PG&E Coworker Gives Back to Honor Brother's Legacy

Volunteering Has Helped Jess Berrios Navigate Grief of Losing Her Brother

By Tracy Correa Lopez

Jess Berrios was always close to her younger brother, Jesus. She would even follow him to land a job at PG&E; she’s an office clerk and Jesus was a cable splicer.

At two years older, Jess (short for Jessica) Berrios always saw herself as her little brother’s protector even though he towered over her.

When Jesus Berrios died in a motorcycle accident four years ago, at age 33, his sister was devastated losing the brother who showed kindness to many.

“My brother had a real big heart,” said Jess Berrios.

That big heart, she said, is what cost her brother his life. It has also led her to want to do more to honor his memory — more on that later.

The accident

On Sept. 22, 2019, Jesus Berrios offered to drive home the motorcycle of a friend (who had too much to drink) so the friend could be safely driven home in a car by someone else. But it was Jesus Berrios who never made it home. While on that motorcycle, he had an accident on Interstate 80 at the Carquinez bridge in Vallejo — his was one of several deaths at that location resulting in calls for improvements on that stretch of I-80.

Near that accident site is now a mural dedicated to Jesus Berrios.

Still grieving four years later, his sister and family are still peeling back the many layers of her brother’s life and learning there is much more about him they never knew.

While going through his personal items, Jess Berrios said they found receipts and paperwork for his charitable donations, including causes benefiting children. Her brother and his wife hoped to have children of their own one day.  His love for children and emphasis on their education also led him to tutor the children of friends and family members.

“I didn’t even know my brother donated so much… all of the paperwork, donation acknowledgements and receipts. He also donated to veterans causes,” said his sister.

She added: “I feel like I was learning something new about him… it was bittersweet.”

The organizations he gave to included St. Jude Children’s Hospital, Susan G. Komen Foundation, Wounded Warriors Project, Christmas Toy Drive for Washington Hospital (Healthcare System) in Union City, and the Union Family Center, a nonprofit that helps connect students, families and community member to vital services.

A survivor of testicular cancer, Jesus Berrios also had given to cancer research, particularly research to help children.

Cherished PG&E career

Jesus Berrios worked at PG&E for 13 years and seven months, according to his sister. He was a utility worker for gas construction and had recently obtained his certificate of completion for his cable splicer apprenticeship.

It was a career he loved and with an employer where his family had roots: Jess and Jesus Berrios' grandfather Hector Hernandez was a cable splicer. Their stepdad is a foreman and an uncle and stepbrother also have PG&E careers. Jess Berrios’ fiancé is employed by PG&E, too.

“He loved working at PG&E,” she said of her brother, who left college at University of San Francisco when he landed his PG&E job.

She later learned of a text message and photo of her brother smiling, wearing a hardhat, that he sent a coworker where he talked about how much he loved his job in the East Bay calling it, “God’s work.”

Honoring Jesus Berrios' memory by giving back

Still navigating through the loss of her brother, Jess Berrios knows one thing for sure: “I want to continue where he left off.”

While she has signed up to volunteer through PG&E’s Campaign for the Community (PG&E’s year-round giving program) in the past, including over the holiday season, she has committed to doing more in her brother’s memory.

She recently helped serve meals in the dining room at St. Anthony’s in San Francisco — which provides essential services from food to healthcare to those in need — with other PG&E coworker volunteers.

“It feels good for my soul,” she said.

For Jess Berrios, it’s never too late to volunteer and make a difference, something she will be doing during PG&E’s Campaign for Our Hometowns during the holidays (through December).

“Volunteering gives you the opportunity to make a difference in the lives of others,” she said, adding that it also provides a sense of purpose, and you can meet new friends.

She adds: “Whenever you’re in a position to help someone, be glad and always do it because that’s the universe answering someone else’s prayers through you.”

And for all that her brother Jesus Berrios did, his family, friends and even strangers are giving back on his behalf. They now hold an annual motorcycle toy run in his memory, gathering donated toys for children in need.

“It’s a healing process,” said his sister Jess Berrios, but giving back is making it easier.