I am really fortunate to have not only a high performing team of hard working, smart people on our team at LB, but also humbled by their hearts and desire to give back to our community. This is not only true for our internal team at LB but also our trade contractors and clients.
A couple years ago, our team voted and unanimously agreed to give back to our community and help a family or individual in need of home accessibility that could otherwise not afford the modifications. Once we agreed, we thought it would take months to get the word out and look for a person and project with the greatest need that we could make the biggest impact with. To our surprise we had the perfect candidate practically fall in our lap. I was at physical therapy the next day and shared this with the owner and good friend of mine, John Farahmand. He sees hundreds if not thousands of patients in his multiple clinics in the area, and he immediately lit up and said, “I have the perfect candidate.” And that is how we met Joseph Escalante.
I learned as much as I could about Joseph and brought it back to the team. We knew immediately that there was no need to wait and collect other candidates; we had found our perfect match.
One of the interesting things about accessibility is this is what brought my business partner Scott Julian and I together. Early in my career, as a Certified Aging-In-Place Specialist (CAPS), I was referred to for accessibility needs of all types throughout Monterey County. Scott represented the medical equipment side of things and we continued to get referred to the same projects. I enjoyed working with Scott because of his values and ethics and knew that if we were both on a job the client would be well taken care of, regardless of whether it was a child with a disability or an elderly person that was experiencing the burdens of aging. Eventually, Scott left that industry and joined my side as a business partner in Lewis Builders, and we’ve grown it into what it is today. And while we no longer do small accessibility projects, we are passionate about incorporating these Universal Design concepts into our homes, long before our clients ever even need them.
I became passionate about this line of work because of having to recover from major knee surgery when I was younger, single, and lived on my own in a house that was not set up for accessibility. It was a terribly humbling, and often painful, and even scary experience. Through this, I developed deep empathy for people trying to live safe, independent lives in unsafe homes not set up for accessibility or aging.
Joseph was the perfect candidate because before his injury he also lived a normal life like I had before my injuries. But now he knows to a much greater degree the drastic differences of trying to live life in a new way, in a home ill-suited to the new needs. In this project, we knew we could truly live our creed, “Change Your Space. Change Your Life.”
Our plan was to renovate his house to reestablish some independence despite his disabilities, but also some safety. I am proud of all of the contributions from our team, trade partners, suppliers, and even some clients, that came together to help out a complete stranger either out of empathy or sympathy for a fellow community member. So for those of you that helped, contributed time, money, or labor, I am deeply grateful that we made a huge impact into Joseph's daily life.
So on the eve of Thanksgiving and this holiday season ahead, I want to simply say to all of you, thank you.
John Lewis
