Gala Aims to ‘Get Kids Smarter’

The Stein-Brief Group has been having its share of problems lately: Its giant Monarch Beach development in Laguna Niguel is facing foreclosure. But the partners appeared to forget their troubles the other night.

Looking remarkably confident at the SchoolPower annual gala Saturday at the Newporter in Newport Beach were David Stein and Barry Brief.

Looking positively radiant was Brief’s wife Karen, chairwoman of the $1,000-per-couple dinner auction.

According to Barry Brief, Karen Brief came to be president-elect of SchoolPower, the fund-raising arm of the Laguna Beach Education Foundation, in a roundabout way.

“One day I said to her, ‘Karen, you’ve got to do something besides go shopping every day. You know, (the stores) need a little time off from you now and then. . . . ‘ “

He was joking, of course. The couple have four children, ranging in ages from 7 to 17, all of whom attend Laguna schools. “We’ve always been involved with the educational organizations,” Karen Brief said, “starting with the PTA.”

Wears Penguin Pin

Barry Brief wore, as he always does when “forced” to wear a tux, a penguin pin on his lapel. On this occasion, however, he sported several more on the inside of his coat.

According to SchoolPower director Sandy Thornton, her organization, which she said is patterned after the endowment offices of campuses throughout the world, was the first fund-raising foundation for schools in Orange County.

“Since we started five years ago, we’ve given our school district at least $100,000 each year,” Thornton said, adding that the Laguna Beach School Board has designated those funds for computers, textbooks, maps and special classes and programs. Including the $80,000 raised at the dinner, the foundation will turn over more than $130,000 this year.

According to Laguna mom and SchoolPower trustee Pam Goldstein, the aim of the organization is simple: “Getting our kids smarter.” Her company, Le Cake Laguna, was responsible for the “Mystery Gift” auction item, which inspired a successful bid of $150 from Meme and Mel Schantz. Inside were 50 Dolly Parton suckers.

The affair was called “A Very Special Evening, Under the Palms.” The decor inside the plaza ballroom suggested Casablanca, or maybe the South Seas. “Kids from the Laguna School District cut the palms out,” Goldstein proudly noted. With only 130 attending, she said, “we were able to cut down on centerpieces.”

Included in the ticket price of the event was an overnight stay at the hotel, which is currently under major renovation.

“The Newporter has been wonderful,” Karen Brief confided during the silent auction. “But,” she added, “they had promised not to start this part (of the renovation before our party). When I arrived at noon today, this (framing) wasn’t painted. They sprayed it for us, but it took three hours. It’s been an eventful day,” she sighed.

Imaginative Decorations

Chairwoman Brief was responsible for sometimes quite imaginative decorations: Strategically nestled among the silent auction items, for instance, was an inflated stegosaurus.

“We call this item ‘assorted glamour’--a set of acrylic nails, three tanning sessions and a dinosaur,” she said, laughing. “He deflates, you can put him in your pocket and pull him out when you need him.”

Lynda Baas was the successful bidder on an antique painted metal wreath. “We have a friend who gives us the worst gifts in the world,” Baas said. “His birthday is coming up in August.”

Baas said her husband, Jacobus, owns “the crunched jewelry store” in Laguna Beach. “You know, the one that the trucks keep driving into?” The store, Jacobus Goldsmiths, has been impacted numerous times, twice with near-total devastation.

In the live auction, Dave Wilson paid $6,000 for a trip for two to Singapore. Karen Brief paid $900 for cosmetic surgery, “for Barry,” she said. Barry bought Karen a trip to Puerto Vallarta.

Rumors are that a Dallas real estate and financial services conglomerate is going to rescue Stein-Brief. When would the agreement be signed? “Depends,” Stein said. “When do we have to pay for the stuff we bid on?”