About Me

After playing basketball at Furman University, Derek spent four months teaching at a school for orphans in a fishing village of Kenya, where he noticed a disconnect between those who want to help and those they are trying to help. He felt like the same disconnect existed where he was from, between the homeless and those who sought to help the homeless. As a result, upon returning to Charleston he voluntarily decided to live among the homeless for a year (the background for his first book). 

Through the experience he noticed that many of the men he lived with worked day labor, and so he decided to work day labor himself. He saw that while many simply wanted to get their wages for the night, others were sincerely trying to get ahead. Soon after he started In Every Story, which placed as many as 170 employees on a daily basis at 35% + higher wages than competitors.

Derek has a curiosity and thirst for life, having lived on a sailboat in New York City, visited more than fifty countries, and driven a car from Mongolia to London (the background for his second book).

He also has blogged for The Huffington Post, has been published in the Stanford Social Innovation Review, and has given a TEDx talk.

His proudest life moment was when he won a male beauty pageant contest in college, performing an interpretational ribbon dance to Aladdin’s “A Whole New World,” perhaps second only to his interview on the BBC at The Royal Wedding.

He’s currently working on CoLife (www.LetsCoLife.com). CoLife makes it safe and easy to rent a room in an owner occupied home.

Not long after graduating from Furman University, Derek Snook embarked on an unusual career path, and lived at a homeless shelter in his hometown. There he observed first-hand the difficulties for those who were trying to get ahead. Snook shares how he was challenged by someone whom he least expected.