Our Team

Ed Cuming

Ed Cuming is a custom home builder and the founder of Ed Cuming Custom Homes, a premier custom home building company established on the Central Coast of California in 2003. Born in Yuma, Arizona, Ed grew up in a family of farmers who had been tending the land since the early 1900s. Initially, he planned to follow in his family’s footsteps and studied plant science in college. However, a year off school to work in construction planted a seed that would grow into a passion for building and shape his future career.

After completing his education, Ed worked in asset management at a mortgage company, where he gained valuable insights into the business and finance side of construction. He worked closely with a general contractor, visiting job sites every Wednesday. Before long, Ed realized Wednesdays were his favorite day of the week, and he eventually made the jump to pursue a career in building and construction.

Around this time, Ed, his wife Cheryl, and their wonderful dog Stanley made the life-changing move to the Central Coast. There, Ed worked for general contractors while earning his own license. His entrepreneurial spirit led him to start a tiling template product business with a partner, which provided him with invaluable business experience. Realizing his true passion lay in the artistry of custom home building, Ed transitioned to focusing on creating unique, beautiful homes for his clients in his own solo business in 2003.

Since starting Ed Cuming Custom Homes, Ed has built a reputation for excellence and a client-centric approach. For the first 15 years, he “wore his bags” and was hands-on, doing most of the physical labor himself until a mentor’s advice prompted him to shift his focus to the administrative side of the business, planning for long-term growth and success. Today, Ed is dedicated to enhancing the quality of his work and ensuring an exceptional client experience, and is grateful to be supported by a team of like-minded professionals.

Ed's "heart forward" philosophy emphasizes genuine connections with clients, treating each project as a unique work of art. His recent experience renovating his 120-year-old home with Cheryl has given him a renewed perspective on guiding clients through the building process.

Outside of his professional life, Ed enjoys spending time with Cheryl, who he describes as his #1 cheerleader, the love of his life, and his best friend. He also enjoys deep-sea fishing, fly fishing, kiteboarding, cycling, and off-road dirt biking. His artist’s heart, adventurous spirit, and dedication to his craft continue to drive him in both his personal and professional pursuits. Ed's passion for excellence, creativity, and client satisfaction makes Ed Cuming Custom Homes a trusted name in custom home building on the Central Coast.

Erica Goodson — Client Liaison

A lifelong resident of San Luis Obispo, Erica Goodson has a deep appreciation for the town’s rich architectural history. With over 20 years of design experience, she is known for her strong work ethic, attention to detail, and positive attitude.
Erica earned her Associate of Arts degree in Interior Design from the Fashion Institute of Design & Merchandising in Los Angeles in 2006. She has worked in both the new home industry and custom homebuilding, including remodels. Having collaborated with hundreds of homeowners, she understands the importance of bringing each client’s vision into fruition. Erica believes that a home should be a personal sanctuary—an expression of its owner’s uniqueness.
A proud mom to an amazing 27-year-old son, Erica enjoys long walks with her dog and relaxing with family and friends when she’s not assisting homeowners.

Jillian Paisano — Administrative Specialist

Born and raised on the Central Coast, Jillian is passionate about supporting the small businesses that keep our community strong. With over twenty years of hands-on bookkeeping experience and an Associate’s Degree in Business, she provides dependable, detail-oriented financial and administrative support tailored to each client’s needs. In 2018, she launched her own bookkeeping firm, Paisano Bookkeeping Services.

Outside of her professional life, Jillian and her husband have been married for twenty years and are raising four incredible children who keep their lives full and active. She stays closely involved in their academic and creative pursuits through booster programs and team activities.

Cheryl Cuming — Marketing

Cheryl’s career has included public relations, marketing, brand development, advertising, sales operations and BID administration. Her experience extends to both public and private sectors with businesses of all sizes – spanning from owning a 10-person ad agency / graphic design firm to McClatchy Media Corporation, and most recently working as a contracted CAO managing several tourism marketing districts. She brings a keen understanding of relationship-based service and process implementation.

Since 2010 Cheryl has been the contracted CAO of the unincorporated San Luis Obispo County Tourism BID, known as Highaway1RoadTrip. For the last 7 years she has also contracted with the Santa Maria Valley Tourism District working in conjunction with the SMV Chamber. Cheryl focuses on marketing strategy and district administration, leading a team of 24 contracted marketing and administrative professionals in partnership with 6 advertising firms across 9 districts with over 50 constituent board members. Her sweet-spot is building collaborative relationships across communities while implementing strategic programs that create results.

She also enjoys being involved in the community she loves, serving on the boards of the SLO Museum of Art, YMCA, SLO Coast Wine Collective, SLO Chamber of Commerce (Chair 2015), the Hearst Cancer Center, and Cal Poly’s Experiential Management Advisory Council.

Mariko Kriege — Marketing

Supporting Ed Cuming Custom Homes since 2020, Mariko provides comprehensive marketing, design, and writing services. With her business Mariko Creative, Mariko’s mission is to use her skills to help people, businesses, and nonprofits share their message and connect with their audiences in ways that further their mission, making the world a better, more connected place.

Mariko brings creative thinking, thoughtful communication, and problem-solving with a personal touch to every project, working closely with clients to deliver results that are authentic and aligned with their mission and brand.

With a background in grant writing, fundraising, community outreach, technical writing, and teaching, Mariko is particularly passionate about serving nonprofits but enjoys partnering with all types of clients. She holds an MA in English from Cal Poly and a BA in English from UC Berkeley.

Mariko resides in San Luis Obispo with her husband, two young children, and two cats. She loves exploring SLO County's hiking trails, beaches, and food and wine scene. In her free time, she enjoys reading fiction, watching horror movies, and gardening.

Becker McGuire — Videography, Photography, Social Media

Becker McGuire is the owner and lead creative at B. Remarkable Media, a commercial photography and video production company based in the Central Coast, California. With over six years in business and a background in business consulting, Becker specializes in helping brands tell their story through high-impact photo and video content — with a particular focus on the built environment, including custom homes, architecture, engineering, landscape design, and more.

His work spans everything from project coverage to brand story videos, testimonial videos, brand photography, aerial photography, and social media content, all produced with a strategic eye toward real results. As a Bay Area native who spent six years building his business in New Zealand, Becker is thrilled to be back on the Central Coast, and proud to be part of the EC Custom Homes team.

Kelly Donohue — Photography

As a long time resident on the Central Coast, Kelly was primed to discover her passion for photography living in what some call a photographer's wonderland. Kelly has well over a decade of experience in communications, photography, and marketing, with a true passion for creative storytelling. She has always felt compelled to bring life to ideas that serve non-profits, communities, and businesses. This is evident by her years of service on multiple boards and committees, including SLOU40, The San Luis Obispo Chamber of Commerce, and the Imagine SLO Economic Development Project.

Anna Timm — Accounting

Anna Timm is the owner of Numbers Supply Co, where we combine a love of the building industry with our love of numbers and accounting. "Always be honest" and "Always be kind" are our company values and at the forefront of the daily work we do. When we're not crunching the numbers, outdoor pursuits are what we love: gardening, fishing, camping, and traveling are up our alley!

We are thrilled to be working with Ed Cuming and his wonderful team! Ed's pursuit of excellence and quality shines through in his personality and the work that he does and we feel very blessed to play a part in supporting this business.

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