of the Cook Parents Circle are “a special group of people who didn’t start with HWS blood in their veins but got acquainted with the school through their children’s experience — and get a chance to have an even closer relationship with Hobart and William Smith through the Parents Circle,” says Lang.
At this year’s dinner, the Cook Parents Circle welcomed 14 new families as members, bringing the total membership to 209. Cook Parents Circle members include seven parents of current students and 61 lifetime members.
During the annual gathering, Cook Parents Circle members connect with one another, learn about the latest campus news from HWS administration, and hear from fellow parents about the experiences of their HWS students.
Cook Parents Circle membership begins with lifetime giving totaling $25,000. At $100,000, secondary recognition level elevates donors to lifetime membership, which is recognized on a donor wall in Scandling Campus Center.
Lang Cook joined the Board of Trustees as an HWS parent in 2002, prompted by a recommendation from former Board Chair L. Thomas Melly ’52, L.H.D. ’02. Following the end of his term as a Trustee in 2012, Lang was named an Honorary Trustee in 2013.
Above, Attendees gather for a photo during this year's Cook Parents Circle dinner at the Links in New York City.
