Audrey P. Berkeley Spirit Award
Recipients: 2006 / 2007 / 2008

The Audrey P. Berkeley Spirit Award
2006 Award Recipient: Marilyn F. Booker

This year's Audrey P. Berkeley Spirit Award was presented to Marilyn F. Booker.

Marilyn F. Booker was born and raised in Chicago and graduated with honors from Harlan High School. She did her undergraduate work at Spelman College, receiving her B.S. degree Summa Cum Laude, and then went on to obtain her J.D. at IIT/Chicago Kent School of Law. Marilyn practiced corporate law for a few years and then entered the consulting field, specializing in, among other things, diversity and inclusion. During this early career period, she also took up golf (leveraging the natural talent that had led her to captain her college tennis team) and has been lowering her handicap ever since.

A few years into her consulting career, she was hired in-house by one of her firmıs biggest clients, Morgan Stanley, to become its Global Head of Diversity, a position she has held for almost fifteen years. During this time, Morgan Stanley has repeatedly been recognized for its outstanding commitment to and programming for diversity and inclusion, a record that led to her promotion to Managing Director in 2004. She continues to lead the firm's award-winning effort that includes, among other initiatives, diversity recruiting, career development, employee networks and mentoring in addition to advising senior management on a variety of issues that affect all of the firmıs professionals, including diversity and inclusion.

Her personal success has paralleled her business career, as Marilyn has been an impactful contributor to a number of causes that are important to her, though usually in her preferred understated and behind-the-scenes way. For example, she combined her love for golf and her interest in diversity and inclusion by serving as one of the original participants and subsequent Board Members of the Homeboy Golf Outing, which eventually became the Bill Spiller Open. Continuing on this theme of combining her passion for golf and for inclusion and opportunity, Marilyn was also instrumental in supporting the efforts of the MJB Foundation in its formative years, serving as a Board Member for several years and continuing to support the Foundation's work. She has even introduced some of the MJB Foundationıs scholarship recipients to the world of Wall Street by mentoring them and helping them to earn internships at several firms, including her own, Morgan Stanley.

On a personal note, she and her husband, Walter, share a passion for golf that she has fostered in her children, Walter Jr., Morgan and Maxwell, all of whom love the game. In fact, recently, she and her eldest son, Walter Jr., won the first tournament that they entered together. This is a reflection of her desire to pass on her values of commitment, sportsmanship and fun that the game of golf engenders to the next generation (provided, of course, that they play at the brisk pace that she favors.) Anyone who has been fortunate to meet her on the course knows that itıs better to have her on your team than to play against her, as she has won numerous club and other tournaments with consistent drives and putts that fall at just the right time.

The Michael J. Berkeley Foundation is honored to present Marilyn F. Booker the Audrey P. Berkeley Spirit Award!