Common Vision Designers
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With the passage of a truly Uncommon year, confronted with a Common Affliction, an affliction leaving no one out of reach, we wonder – How can a disease that touches all of us leave us feeling more isolated than before? A great many things unraveled. Many things presumed solid transformed into v***r. And a country, built after all on a common vision trifles with the passionately lazy notion that nurturing and caring for it is too hard.
But look at the space we’ve made during this time! A new Showroom was in the works before the pandemic took center stage.. we had a Show planned! We had a room! As the world slowed down and drew in, we kept the common vision alive and toiled to fulfill the vision. Belatedly, perhaps, we’ll be able to have the party – the big celebration we envisioned – to show off our new space. In the meantime, this photo, complete with Superman and portraits of current subcontractors and some past CV stars added in gives a good sense of what you’re missing.
This year was hard for us in other ways. Harold Sweet whose big brain and larger heart significantly invigorated the early and ongoing formulation of the CV culture lost a long battle with MS. Barbara Morrissey whose quiet demand for excellence in all aspects of what we do succumbed to the inexorable assault of cancer. And we lost a new rising star, Jake Wright, probably to Covid. Each of them was a galaxy in the expanding universe of Common Vision, and their loss leaves a black hole in our hearts. When I asked the Common Vision team for reflections on 2020 as it came to a close, newly formed spiral galaxy Gabe Carter reflected on the loss of Jake…
“It's been a tough year with a lot of uncertainty, although the one thing that remained constant was the comradery, honesty, and reliability of the crew that makes up Common Vision and friends. Jake was not only a coworker, he was a leader and a good teacher, and over time we became friends. One thing I learned from Jake that epitomizes CV is how he would repair something broken he found on a job, even though it had nothing to do with the project. "Leave things better then you find them." I think that's a good way to think of a new year too. Let's make it better than how we found it.”
Nearly forty years ago, we began to design and build and work with this community, and called ourselves Common Vision. We’ll call this pandemic year a year of return for us, because our name now resonates in new, deeper and stronger ways. It is abundantly clear to us: as a group of craftspeople, as a cog in the local economy, as a node in intersecting community networks, as a plain old-fashioned business—— a common vision is our touchstone.
You will find within our fold diverse political passions, a multiplicity of contradictory convictions. A spectrum of thought from critical to calcified to credulous to crapulous, often vying for space in the same skull. What we have learned is that the web of connection, when it has realized its own being, is unperturbed by the day-to-day fireworks. Decades have gone into the making of this tapestry, and the design is just now beginning to emerge.
Common Vision continues to expand its universe, to strive to do what is right and “to make it better than we found it”. May 2021 be a big and happy change for all of us this New Year!
What about the clay bottles and clay pipes embedded in niches below the second floor windows? They surely had to have had some significant meaning to be so prominently displayed.
Questions like this could easily lead me into pages of questions and speculation about things like memory, monument, message and longevity of intention and meaning in Art and Architecture. In the end, I love the mystery and the playfulness displayed in this building. And more than anything the craft and pride of the people who did the work.
For 35 years, Common Vision has been a professional Design/Build remodeling company in New Haven CT Client satisfaction is our priority.
Common Vision Design Build, is a company incorporated 35 years ago to serve the Greater New Haven Area, is managed by Cyrus Miller. It’s not surprising, then, that over 90% of our business is generated through referrals. Our clients like what we do and tell their friends about us. DESIGN THAT WORKS
Common Vision is committed to design that works…. aesthetically AND functionally. Our designers use
09/29/2023
Did somebody say windows? Natural light pours in and illuminates beautiful moss green cabinets, and quartz countertops in this kitchen recently completed by Shaun McCardle.
09/08/2023
Feast your eyes on this gorgeous bathroom recently completed by Larry Page. I can't help but feel like I am floating through the ocean looking at the movement in the large shower tile, and the slight variation in the blues on the smaller tiles. Truly stunning. Plus a bonus shot of the same clients' kitchen that we renovated back in 2019. Still looks great!
