2024 Honorees
Vin Baker
2024 Fellowship Open
Legends Honoree
Vin Baker
Vin Baker was a power forward and center who helped the United States win basketball gold at the 2000 Sydney Olympics. Baker played in college at the University of Hartford, and was then a first round (eighth overall) pick in the 1993 NBA Draft by the Milwaukee Bucks.
Baker had a 13-year NBA career, playing for the Bucks from 1993-97, and then with the Seattle SuperSonics from 1997-2002. He later played for about a year each with the Boston Celtics, New York Knicks, Houston Rockets, and Los Angeles Clippers.
Baker was named to the NBA All-Rookie team in 1994. He was a four-time NBA All-Star (1995-98) and was named to All-NBA teams in 1997 (3rd team) and 1998 (2nd team). For his career he averaged 15.0 ppg and 7.4 rebounds/game.
After his playing career Baker started coaching high school ball at St. Bernard School in Uncasville, Connecticut. He later became a broadcaster for the Milwaukee Bucks and in 2017 was named head of the basketball department at Camp Greylock in Becket, Massachusetts. In 2018 Baker became an assistant coach with the Milwaukee Bucks, helping lead them to an NBA title in 2021.
Cornell Boggs III
2024 Fellowship Open
National Corporate Leadership Honoree
Cornell Boggs III
Cornell Boggs has worked for three decades as an in-house counsel, rising to the role of executive vice president, general counsel and corporate secretary. He is experienced in corporate management and oversight, including ethics and global compliance, enterprise risk management, executive coaching and succession plan development. His skillset spans a variety of industries, including food and beverage, manufacturing, technology and biotechnology.
​
At Quarles, he plays an integral role in helping to create diverse and inclusive teams to meet emerging client demands in this area. Leveraging his unique background and vantage point, he works with the firm’s attorneys in building teams and promoting collaboration to provide the best client experience and outcomes. He also works closely with the firm’s leadership and diverse lawyers to create pathways for success, improve their experience and increase diversity in the firm.
​
Cornell is chair of the board of directors at Thrivent Financial, a Fortune 500 diversified financial services company. Prior to joining Quarles, he served as general counsel for Toys “R” Us Inc., Dow Corning Corporation and the Coors Brewing Company. He was also the chief responsibility and ethics officer for MillerCoors (now Molson Coors Beverage Company), with early career leadership positions at other prominent Fortune 500 companies.
​
He was recognized as a “Legend in Law” by receiving the prestigious Burton Award from the Library of Congress and the American Bar Association, and Savoy Magazine named him among the “Most Influential Black Corporate Directors,” one of the “Most Influential Black Lawyers” and one of the “Top 100 Influential Blacks in Corporate America.”
Rickie Weeks
2024 Fellowship Open
Legends Honoree
Rickie Weeks
The popular and talented Rickie Darnell Weeks, Jr. excelled for the Milwaukee Brewers from 2003-2014, earning All-Star status and a spot in the Home Run Derby in 2011. This season, in his emotional return to city and the team, he joins new manager Pat Murphy and the Brewers franchise in a leadership role which owner Mark Attanasio calls, “Exactly what we were looking for - a history of leadership by example! Rickie’s return is truly exciting.”
Born and raised in Altamonte Springs, Florida, Rickie Weeks was a standout two-sport athlete at Lake Brantley High School in baseball and football. He chose to matriculate at Southern University in Baton Rouge, Louisiana and as a sophomore, he led NCAA Division 1 Baseball with a .495 batting average and 20 home runs. The following year, he hit .479 with 16 homers, winning a second straight batting title and finishing his career with a .465 batting average, highest in NCAA history. In 2003, Rickie was named Baseball America College Player of the Year and the Golden Spikes Award winner, given annually to the nation’s top amateur player. The Milwaukee Brewers selected him second overall in the 2003 MLB Draft.
“It really is a dream come true,” said the passionate and grateful Weeks, a Southern University legend and HBCU Baseball Player of the Year in . “Basically, I was raised on the baseball field and now, being able to be back here, I get emotional. I genuinely want to help, on and off the field, and coming back to the city where I basically grew up, means a lot to me.”