Hanover years
Jermaine was born in 1981 in Hanover, Jamaica.
Most childhood memories sit between school, church, and watching his mother move from market stall to hotel craft shop.
His father faced kidney failure for much of that time, so leadership at home flowed through his mother.
She ran wedding boutiques and craft locations across hotel corridors.
Inventory, staff, and bills lined up on the same kitchen table.
Jermaine watched a woman carry grief, numbers, and customers without pause.
Ambition for him came wrapped in duty.
From call floor to command line
Before cloud diagrams and data centers, he stood in front of call center teams.
As a corporate trainer for XM Radio he learned how tone, pause, and presence change customer outcomes.
During that season he passed his first Microsoft Certified Professional exam on Windows 2000.
Migration to Canada in 2007 brought long waits for documents.
He spent those days with self-study guides spread across a small Toronto apartment.
His brother funded exam fees with one rule.
“If you pass, I pay for the next one.
If you fail, we stop.
We have no money to waste.”
Pressure turned into focus.