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When Jesse rolled into the Center for Employment Opportunities (CEO) in Tulsa behind the wheel of a semi-truck, he wasn’t just showing off a new job but sharing a dream. After earning his commercial driver’s license and securing a position with a major trucking company, Jesse returned to the place that supported the launch of his career. But more than that, he came to thank Katie Garcia, his job coach and retention specialist, with an unforgettable gesture: a ride in his new rig.
For Katie, the moment was deeply personal. Jesse remembered how she once shared that her late father, whom she lost while she was in prison, was also a truck driver. Katie was moved to tears, not just by Jesse’s success but by how his gesture honored her father’s memory and the bond they had built along Jesse’s reentry journey. “This,” she later said, “makes my world at CEO keep going.”
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“The team at CEO gave me a helping hand with getting my life back on track,” Jesse said.
“And I wanted to show them that I’ll never forget that.”
In 2008, Jesse was sentenced to nineteen years in the Oklahoma Department of Corrections, following years of challenges with poverty and addiction that began in his teens.
“It altered my way of thinking and clouded my judgment, and I was always looking for someone else to blame, until reality hit me,” he said.
For Jesse, prison was a wake-up call. It was a chance to take responsibility for his actions and focus on improving things. He entered a treatment program and later earned his GED. He made it a point to enroll in as many other programs as he could find, studying as much as possible and avoiding any aspect of prison culture that could potentially pull him back into old habits.
“I had a clear mind, finally, and I wanted to keep it that way and actually sharpen it,” he said.
“And that is not easy to do in a prison system made to make you worse so that you can come right back.”
Roughly 1 in 4 people who go to jail will be arrested again within the same year. A 2021 analysis of 116 studies found that prison time does not prevent people from recidivating and, in fact, can increase the likelihood that they will. And incarcerated individuals dealing with poverty, mental illness, and substance use disorders often only worsen with incarceration.
“That wasn’t going to be me,”
Jesse left prison three years early, at the age of 52, and was determined to get back on track. Within a few months, he got a landscaping job through a friend, followed by a driver’s license, insurance, and a car. He also started paying down his incarceration fees, another hurdle that can often trip up the formerly incarcerated.
“I knew there was a light at the end of the tunnel for me and that I was going to get there,” he said.
While the landscaping job was going well, Jesse wanted a higher-paying career. He wanted to earn his commercial driver’s license and start a career in trucking. However, for someone in his position, obtaining the certification wasn’t as challenging as getting hired with a record. His local probation and parole office connected him to CEO to get the support he wanted.
Jesse enrolled in a three-week advanced Commercial Drivers License (CDL) training program through TMC Transportation. After graduating, he obtained his license and landed a trucking job.
“I could have done it on my own, but it would have been harder without Katie and the team helping me.”
Today, his tanker endorsement permits him to haul bulk liquids and gases, and he is free to work as many shifts as he wants. He says his next step is to get a HAZMAT endorsement on his CDL and transport hazardous materials like flammable liquids, corrosives, and explosives.
“That’s what really pays, and that’s the kind of money I want to make until I retire.”
Until then, he has found comfort and stability with a company that treats him fairly and rewards hard work. He makes roughly $1200 a week driving trucks, a stable income that has allowed him to establish savings, invest in the stock market, improve his credit, and take care of his mother.
“I have a career, I’m a trucker, and I’m a better man,” Jesse said.
“I thank God, my mother, and the support team at CEO for that.”
But one of his happiest and proudest moments was stopping by the Tulsa office in his tractor-trailer to say thank you and give Katie a ride.
“I’m a lucky man, and I’m proud of how far I’ve come, but putting a smile on her face was an experience I will never forget.”
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