04/20/2023
Michael McCardle did a wonderful job on this kitchen and bathroom - and oh, so much more for clients in New Haven. An amazing kitchen and a wonderful bath!
04/20/2023
This kitchen in North Haven features a beautiful curved island countertop with plenty of space for cooking, seating or entertaining. Beautiful job by Eliot Benton.
04/19/2023
https://gofund.me/2245aa16 We have more than $5000 of matching funds still to use. Read my update to see what we're doing, but basically, share some music for an inspiring playlist, a small amount of money that we'll match, and I'll share the playlist with everyone who contributes. We're having a great response to this musical interlude!
Tim Keyes has ALS, organized by Cyrus Miller I’m Cy Miller, Owner of Common Vision, a Design/Build Remodeling Company. Tim Keyes has worked for us … Cyrus Miller needs your support for Tim Keyes has ALS
04/17/2023
https://gofund.me/6ad54d91
WE HAVE UNUSED MATCHING DOLLARS! WE'LL MATCH YOUR DONATION UP TO A TOTAL OF $20,000!
I was robbed of music on September 11th and stopped listening after our invasion of Iraq. 22 years ago, I turned off the music and turned on the news and became a news ju**ie. A quarter century ago, I was a long-standing folk music aficionado and played it while I was working and much of the day. WPKN was on all the time. On one leg of my 15,000 mile hitch-hiking travels around the country I carried some of my prized vinyl discs on my shoulder in a duffel bag so I would have them when I settled for a half year in Colorado Springs. In a bad stretch, Ferron sang to me "Ain't Life a Brook?" and I recognized that life was like a polished stone. Sometimes we settle in and grow content with the polished nature of our lives. And then a storm comes along and washes us down the brook and bangs us up a bit. She said philosophically, "Life don't clickety-clack down a straight line track, it comes together and it comes apart." Ain't life a brook for Tim and Meg and those of us who love them?
Maybe it was Tim's diagnosis that led me months ago to start listening again to WPKN, my station before the "fall". It was on in the background on Tim's jobs when I arrived, and was the unofficial radio station of Common Vision when I joined in 1995. So a while back I made pledges to the station for me and for Common Vision in Tim's name and started listening again. A couple of weeks ago I was walking along the Shepaug River in Steep Rock (Washington, CT) to see if there was a path to hike with Tim in his wheelchair. I want to take him to the old train tunnel. While I was walking along the river I started thinking about songs with water in them. James Taylor and Pete Seeger sang "The water is wide, I can't cross over," Otis Redding sat on the dock of the bay. Alison Kraus went down to the river to pray. Ringo sat in the rain - under water! - in an octopus's garden. Moon River, Rock Me On the Water (Jackson Browne), rivers of dreams, rivers of tears, rivers of happiness - benevolent and destructive rivers. I stood on the footbridge near the tunnel and imagined the Shepaug River as "Troubled" (Waterbury steals most of it).
During a particularly happy stretch in the 80s I woke up every morning to begin the day playing Chris Williamson's "Waterfall." It starts adante and melancholic. She sings:
When you open up your life to the living
All things come spilling in on you
And you're flowing like a river
The Changer and the Changed
You've got to spill some over
She finishes with a crescendo of "Ah pah pup! Up, up up!" intermixed with the refrain "Filling up and spilling over, it's an endless waterfall." Her joyous conclusion filled me every morning as I geared up and headed off to work - with joy. The Changer and the changed... I walk into Tim's and Meg's home, and I feel the polished stone. I feel the brook and the rushing tide. Amazingly, I feel the spilling in and spilling over - the Changer, the Changed and JOY. You've read it in Meg's updates and I've seen it with my own eyes.
