ORANGE COUNTY PERSPECTIVE : A Gem in Newport

Prosecutors call Newport Beach the fraud capital of the country, home to boiler-room scams in which con men with telephones fleece the unwary. The city also hosted the largest embezzlement of school funds in state history--$4 million by the school district’s then-chief financial officer, who went to prison for the theft. However, Newport Beach also has Maria Jimenez, 24, who earns $6.20 an hour as a part-time housekeeper at the Newport Beach Marriott Hotel. It is lucky to have her, and Shirley Rich Wagner is even luckier.

Wagner stayed at the hotel last weekend and checked out without a bag containing jewelry worth about $100,000. When she discovered it missing, her reaction was natural: Gone forever. But she did not reckon with Jimenez.

The housekeeper found the jewelry bag behind some drapes and took it down to the hotel office.

A hotel spokesman said everyone “is very proud of her,” as indeed they should be. Jiminez quickly won employee-of-the-month honors, and Wagner said she will give her a reward of at least $400.

Jimenez lives in Garden Grove and volunteers at a maternal health clinic. Her actions provide a refreshing dose of honesty in today’s world, and not just for Newport Beach, where homes are pricey and a Times Orange County poll last year found most residents agreeing that materialism reigns.

Of course, we should all be honest all the time. In a perfect world, the action of Maria Jimenez would not merit comment. But in the real world, she has earned applause.