The Empowered Woman: Brandi Couey

Brandi Couey displays warmth, steadiness, and the kind of strength that comes from a life shaped by both love and loss. Brandi has spent her career pouring into teenagers during her 29-year tenure at Model High School. She never imagined the strength she built in the classroom would one day help carry her through the unimaginable.

Brandi’s son, Cole, was a freshman at Georgia Southern when he was killed in a car accident. As you can imagine, this was completely devastating. In the days that followed, Brandi was invited to join a support group for grieving moms. Walking into that first meeting changed everything. Brandi found women who were honest, loud, funny, grieving, and surviving. This group of women made space for her pain and reminded her she wasn’t alone. Soon, several members the group decided to create something they all wished they’d had: a book not about the loss itself, but about what comes after.

The result is "Warrior Moms: Grieve Like a Mother. Survive Like a Warrior." Fourteen mothers, each offering practical guidance for surviving the first days, weeks, and months after losing a child. Brandi’s chapter was shaped from her podcast transcript so her voice is honest, raw, and deeply human.

Through counseling, Brandi began rediscovering who she was outside of being a mother or wife. She returned to teaching, and the classroom became her anchor. She also found healing in movement, often walking miles in every kind of weather, allowing her mind to clear one step at a time. She learned to celebrate small wins, to set boundaries, and to allow joy back in.

One of Brandi’s greatest fears was that Cole would be forgotten. So she and her family created The Cole Couey Foundation, which reflects the way he lived: with joy, kindness, and a heart for service. The foundation provides a $3,000 annual scholarship to a Model High School student, supports Camp Joni & Friends for children with special needs and their families, and contributes to Model’s Angel Tree program to assist students in need.

When asked what she wants people to remember most about her son, Brandi doesn’t hesitate: “Joy. Pure, contagious, easy joy. Cole was goofy, kind, and able to befriend anyone”. Stories from his friends still make her laugh.

For anyone walking through grief, Brandi offers this, “start small, move your body, seek counseling, set boundaries, and know that you don’t have to be okay with what happened to begin healing.”

Brandi Couey is an example of what it means to survive the unimaginable and still choose purpose. She carries Cole’s joy forward every day, and in doing so, she lights the way for others learning to live after loss. To purchase Brandi’s book, visit River & Hill Books or order here: Grieve Like A Mother, Survive Like A Warrior: Stories & Strategies of Healing After Child Loss - Kindle edition by Moms, Warrior, Davis, Michele , Durham, Amy, Stanley, Jenny, Gruver, Rae Ann, Couey, Brandi, Chick, Alison, McHenry, Christine, Semeria, Cathy, Simmons, Emily. Religion & Spirituality Kindle eBooks @ Amazon.com.

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