When I was falling in love my wife gave me a tape of the Bach Cello Suites. Not my Folk Music - something that stirred her and did me as well. I'm listening to it as I write this. Music is ours to help us lament, to celebrate, to wallow in self-pity, to dance to with abandon or sway to languorously. Donny was a little rock and Marie was a little country. You may be a little classical or a little classic rock, an indie aficionado, a lover of Sunday Baroque or of (as one coworker called my playlist) Albanian Goat Music. We listen so we can imagine the feelings of our friends and lovers, or to share our feelings with them; to recall our youth, to empathize with others, to immerse ourselves in the culture of others, to encourage us to acts of heroism.
Speaking of heroism ... many of you have heroically donated multiple times. It's hard to ask for more. It occurs to me, however, that you might be encouraged to take advantage of Common Vision's ongoing, unfulfilled match with a small donation AND the music you would most like to share. I think you have to make at least a $5 donation (which CV will match) in order to leave a comment in which you can share the music you want Tim or Meg or fellow sharers to have. 5, 10 20, 25, 100, 1000 ... We give what we can. But maybe now, music is as important as the money. If there is music in your heart that you want to share, please attach it (musician and title) to a small amount of money and post it in your contribution comments. Common Vision will match your monetary donation - but we'll also make a playlist that we can share with all of you. I can't wait for that!
Tim Keyes has ALS, organized by Cyrus Miller I’m Cy Miller, Owner of Common Vision, a Design/Build Remodeling Company. Tim Keyes has worked for us … Cyrus Miller needs your support for Tim Keyes has ALS
04/12/2023
This kitchen renovation in New Haven was completed recently by Shaun McCardle. The bathroom renovation happened a couple years ago by a carpenter who has since left the company, but it still looks amazing even after years of use!
03/29/2023
60 people have taken advantage of our match to Tim's fund. We have been able to match $11,270 in 6 days. Thank you all! You truly walk on water in my eyes.
Tim Keyes has ALS, organized by Cyrus Miller I’m Cy Miller, Owner of Common Vision, a Design/Build Remodeling Company. Tim Keyes has worked for us … Cyrus Miller needs your support for Tim Keyes has ALS
03/25/2023
https://gofund.me/6679bcb9 Our longtime past client Don Sackheim, neighbor and friend of Tim and Meg, has taken us past the $100K initial goal. And I take the greatest pleasure in singing his praise and thanking him. As my mother would say - "my Cup Overfloweth!"
03/25/2023
https://gofund.me/6679bcb9 This week we hold our annual awards party at Common Vision. One of the awards is appropriate for the first donors to take advantage of our match to Tim's fund. You Walk on Water!
Thank you to:
Simone, Bryan, Dave and Maggie, Jake, Liz, Keri-Jo, Cyndi, Keith, Katherine, Leslie, Patty, Donna, Rachel, Sarah, David, Katherine, Elizabeth, Charles, Penny, Martha, Melissa, David, Judy, Danielle, Joan, Toni, Robin, Janice, Paul, Margaret, Annelise, Moira, James, Lily, Joseph, Pamela, Tracey, Kathleen, Mira, Rachel, Brian and Larry.
03/23/2023
https://gofund.me/6679bcb9 We're short of our goal of $120,000 to support our employee Tim Keyes as he struggles with ALS. Common Vision will match contributions up to a total of $20,000 - donation by donation - to reach or hopefully exceed that goal.
I'm a weeper. I can cry at the drop of a hat. The other day I stumbled across a movie I'd never seen before called "The Pride of the Yankees." The opening lines called it the "story of a hero of the peaceful paths of every day life." It's the story of the "Iron Man," Lou Gherig, as he learned of and dealt with his diagnosis of ALS.
As I watched the movie, I recognized some of Tim's early struggles. Clutching of hands, the occasional stumble, emerging weaknesses, a little bewilderment. All down-played in an era when certain things couldn't be shown in movies or talked about in public. No weakness, for heaven's sake. Just strength, stoicism and American grit. In the middle of the 2nd World War, other things characteristic of Tim were emphasized. Bravery, humility, honesty, integrity, and thoughts of others before self. That whole - "I consider myself the luckiest man on the earth" thing. The aplomb with which Gherig says "I've been given a bad break, but I've got an awful lot to live for."
