RUCK’N IT
The Story of Phil Cook - USA – Iraq
By Judy Skilling
We often hear of warrior stories of veterans doing inspirational things in their lives. One such warrior is Phil Cook. From his service of 16 years in the Army, serving 5 combat tour deployments, undergoing back surgery, participating in several nonprofits, and running a photography business, one would think, “How is all that possible for someone to do?!”.
Well, Phil is unlike anyone you’ve ever met.
When he initially joined the Army as an infantryman in 2000, he had no idea where his service would take him. Being an older recruit (around the age of 29-30), he was already 10 years older than most of his peers. Usually, recruits join right out of high school or soon afterwards.
After basic, he was shipped off to Stuttgart, Germany where he was then deployed for the first time in Iraq. He spent about 18 months in Iraq. It was during that time where he encountered an IED blast and suffered traumatic injuries.
He was sent back to Germany to recover and heal. After his healing, he returned to battle on another deployment. His endless cycle of deployments continued until his last one where he needed to be discharged from the Army.
He underwent lower back surgery, and it was during his recovery process that his surgeon shared that he would have trouble walking for the remainder of his life.
You see, Phil is one of those warriors that when you tell him he can’t do anything, he goes out to prove you wrong. After 4 years from his back surgery, with the aid of intense physical therapies and treatments, Phil was able to complete a 10-mile ruck march with a 30 lb ruck sack. He even took a picture of himself doing his ruck march and sent it back to his surgeon saying, “Here’s your success story.”
Needless to say, his surgeon was astonished he was able to complete a ruck march. To this day, Phil does ruck marches with several nonprofits and organizations.
With these marches, Phil brings attention to those that have fallen during service, whether they are military, police, or firefighters. He’s passionate about bringing awareness to veteran suicides, firefighters that have lost their lives and police that have died in the line of duty.
He participates in several organizations such as Irreverent Warriors, Ruck for the Fallen, Memories of Honor, and The National Fallen Firefighters Foundation.
When asked why he works with these organizations, he shares that it’s his personal mission, based on his experience in Iraq where he lost 12 of his fellow soldiers first-hand, to bring awareness to those that have sacrificed their lives. He brings the memories, honor, and remembrance of the lives lost so that they are never forgotten.
He lives by the life philosophy of “You can” and not “You can’t.” He shares that you shouldn’t use setbacks as an excuse to go after what you enjoy and love. He inspires Veterans everyday with his story to hopefully motivate them to keep going, to never give up in life. Phil is an amazing man with an inspirational story. If you ever think that you can’t achieve anything, look at Phil and know that anything is possible for you too.