Jerde was born and raised on the high plains of northwestern South Dakota. She is the director of the Radio Talking Book Service, a nonprofit serving Nebraska and southwest Iowa with a mission to connect individuals who are blind, low vision, or print impaired to news, information, arts, and culture through the human voice and technology.  

Additionally, Jerde is a photographer whose work has been featured at the Des Moines Art Center and was named the “Outstanding Emerging Visual Artist” at the 2022 Omaha Entertainment and Arts Awards.