The comparison of Tim Keyes to Lou Gherig was inescapable to me. Character. Family. Loyalty. The pursuit of excellence - striving to be the best. Friendship. Respect. Love of baseball. Love of life. The "hat" dropped and I cried.
I was 5 years old when I marched up to the man using a backhoe to tear down an old building on our property. I asked him to try to kick the legs out of the building to bring it down faster. Very early on I discovered that I'm a problem-solver. A pretty good one. I remember our plumber laughing at me as I clutched my chest in a panic over some unanticipated problem on a job, terrified that we would disappoint a client in some way. I asked him about it later and he told me that Common Vision and I always figure it out. It wasn't going to be a problem - we would figure it out - and we did.
This past spring when Tim came to me to say that he'd been diagnosed with Lou Gherig's Disease my problem-solving brain kicked into gear. Suppressed panic and a clutch to the heart - "What to do, what to do?" How can we fix it or make it better? I realized very quickly that neither I nor Common Vision can "fix it." Amelioration has to be the order of the day. Talking with Meg "way" back then, she told me JOY was what they wanted to concentrate on. We took that seriously. This summer, by way of JOY, and long before I saw "The Pride of the Yankees," we got Tim seats in a Sky Box at Yankee Stadium for 6 games. Tim's a die-hard Yankees fan, and a long time softball player - we sponsored his team over the years. He took various friends and family to see games and have a GOOD time. With the help of childhood friends we facilitated a trip to Arizona to spend time with family. And we hired Tim’s son Will to join our team and work on their project. Pursuit of JOY in the works.
At the same time, we applied our problem-solving skills to the creation of a first-floor suite for Tim and Meg to live in while the progression of ALS marches steadily on. "THEY HAVE TO MOVE!" a friend with an intimate knowledge of ALS proclaimed to me. "IMPOSSIBLE!" I thought - and we moved in the direction of staying at home. Now they can stay there. Already family and friends are coming to visit and stay with them for new bouts of JOY in the home they built together.
A fortuitous connection to a board member of the Steve Gleason Foundation resulted in the much-heralded appearance of a space-age wheel chair. I hated seeing that chair. The chair signaled one more step along the unnamed, unmentionable road. It was hard for me to see the joy in that. But Tim embraced it and started to become its master and put it through its paces. The chair transported Tim and his new grandson Teddy down the street with laughter and JOY and tangled limbs of connection and love. It's not a necessary accoutrement yet, but a source of wonder for Teddy and a vehicle that they enjoy together. Soon, it will become necessary. It's one of the practical but unromantic things that will contribute to the pursuit of JOY.
Other necessities will emerge in that pursuit. Ramps and other practicalities, but also opportunities to live and love and be joyful. In the end, it will come down to money. It's not in my nature, and so hard to say - but it's reality. Money will be ameliorative and allow for quickly diminishing opportunities for JOY. Please share this campaign with others. We'll match your contributions and those of the people you share with. For those of you who have contributed, you've already done so much - but please, if you can - please contribute more - and share this with your friends and family who may feel a connection. We will double your contribution and share the burden.
03/16/2023
I'm not sure why it didn't occur to me to share this when it happened. I'm still trying to get with the flow on social networking, The Peer Networking group Common Vision is a member of made a special effort to recognize the way we do things here.
