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A 27-year-old fashion model with New Jersey roots has died, those who knew him in the industry announced over the weekend.
Jeremy Ruehlemann, a Mahwah (Bergen County) native, walked for top designers including Christian Siriano and Perry Ellis, and modeled for GQ and Playhouse Magazine.
A cause of death was not revealed.
Just days before his death, Ruehlemann posted a behinds the scenes look from a Tommy Hilfiger shoot on Instagram.
In an interview with GQ at 24 years old, Ruehlemann said modeling "isn't about being attractive," rather, playing a role.
“I like when people make me look different," he told the magazine. "Looking handsome is boring to me at this point in my modeling career, you know?”
Ruehlemann studied psychology at Rowan University, but left four years into his five-year program to pursue his modeling career, he said on LinkedIn.
He said it was a decision he'd never regret, and always planned on finishing his education.
Siriano paid tribute to Ruehlemann in an Instagram post, calling him "the most beautiful man that gave so much love to everyone he met no matter what.
"He was one of my muses and he always will be."
Model Lexi Wood met Ruehlemann as a teen — and the two would go on to become besties.
"...I think what was the most special thing about him was that he was walking sunshine, he made everyone feel like they were the most special in the room, when he went anywhere it was like there was a light beam on him," she writes. His love will eternally flow through this world."
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