National Advisory Board
Cherie Dimmerling
With a history of advocating for the underserved and a successful career as an entrepreneur and C-Suite executive, Cherie Dimmerling brings a disciplined business-like approach to delivering results for Sacramentans facing housing challenges.
While working on her undergraduate degree in Psychology, Cherie administered Psychometric tests for Cell Block placement and Parole/Community Release at Indian River: a Facility for juvenile males who have been adjudicated by Ohio’s county courts. Cherie later worked with female inmates at Northeast Pre-Release Center to assist in the transition process pending release. As a Social Worker for The Harvest Home- a Christian Emergency Shelter- Cherie worked with women and children facing homelessness and wrote their first grant proposal to successfully expand financial support for critical services.
Cherie held several positions with G.E. which she credits with instilling a life-long focus on clear-eyed analysis and accountability, and has served as a Bank VP and Finance Company CEO. A visible leader, Cherie has regularly appeared as a subject matter expert on radio and TV, addressing housing and financing matters.
Troubled by housing inequities in Northeast Ohio, Cherie partnered with a nationally renowned civil rights attorney at the Fair Housing Council of Northeast Ohio. The Council worked with regional Municipalities to update housing ordinances to comply with the Fair Housing Assistance Program requirements. Tapping federal funds from FHAP grants, the program delivers millions of dollars of support to improve housing equity in Northeast Ohio.
Cherie served as the Women’s Vote Project’s Executive Director and Vice Chair of the National Civil Rights Summit. Cherie co-produced and appeared in a Telly-Award-winning documentary with civil rights icon Julian Bond. The experience gave her fresh insight and passion for social justice issues and solidified her belief that thoughtful policy can triumph over seemingly insurmountable challenges.
In Sacramento, Cherie was drawn to helping the homeless. As she learned their stories, she realized Sacramento was falling short in a critical component of addressing homelessness: keeping people in their homes. Cherie believes in a wide range of modalities, including tapping available federal resources, forming lasting partnerships with the business community and municipalities, and enhancing regional efforts to improve outcomes and reduce redundancies.
Cherie can be reached at cherie@fairhousingsacramento.org.
Ronald Javor
Ronald Javor is a retired Sacramento attorney with over forty years with the California Department of Housing and Community Development including as General Counsel.
In addition to specializing in housing finance and building codes, Ron actively participated in the drafting, lobbying for, and implementation of various state laws and local ordinances adding and enforcing tenant and resident protection. These included critical additions to California’s retaliatory eviction protection (including arguing a case in the California Supreme Court on its scope), laws and standards for Universal Design and other accessibility requirements in California housing, and many rights and physical improvement standards for mobile home park homeowners.
Ron has served on several boards and commissions including two terms as a mayoral appointee to the Sacramento Human Rights/Fair Housing Commission, the Sacramento Housing Alliance, Mutual California (affordable housing construction and preservation), First Home Communities (housing opportunities for homeless persons), and various other local housing rights and homelessness organizations, and has received numerous local, state and national awards for his volunteer and professional service.
He has coauthored legal books and articles on California landlord-tenant law and affordable housing development issues. His website is ronaldjavorbooks.com.
Erica Jaramillo
Erica Jaramillo brings with her over ten years working in the public sector serving underserved and historically marginalized populations. Erica works for Sacramento County Behavioral Health’s Homeless Engagement and Response Team. She spent nearly three years working at the California State Treasurer’s Office and five years working for Sacramento County Department of Human Assistance assisting low income families with public assistance benefits, specifically Homeless Assistance and the Housing Support Program.
Erica was born and raised in Sacramento and has spent the last 7 years organizing and educating renters in her hometown as a member of the Sacramento Tenants Union, where the focus has been improving the quality of life, preventing displacement, providing education on tenant’s rights, and increasing affordable and public housing. Through STU, Erica has engaged members in conversations on how to safely, strategically and collectively develop a vested connection to the places we call home. It is through this work and hearing from the impacted voices, she became a fierce advocate for Fair Housing.
Erica has served on several boards and commissions including Sacramento County’s Human Services Coordinating Council, Oak Park Neighborhood Association, and Sacramento Investment Without Displacement (SIWD), where Erica played a key role in developing and writing the Community Benefits Agreement between the City of Sacramento and SIWD. Erica currently sits on the board of the Community Resource Project and is Vice Chair of Sacramento County’s South Sacramento Community Planning Advisory Council.