Congratulations to Common Vision for winning the November 2022 Heart of R.A. award! Cyrus and his team set up and raised over 50,000 dollars for a long-time employee, Tim Keyes. We want to thank everyone at Common Vision for the work they do and will continue to do! If you are interested in donating to the cause, go to https://www.gofundme.com/f/tim-keyes-has-als?utm_campaign=p_lico+share-sheet&utm_medium=copy_link&utm_source=customer
03/14/2023
During the fall after the Pandemic struck, Tim Keyes added the accent wall, the plank ceiling and beams and the banquette to this Westport kitchen we did a few years ago. We're starting our 2nd addition here and had the photos done yesterday. Meanwhile, Meg's brother and sister-in-law just spent 9 days in Tim's and Meg's new space. Here's a GoFundMe update from Meg:
Today
by Meg Birmingham
We just had an incredible nine-day visit from my brother, Tom and his wife, Erin. Tim and Tom have been friends since high school. Some of my favorite memories of their friendship are of them laughing and cooking together in the kitchen, wherever we were. Erin has an inner well of creative energy which she loves to share. Everyone cooked. Erin baked bread daily. Tom carried in wood. We visited with our younger generation(s) We took a sunny walk on the path at Silver Sands. When sand made it impassable by chair, Tim crossed on foot and Tom carried the 44 pound power chair. We had plenty of time to enjoy food and conversation. They left for their trip back to Big Sur on Saturday. Erin just sent this message from the road:
Last week, Tom and I had the chance to visit with Tim and Meg in their New Haven home. It was just two weeks since the team from Common Vision had wrapped up principal work on the accessibility renovation. The sawdust had all been swept up, the visqueen removed, the workers on to their next project.
The alterations to the first floor of the house have made it possible for Tim to navigate many of his activities much more easily, from a new and accessible bathroom to the expansion of a small sunny room into a proper bedroom. Walls have gone down to open up spaces. There seems to be more room and more light, overall. The transformation was simple - and astonishing.
Tim greeted us with a radiant smile, cooking us a delicious meal and cracking jokes. He and Meg toured us through the house with genuine delight and warmth, pointing out each detail with gratitude to all who had helped make these important modifications possible. Their high spirits calmed our fears and set us to ease.
I’ve known Tim and Meg for almost forty years. In the early days of Tom’s and my marriage, Tim and Meg offered us a temporary landing place, feeding, housing, and caring for us as we navigated our own early and sometimes perilous journey. I am grateful that we can in some small measure support them on their journey now.
The outpouring of donations to this GoFund Me campaign has allowed so much good work to be done, and so quickly. It has given all of us who know and love Tim and Meg and their family a way to offer material support that truly makes a difference in their daily lives.
There is still a way to go to meet the goal.
Today we are adding a second donation of $500 to the GoFund Me campaign, and asking you to join us, if you can, however you can. https://gofund.me/2245aa16
02/17/2023
We've started having our jobs professionally photographed. Tim is still waiting for furniture and has things in the dining room and living room that will move upstairs to the old bedroom - that will become Meg's office. Plaster repairs, painting and floor finishing are happening there this week, so these photos are not truly "final photos." A work in progress, but these are the final spaces....
02/16/2023
Meg's update to the GoFundMe Campaign
Today
by Meg Birmingham, Team Member
In a dream I found out I’d misunderstood the name of Common Vision. It turned out it was Common Miracle. As our daughter-in-law, Kat pointed out when I told her the dream, you don’t have to look for the hidden meaning in that.
The recent transformation of our home has been nothing less than a miracle. We’ve been sleeping in our first floor bedroom for the past ten nights. I still can’t figure out how the reshaped space feels so much bigger than the space before the work began. The bedroom is bright and tranquil, and I’m surprised every time I step inside.
Tim told me he sometimes dreams he’s moving around easily in his body from the past. In one dream, he was playing softball, making a play, his body free, fluid, and strong. He felt so good. If you ever saw him play softball, you know why this image sticks in my chest.
We recently got a power chair, funded by the Gleason Foundation. Tim practiced every night for a few weeks, moving around our first floor when it was still totally a job site, maneuvering around tools and supplies. This weekend, we took it out for the first time. Our grandson, Teddy, who loves anything with wheels has no preconceived idea about a rolling chair. Tim is unselfconscious about it and has a thirst for life and the outdoors. We’re looking forward to some longer rambles, and now that the work is mostly finished, we’re ready to plan an adventure.
