Author: Ryan M. Moser
At 48, Jeramie has spent much of his life overcoming obstacles. Today, he is doing more than rebuilding his own future. He is helping others navigate the same challenges he once faced.
Raised in Santa Rosa, California, Jeramie describes an unstable upbringing. Through it all, one constant remained: the close bond he shared with his brother. Still, like many young people searching for direction, he fell into destructive cycles. Between the ages of 16 and 20, he was incarcerated in the California Youth Authority.
“Youth Authority was scary and violent,” Jeramie says. “It was a tough period of my life.”
While incarcerated as a teenager at a youth facility, he earned his GED, an achievement that planted the first seeds of personal growth. Yet after his release, life remained turbulent. He worked a series of odd jobs and eventually became involved with drugs, both selling and using them, and Jeramie managed to stay out of serious trouble for several years.
A difficult period ultimately led him back into the criminal justice system, but this time Jeramie made a different choice about how he would do his time.
While serving his sentence, Jeramie focused on education and self-improvement. He earned an associate degree in business from Coastline College, completed anger management and substance use programs, and became a California Certified Peer Support Specialist.
“When I was inside, I started looking at how I could become a better person and help others,” says Jeramie.
Jeramie was released in 2020. Soon after, he entered a sober living house and found work as an electrician. Determined to be independent and stay stable, he bought a motorhome and built a life for himself in the Bay Area.
Despite all his hard work, Jeramie lost his job as an electrician in 2022. Soon after, he obtained a commercial driver's license (CDL). During that time, he also worked for a landscaping company. Despite his efforts, finding long-term opportunities remained a challenge. For instance, employment barriers persisted because of his justice-impacted background.
Sometimes, it takes just one door. Everything changed in 2025 when his parole officer referred him to the Center for Employment Opportunities (CEO) in Solano County.
Jeramie began working on a highway beautification crew through CEO’s program, providing immediate paid employment and a pathway forward. More importantly, the organization saw potential in him beyond a work crew assignment.
He was selected for CEO's sixteen-week Emerging Leaders Program (ELP). There, he gained office-based skills, including typing, LinkedIn networking, administrative work, computer training, and Salesforce experience. At the same time, he supported peers, drawing on his lived experience to encourage others.
The program proved transformative.
While participating in ELP, the staff at CEO encouraged Jeramie to attend a local job fair. There he connected with the founder of the Uncuffed Project, a nonprofit serving justice-impacted individuals. The meeting led directly to a new opportunity.
Today, Jeramie works in crisis intervention and outreach. He helps connect people to housing, services, educational opportunities, and support in the community and inside correctional facilities.
“It’s amazing how life works,” Jeramie says. “Recently, I volunteered at a CEO resource fair, this time as a professional partner helping others access the same resources that helped me succeed.”
His advice is straightforward: Take advantage of every resource you can and overcome life's barriers through effort.
Looking back, Jeramie remains grateful for the people and programs that invested in him.
“I want to express my gratitude to CEO for the opportunity to continue my own personal growth,” Jeramie says. “And to help the next person behind me.”
For Jeramie, success is no longer measured by what he has achieved, but by how many others he can help achieve success, too.
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