Street may be renamed in honor of O.C. ‘champion of childhood’

He’d stammer, turn beet red and protest vociferously — but deep down, we suspect the late William Steiner would be tickled silly that a street might be named after him.

Steiner — the fun-loving child welfare activist, force behind Orangewood Children’s Home, mentor to foster youth, fish-out-of-water politician and genuinely nice guy — died in 2022 at age 85.

Right now, the street in front of Orangewood is called Justice Center Way, but a proposal to change it to Steiner Way will be considered by the County Board of Supervisors on Tuesday, Jan. 23.

The street is in the city of Orange, where Steiner once served on the school board and city council before becoming a county supervisor.

“He’d blush all over as he’d be surprised to be so honored,” said friend and former chief of staff Mike Spurgeon. “He’d then give the credit to all of the principal movers and shakers, such as Gen. William Lyon, who made Orangewood become a reality. Then he’d call all of his children and friends and share the news starting with — ‘Can you believe this?!’ “

The proposal was placed on the agenda by Supervisor Vicente Sarmiento, who represents the district Steiner once represented.

Steiner was born in Iowa and came to California as a child, when his father took a job with a steel company during World War II. He grew up in Bell (where his mother would later fight city corruption), earned a degree in criminology from UC Berkeley and a master’s in social work from USC.

He went to work with the Los Angeles County Department of Adoptions, Metropolitan State Hospital and other residential treatment programs for abused and neglected kids, the Good Samaritan Centers, then became head of Orange County’s Albert Sitton Home for abused and neglected children in 1978.

There, Steiner almost went to jail for refusing a judge’s order to return a child to a home that he felt was unsafe (he managed to convince the judge of that at a subsequent hearing). But conditions at the facility appalled him. Sometimes there was no hot water. Sometimes there weren’t enough beds so kids had to sleep on the floor. County officials said they didn’t have the money to fix things, they said — so Steiner got creative.

He leveraged his considerable charm and a righteous cause into a private-public partnership that raised some $8 million to build the Orangewood Children’s Home shelter, a spacious, Spanish-style complex of a dozen buildings that opened in 1985. The shelter housed some 150 kids a day, and Steiner was famous for knowing most of their names. He and his then-wife fostered kids and raised five of their own. In 1986, he left to become executive director of the Orangewood Foundation, which would go on to raise millions more to support Orange County youth.

The work made him a local darling. Steiner served on the Orange Unified School District’s board, then on the Orange City Council. He also had the ear of state officials, which led to his fateful appointment to the Board of Supervisors shortly before the county’s historic bankruptcy. He won the Child Advocate of the Year Award and Crystal Vision Philanthropy Award and Lifetime Achievement Awards. Orangewood’s “William ‘Bill’ Steiner Heart of Service Award” is named after him.

Steiner’s proudest achievement was always Orangewood and the devotion he felt toward abused and neglected kids, his family has said. He was a famed champion of childhood.

The Postal Service, Sheriff’s Department and Fire Authority have already signed off on the street name change. Folks can share their thoughts at the public hearing at the supes’ meeting, where friends are expected to talk about what a great guy he was.

Steiner always wanted to be considered a “white hat” — the good guy who rides off into the sunset. It appears he has gotten his wish.

Source: Orange County Register