In spite of the challenges, we don’t forget how grateful we are. We talk about it every day. Common miracles.
https://gofund.me/6ad54d91 Please Donate if you can.
02/14/2023
Eliot Benton finished this gorgeous kitchen for a couple in the East Rock neighborhood. A beautiful job!
02/05/2023
https://gofund.me/6ad54d91 Larry Page has done a really fantastic job making this light-filled bedroom suite for Tim and Meg. Thank you Larry! https://gofund.me/6ad54d91
02/05/2023
https://gofund.me/6ad54d91 We did an initial move on Friday to allow Tim and Meg to spend the weekend in their new bedroom. I had a pretty good sense of the space I was proposing and the way it could give them complete first floor living. I had no sense of what Meg would do with color to make the space both joyful and serene. Tim needs a cane now, and Jim Margraff's organization - The Gleason Foundation - have delivered a space-age wheelchair that he'll need sometime in the future. We'll wrap things up in the next two weeks - inside and out. Our costs on this project are about 10k beyond what we've raised through GoFundme - which has done an amazing job of raising money. Please help if you can. https://gofund.me/6ad54d91
12/22/2022
Tile is done, now in Tim's bathroom. Trim is started in the bedroom and the living/dining area. Today we take down plastic and pull up floor protection to hand the space over for the Christmas weekend so Jake and Kat and 15 month old Teddy can visit. We're behind schedule but moving along....
12/14/2022
https://gofund.me/6ad54d91 Tile has started at Tim Keyes' Master Suite. Patching of the wood floors happens tomorrow and siding is moving along. Larry's hands are in his pockets because the day is done and I'm on site to interrupt the progress and see what's happening. The answer to that question is - A LOT! Huge progress and we can all see the hint of what's to come - a beautiful space filled with light... https://gofund.me/6ad54d91
12/14/2022
Shaun McCardle transformed this Master Suite, adding a mantle in the bedroom at the end of the job. The walk-in closet has replaced a horrible, unused 80's spa tub and helped to make the entire space hard to leave. Great job by Lead Carpenter Shaun McCardle!
12/12/2022
https://gofund.me/9782b274 I just did another donation to Tim's fund. 'Tis the season, after all. We're tiling as I write and patching of the oak floors happens Wednesday. Larry and Tim's son Will are working on the 10" mitered clapboard siding in the cold today to give room to the tilers. Our former, retired plumber Luke DeRosa has contacted our current plumber Ernie Ehle to arrange to help install fixtures and do basement tie-in work this weekend. Painters, flooring guys, Dave Papa, our electrician who has been with the company for as long as Tim (35 years), are stepping in and doing work for nothing or large discounts. I'm overwhelmed by the outpouring and generosity from so many people. https://gofund.me/9782b274
Tim Keyes has ALS, organized by Cyrus Miller I’m Cy Miller, Owner of Common Vision, a Design/Build Remodeling Company. Tim Keyes has worked for us … Cyrus Miller needs your support for Tim Keyes has ALS
12/02/2022
https://gofund.me/395e19ce Recently completed by the one and only, Tim Keyes - This pristine white bathroom in New Haven rests on a sea of blue tile. Among other helpers, Tim had the pleasure of working with his own son, Will, on this project. A truly special bathroom for Common Vision. https://gofund.me/395e19ce
11/27/2022
https://gofund.me/395e19ce With my post below in mind.... a couple of comments from some that I know are Thankful for Gratefulness, or Grateful for Thankfulness - people who don't know Tim - from the GoFundMe page...
I don’t know Tim but if Tom is his best friend then that’s all I needed to know. I met Willie years ago — a remarkable young man. Strength and Love to All ! Best Trudi and Bob
Tim- I don’t know you, but I do know Meg and from what she wrote you’re an amazing team. Keep the updates and the asks coming!
