From left: Joyce Riggins-Baker, Alexis Jackson, Haley Crain Carter and Sherry Wheelock

Joyce Riggins-Baker

Summer Youth Consultant, CareerSource Central Florida

Joyce Riggins-Baker has always been motivated by working with youth in the community. 

“For many years, I had the pleasure of coaching a boy’s baseball team,” says Riggins-Baker. “I remember rushing from work and heading straight to the baseball field, not having time to change clothes, and finding myself on first base in a suit and high-heeled shoes.”

In her past career, one of Riggins-Baker’s many responsibilities was placing students in internships that would teach them valuable skills across different city departments. 

“I wanted to give each of these students the opportunity to experience different work environments and roles within city government and showcase the different opportunities available for the future,” she says.

After she retired from the City of Sanford, CareerSource Central Florida tapped Riggins-Baker for its Summer Youth Program, where she works directly with young adults from Embrace Families, which connects foster teens with paid internships.   

“Working with students with challenges has made me grateful and given me a deep sense of gratitude and fulfillment as I witnessed their progress and resilience,” says Riggins-Baker. “It’s truly rewarding to make a positive impact in their lives.”

Riggins-Baker also makes an impact as the vice chairperson of the Sanford MLK Steering Committee, an organization dedicated to honor and keep Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr.’s dream alive through inspirational events that motivate the entire community to create  a better world and stay true to brotherly/sisterly love. §

Alexis Jackson

Vice President of Development, Dr. Phillips Center for the
Performing Arts

Alexis Jackson leads a team of 19 fundraising professionals in the philanthropic efforts of the Dr. Phillips Center for the Performing Arts. 

“I have been told I have a philanthropic heart and have been a member of leadership for over 16 years,” says Jackson. “I am honored to represent and serve this organization and the beautiful community that it resides in.”

With Jackson at the helm, the team has raised more than $221 million from private philanthropy serving over 19,000 donors. Annually, the Dr. Phillips Center’s development team raises $7-9 million for Arts for Every Life®, a fund for mission-driven initiatives to empower entrepreneurs, education, health and wellness and community organizations.

Once a generalist, Jackson was asked to focus on fundraising in 2012, and soon discovered a knack for philanthropy.

“It was new to me, but a great opportunity, as I am a relationship builder and passionately connected to our vision of Arts for Every Life®. It was then that I fell in love with philanthropy and my career flourished. I advanced from a director to senior director and then became the vice president in 2016, working alongside one of the most fabulous and successful fundraising teams in our region.

1. “Our organization and colleagues possess an entrepreneurial spirit that allows us to thrive through innovation, curiosity and creation of best practices,” Jackson adds. “Specific to philanthropy, it is my greatest joy to be able to help secure funding for our vision of Arts for Every Life®. This campaign supports well deserving students, teachers, seniors, veterans, first responders and more access to the performing arts.

“For some, this connection to their community and creative expression is life changing. As a female in leadership, I have been given the great opportunity to lead by example with a strong work ethic, empathy and joy. It is important to foster those qualities in our talented workforce. You can be a brilliant academic, but leadership is about a beautiful balance of intelligence, strategy, motivation and connection to the teams you lead.”

Haley Crain Carter

Vice President of Soccer Operations and General Manager, Orlando Pride

Soccer, and serving her community, has long been a part of Haley Crain Carter’s life. She played soccer at the U.S. Naval Academy before her professional career with the Houston Dash, then went on to coach the Afghanistan and Antigua and Barbuda national teams.
    When the Taliban took over Afghanistan in August of 2021, Carter’s staff partnered with immigration and human rights attorneys to coordinate the evacuation of nearly 200 athletes and their families out of Kabul International Airport.

“We felt an obligation to protect them [the Afghanistan Women’s National Team] and ensure their safety when it was clear that the government in Afghanistan was falling,” says Carter. “Over a two-week period, I collaborated with former Marine Corps colleagues, National Security professionals and government stakeholders to share information critical to the evacuation. Fortunately, we were able to obtain humanitarian visas for our athletes and their families in Australia and are now currently engaged in their fight to receive formal sanctioning by FIFA.”

Her tenure with the team is near and dear to her heart. 

“My greatest professional moment was attending the 2016 South Asia Football Federation Championships in India with the Afghanistan Women’s National Team,” says Carter. “Our staff and athletes worked incredibly hard over a short six-month period to create high-performance programming, build a roster of inspired women athletes and source financial support to attend the event. While we didn’t advance beyond group play, our attendance and performance at the event enabled the women of Afghanistan to prove they can compete on the international stage, to demonstrate they deserve every opportunity to play and to demand the same investment afforded to their men’s national team.”
    Carter joined the Orlando Pride in 2023 and has worked to build and maintain “an inclusive, safe, winning culture, making fans proud to support us and players proud to play for us.”
    The Pride joined the National Women’s Soccer League in 2016 and ranked seventh in league standings in 2023.

Sherry Wheelock

President & CEO, Special Olympics Florida

The lessons team sports taught Sherry Wheelock as a youth were immeasurable and ultimately led her to her role with the Special Olympics. 

“During my time at Universal Orlando, I actively volunteered with several organizations that supported persons with an intellectual disability,” says Wheelock. “I even had the honor to serve as one of the lead sponsors for a new affinity group at Universal entitled ‘MyAbilities.’ As such, when Universal Orlando’s role on the board of directors at Special Olympics Florida became available, I immediately raised my hand as it was a perfect fit for my passions.”

At Universal, Wheelock was part of the team that brought Harry Potter to life at the theme parks. During her tenure as President & CEO of Special Olympics Florida, the number of athletes has increased from 20,000 to more than 70,000. Another highlight was winning the bid to host the 2022 Special Olympics USA Games in Orlando for the first time in the Special Olympics’ 50-plus-year history.

She is motivated by a strong sense of service to others.

“While growing up and throughout my youth, my parents and grandparents instilled in me the importance of service to others,” says Wheelock. “It is a critical factor in building strong communities, and for me is imperative for a life well-lived.”

Her greatest moment came while witnessing this in others. 

“My daughter and one of my athletes connected while playing in a cornhole exhibition,” says Wheelock. “It was a beautiful moment when important parts of my life could be celebrated in concert. There have been many days like this where small connections make a big impact in the greater community.”

Wheelock has also served on Make-A-Wish of Central Florida’s board of directors and the Universal Orlando Foundation Board. She currently supports an Orange County foster family through her local church/Commission 127, serves on the Fellowship of Christian Athletes West Orange County Board and volunteers through her daughter’s school.

Back to Orlando Magazine’s 2024 Women of the Year Honorees ➥