Leadership
Vincent Omar Leggett has been an ally to Annapolis and Anne Arundel County for nearly half of his lifetime.
As a book author, a cultural historian and a planner, Vince has been leading efforts to preserve the rich heritage of Maryland’s traditionally African-American waterfront communities and immortalize the legacy of such sites as Carr’s, Sparrows and Columbia beaches. Through this work, Leggett is taking advantage of the expanding interest in diversity, equity, and inclusion to further BOCF’s mission.
Vince currently serves as a foundation board member of the Seafarers Yacht Club of Annapolis, which was incorporated in 1959 to ensure that African Americans could access all the recreational and fishing resources of their bay.
Vince is a highly respected lecturer and historical consultant on national and international documentary films on the Underground Railroad. He broadens understanding of the extensive use of the Chesapeake Bay and its tributaries to spirit Harriet Tubman, Frederick Douglass, and thousands of other enslaved persons to freedom along those clandestine routes.
As an advocate for change through the legal system, Vince enlists his position as president and CEO of the Leggett Group (USA) consulting firm to advance environmental and social justice for African Americans. Vince is a regulated lobbyist with the Maryland General Assembly, with focus areas in equitable educational funding, assisted living and affordable housing, clean energy, and historic and cultural preservation. He also represents the interests of the African-American community as a board member of the Chesapeake Legal Alliance.
Vince earned a B.S. in Urban Planning and Community Development from Morgan State University and a Masters in Public Administration from Central Michigan University.
He has continued his studies through the University of Michigan Multi-Cultural Leadership Development Initiative as well as with the Executive Director Development training program at Rutgers University.
Vince has held multiple leadership positions around the Annapolis community, including Chaplain for the City of Annapolis Fire Department, President of the Anne Arundel County Board of Education, Chair of the Wiley H. Bates Legacy Center, CEO of the Housing Commission of Anne Arundel County, and CEO of the Housing Authority of the City of Annapolis.
For 37 years, Vince and his wife Aldena have made their home in Arundel-on-the Bay enclave in Annapolis, where they enjoy beautiful bay views, fishing with their grandchildren and planning their next trip to the golf green. They are both leaders within the Mt. Zion United Methodist Church, located in South County.
v.leggett@blacksofthechesapeake.com
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Carnelious Jones, VP Business Development
Carnelious Jones is a business and community leader, entrepreneur, investor, and philanthropist. Over the past three decades, "CJ", as he is known by his peers, accumulated unmatched professional experience and knowledge within the oil and gas industry, domestically and abroad.
He is the President and CEO of OMO Energy & Technology, Inc. CJ is known for his knowledge and wisdom shattering the glass ceiling in the oil and gas industry. He is best recognized as one of the most successful corporate leaders throughout the field.
A people-person who maintains a standard of excellence in the workplace, CJ built and nurtured a rich stable of oil and gas professionals while serving in multiple layers of the industry worldwide.
His entrepreneurial endeavors domestically led him to owning and operating three physical plants in Maryland; and as a prime contractor, CJ secured federal contracts to provide oil and gas services to the Department of Defense.
Always looking to expand his reach, CJ has embarked on an additional career in Aquaculture, harvesting world class oysters for shellfish connoisseurs, while providing an environmentally sustainable nature water cleaning and filtration system for the Chesapeake Bay watershed.
For the past several years, CJ has served as Board Chairman for the Blacks of the Chesapeake Foundation (BOCF). Through CJ's business acumen, he has provided much needed organizational, development, guidance, and leadership to the education and environmental agenda of the BOCF. He has spearheaded successful legislative initiatives through the Maryland General Assembly, including chairing the "Task Force Minorities in the Environment Community."
In addition, during his tenure as board chair, the BOCF was designated as a "Local Legacy Project" by the United States Congress and the Library of Congress in 2000. Presently, CJ is providing strategic direction for the Blacks of the Chesapeake's Campaign to Preserve a Local Legacy.
CJ is a decorated United States Navy Vietnam-era Veteran, and since 1998, he has served on the College of Science & Technology Advisory Board at Texas Southern University, Houston, TX and works with several Historically Black Colleges and Universities.
Akil Leggett, Jr., Director of Technology