11/27/2022
https://gofund.me/395e19ce In the days following Thanksgiving I've been writing Thank you notes to people who have donated to Tim's GoFundMe page. Note by note I'm homing in on a notion that has never occurred to me. To be Thankful for the gratefulness that has been instilled in each of us who give to those in need. To be Thankful for the ability not to be oblivious -as in this photo - of the trials of those right in front of us. To be thankful for my own gratefulness, or grateful for my own thankfulness. And to wonder about the difference - What's "Thankful", and what's "Grateful"? I'll come back to you on that when I figure it out. But I'm Thankful and Grateful for your contributions. https://gofund.me/395e19ce
11/23/2022
https://gofund.me/395e19ce Moments ago from the GoFundMe website...
Our family was so sad to hear the news of Tim's diagnosis in the Common Vision newsletter (Tim did our kitchen and bathroom years ago). The dignity shown by you, Meg, and Cy in the comments here and shared in the newsletter is amazing! May the future be as smooth as possible for you. AND
Tim, we think of you often - your skills and demeanor having set a high bar for anyone who has worked on anything relating to our home since. We were spoiled! We wish you and your family the very best in this time. - Jenny and Nick
Tim Keyes has ALS, organized by Cyrus Miller I’m Cy Miller, Owner of Common Vision, a Design/Build Remodeling Company. Tim Keyes has worked for us … Cyrus Miller needs your support for Tim Keyes has ALS
11/23/2022
https://gofund.me/395e19ce Some thoughts from the GoFundMe campaign:
Tim renovated our home as we were transitioning to empty nesters. Usually a stressful time and so we prepared ourselves for the multiple problems we would face. They never came. At times Tim would mention the problems with our ideas and suggest what we should do. The renovation was stressless and set the tone for our life transition. Tim is a wonderful person, very talented carpenter and as Cy noted faces life and his projects with the same aplomb that is integral to Tim as a person.
Al and I were so fond of Tim when he did our renovation in the late 1990s. We are so very sorry to hear of his illness and our thoughts will remain with him.
We know and feel deep affection and respect for both Tim and Meg and our acquaintance with each and both of you goes back more than 30 years. Please add us to the community that is surrounding you. Love from Peter and Nancy
Tim was the lead carpenter for our kitchen remodel back in 2002. We still have fond memories of him as a person and as a carpenter. Our thoughts are with him and his family.
Tim Keyes has ALS, organized by Cyrus Miller I’m Cy Miller, Owner of Common Vision, a Design/Build Remodeling Company. Tim Keyes has worked for us … Cyrus Miller needs your support for Tim Keyes has ALS
11/23/2022
https://gofund.me/395e19ce I want to share our Mission Statement at the end, but here's a comment from this morning on the GoFundMe page from a past client. And a photo reflecting how it makes me feel - boundlessly grateful for the support of so many people.
Marc and I are devastated by the news of Tim's diagnosis and will keep him and Meg in our thoughts. Steve King and Common Vision changed our life by expanding our house way back in 1989 (!), including a kitchen designed by the late (and beloved) Jim Barron, and meticulously installed by Tim. A couple of years ago I had an issue with one of the cabinets and Tim returned (30 years later!) to fix the problem at no charge. It was wonderful to see him again and catch up. Every time I've seen a Common Vision sign over the years, I've thought of him and the rest of the wonderful crew. That the crew is now working to keep Tim and Meg in their house warms our hearts.
COMMON VISION MISSION STATEMENT
It is our mission to Design, to Build, and to Maintain a Common Vision with our clients; to be engaged in the Greater New Haven Community; to adhere to the highest ethical standards and business practices; to pursue excellence and uphold a commitment to quality in design and ex*****on,
and to do what is right.
