Street in Orange named after William Steiner, a ‘tiger in defense of children who had nobody’

There’s taking work home from the office, and taking work home from the office the way William Steiner would do it.

“We all have our memories,” Jim Steiner, Steiner’s eldest son, told the Orange County Board of Supervisors. “He would often bring children home to spend time with us for the holidays, to experience love and family and laughter.”

But the thing that really showed the young Steiner that his late dad was something special was the day they had to run by the office — Orangewood Children’s Home for abused and neglected kids, which William Steiner muscled into existence by sheer force of will. As they entered a room filled with children, “every kid ran toward him and threw themselves in his arms screaming ‘Mr. Bill’s here!’ He called every one of them by their first names. That’s who our dad was. He truly was a special human being.”

County supervisors were more than pleased to approve a street name change to honor Steiner, who died in 2022, on Tuesday, Jan. 23. The street in front of Orangewood Children’s Home in the city of Orange will heretofore be known as Steiner Way, rather than Justice Center Way.

“My last conversation with your dad was about, of course, a project he was working on in Tustin to help families,” Supervisor Katrina Foley told the Steiner children assembled. “He was very passionate about it – he was really a great example of how, after leaving office, he continued to serve the community. He stayed involved, always tried to find nonpartisan ways to support the community.”

Supervisors and Orange city councilmembers spoke about the support and advice William Steiner gave them on doing their jobs (including the advice his mother once gave him: “You want to hold public office? No! Don’t do it!” He didn’t listen either).

Orange city councilmember Jon Dumitru hopes that, years from now, people will wonder “Who was this Steiner guy?” Google his name and learn about him. “He was an absolute tiger in defense of children who had nobody,” Dumitru said.

This cements a piece of history, honors Steiner’s work, and hopefully inspires others to lean in and do the same, Supervisor Vicente Sarmiento said. “He had a special place in his heart for our most vulnerable children.”