On Tuesday, Brown University senior Phoebe Peus appeared on Fox News' America's Newsroom to speak about her dear friend Ella Cook. Cook was one of the two students who was murdered by an active shooter on the campus of Brown University in Rhode Island. The shooting is still being actively investigated by the Rhode Island Police Department and the FBI as the perpetrator remains at large. Hosts Bill Hemmer and Dana Perino led the interview by dovetailing from another student's account on how Brown University failed to clearly communicate to students that an active shooter was on the campus. Peus said friends had access to a private app that shared this information, and they alerted her to the fact that she needed to shelter in place.
Read More: Murdered Brown University Students Were Bright Lights and Upstanding Community Members Lost to Us
Peus said she tried to reach out multiple times to Cook to ensure she was okay and was even tracking her location. Tragically, she never heard back.
I didn't really know. We kind of, I knew she was taking Principles of Economics which, the class is held in Barus & Holley, and her location hadn't moved. And we were all just hoping that she had dropped her phone running out and that's why we couldn't get a hold of her.
Bill Hemmer spoke about Cook's accomplishments: classical pianist, fluent in French, and a bright light to everyone. Hemmer asked Peus to speak to Cook's character and the type of person she was. Peus spoke through tears to what we already had learned, but illuminated further how Cook reached out and befriended anyone — no matter what their faith or political leanings were.
Ella was the type of person that, regardless of if you never met her before, she was... she really was just such a bright light. She was extremely welcoming, and it's just such a devastating loss, I can't believe that she's not with us anymore.
[...]
Ella was the type of person... her best friend Lexie, who was actually the person who called me to tell me. She's [Lexie] Jewish, and Ella's the type of person who would go to Shabbat with her, and her friends would go to Mass with her.
Peus is a senior at Brown and met Cook through the Brown Republicans Club. As is the makeup of many of the Ivy League institutions, Brown's student body leans left. However, this small group of conservatives quickly banded and bonded together. Peus described the makeup of the college Republicans group and more on how she and Cook became friends.
Not very big, 10 people or so, so the room is pretty small, and we're all good friends. And, Ella and I are two of the main women in this club at Brown, so, we immediately kind of stuck to each other. She was a freshman at the time, the Spring when I met her, and kind of wanted some guidance going into her sophomore year.
Dana Perino acknowledged that in the wake of Charlie Kirk's assassination, young people, and especially young conservatives, have had to navigate difficult waters. Perino asked how Peus thought she needed to help them through this process of healing. Peus responded that the embrace and response from the Brown student body and professors have been tremendous, and that it is this support and unity that have helped and encouraged her in going forward. Peus then spoke to how she was particularly inspired to embody in her own life what Cook represented in hers.
Ella really was outspoken. And she, I just wanted to live through her in that way, and try to make a difference. I spoke with a mutual friend who was also in Brown Republicans, and, he just said, "We have to live a purposeful life, for Ella."
WATCH:
Meaningful and powerful moment on @AmericaNewsroom- a close friend of Brown University victim Ella Cook says they were in the college Republican Club together and grew close because they were the main women of this small group. @DanaPerino and @BillHemmer ask her what she now… pic.twitter.com/E0C9pM9g5C
— Brooke Taylor (@Brooketaylortv) December 16, 2025
Hemmer thanked Peus for sharing her story and made a salient point: it is "really, really important that we get to know her."
Exactly. While the perpetrator of this heinous act needs to be found and brought to justice, highlighting who Cook and the other victim, Mukhammad Aziz Umurzokov, were and how much has been lost because of their untimely murder is pivotal in keeping the case, and their remarkable humanity, front-of-mind.
And just as Charlie Kirk's assassination unleashed fresh courage, kindling a fire in young conservatives to use their voice and influence and to not be silenced, Ella Cook's tragic death could very well have the same effect. At the very least, it is having this effect on those who knew her well and called her friend.
The full America's Newsroom segment is here.
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