Thank you all... https://gofund.me/395e19ce
11/20/2022
https://gofund.me/395e19ce Friends from my home town - Washington, CT - were able to help Tim and Meg with a place to stay so they could have a family reunion in Tucson Arizona. Thanks to Nora and Dave Connoly. I was in Arizona for a business conference at the same time. Water problems are headed to Arizona, but in the meantime - WOW. https://gofund.me/395e19ce
11/20/2022
https://gofund.me/395e19ce The Keyes shower will be curb-less and accessible, with a linear drain along one side. The skylight adds lots of natural light, but will allow light to get into the dining room beyond through a multi-paned transom window over the old, removed double window. Tim has designed the transom and his son Will gets the honor of making it with different colors and textures of glass. https://gofund.me/395e19ce
11/20/2022
https://gofund.me/2245aa16 A view of the future bedroom at Tim Keyes' house - the bed will sit under the framed window in the wall covered with plastic. Tim salvaged a beautiful old window years ago from a job we did in Woodbridge and put it in the wall between his sunroom and the living room. We're reinstalling it. The other photo is a view towards the bathroom addition. We're half-way there on funding and construction.... https://gofund.me/2245aa16
11/19/2022
https://gofund.me/2245aa16 Common Vision is about half way through the bathroom/bedroom remodel on Tim and Meg's house. And we're a little more than half way to our $100,000 GoFundMe campaign goal to help pay for it. Here's our company calendar photo, taken at their house. People are receiving it now. https://gofund.me/2245aa16
10/30/2022
https://gofund.me/964e1c99 We arrived at our company party on Friday through our own special portal on the Hogwarts Express - Platform 9 3/4 is a perennial meeting place for distributing awards and connecting as a group. Eric met Tim Keyes shortly after he arrived and discussed the progress on Tim's bath/bedroom remodel. Plumbing starts on Monday and we're halfway to our goal of $100,000. Please help if you can... https://gofund.me/964e1c99
10/29/2022
https://gofund.me/964e1c99 An update from Meg:
Yesterday
by Meg Birmingham, Team Member
As our house undergoes this positive disruption, we live on one side of the plastic curtain that keeps debris from our living space. We have access to a small wedge each of our living room and dining room. What could feel like an intrusion feels like an incredible support. Some people like watching YouTube videos of creative works. In our house, it’s happening live and we get to witness the change daily.
When Jake was in college he worked for Common Vision during a couple of summers. Arriving home after a brutal day of demo, he told me “The best thing about working with Dad is I get to see how hard he works. I never knew.”
I always thought I knew. I’ve seen how Tim does things: meticulous, focused, and thorough. During the past few weeks, with the Common Vision team here in our house, I’ve gotten a lesson in how little I actually understood. There is so much thought, creativity, collaboration, conversation, intention, skill, and hard work that goes into a renovation. It’s been great for me to appreciate each of these carpenters and the other tradesmen who are making this happen. And appreciating all of them deepens my appreciation of Tim.
These days Tim has a finite amount of energy. I see him adapt with grace to his changing life. He doesn’t give up, but he accepts limitations. Last month I set up a desk in our attic to create a separate space where I could work form home. Without saying anything , Tim installed a handrail in the stairway. It took him three times longer than it ordinarily would have because he needed rest breaks. But now I have a handrail, strong and secure.
For 16 weeks Tim has been participating in a clinical trial which involves a weekly infusion. It gives us meaning and hope to be part of something bigger than our own experience. We can’t forget the awful reason that all this is happening and of course, we’d love a medical miracle. But we’re already experiencing the miracle of this: our gratitude is stronger than our fear. This is the force that fuels us every single day. https://gofund.me/964e1c99
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Common Vision
Common Vision Design Build, is a company incorporated 28 years ago to serve the Greater New Haven Area, is managed by Cy Miller. Client satisfaction is our priority. It’s not surprising, then, that over 90% of our business is generated through referrals. Our clients like what we do and tell their friends about us.
DESIGN THAT WORKS
Common Vision is committed to design that works…. aesthetically AND functionally. Our designers use a Computer Aided Design (CAD) system to help clients see both the detail work and a “perspective view” of what the space or structure will look like when it is completed.
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Hamden, CT
06517
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| Wednesday | 8am - 4:30pm |
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