The Desert Sun, CA
June 13 2005
Father, son get ready for president
Immigrant and entrepreneur set to meet Bush
Erica Solvig
The Desert Sun
June 13, 2005
Steve Balian grew up in a poor section of Beirut and with just $480
in his pocket, he came to this country in the 1970s in search of the
American Dream.
Thirty years later, the 58-year-old Rancho Mirage father of three has
done enough for the Republican party to score him an invite to this
week’s 2005 President’s Dinner and Salute to Freedom in Washington.
“Since I came to this country, I supported Republican party and I had
no money,” Balian said. “The issue is standing next to the president
and supporting his principles. That’s more important than money.”
The Salute to Freedom event starts today in Washington. The National
Republican Congressional Committee-sponsored dinner, which will honor
President George Bush, is Tuesday night.
Event organizers won’t disclose names on the 6,000-person guest list.
But neither Balian nor Coachella Valley Lincoln Club President Herb
Temple knows of any other Coachella Valley residents who were invited.
“It means the world for me,” Balian said. “What a privilege to go.”
Balian won’t disclose how generous he has been – “it’s personal,” he
says – but he did say he was a table sponsor. The event’s Web site
says that designation comes with a $25,000 price tag and includes
VIP reception tickets, tours of the capital and one photo with
President Bush.
Standing by Balian’s side will be his son and “backbone,” Michael
Balian.
“I’m excited,” said Michael, president of Carpet Empire Plus in
Cathedral City, where Steve is the marketing and sales director.
“You’re in the White House. It’s seeing what America is all about.”
That’s what prompted his father to come here in the first place.
The youngest of seven boys, Steve Balian says he came from poor and
humble beginnings.
Growing up in Beirut, Balian met some American missionaries and had
friends who attended the American University of Beirut.
It was his introduction to the culture of the United States.
“I said, if American people (are) this nice, I am definitely going
to go to this country,” Balian said.
At age 26, he and his wife at the time came here in 1974.
He became a citizen in 1979.
They lived in Sherman Oaks, and Balian moved to the Coachella Valley
in the early 1990s.
During his time in California, he’s had flooring businesses in
Riverside and San Bernardino counties. He now works at his son’s
flooring and window furnishing store, where their office is plastered
with enlarged photos of his family, President Bush and Air Force One.
The Salute to Freedom event is Balian’s first trip to Washington.
The event is the annual fund-raiser hosted by the National Republican
Congressional Committee and the National Republican Senatorial
Committee.
In years when a Republican is not in the White House, the event is
known as the House-Senate dinner.
About 6,000 people are expected for the Tuesday night dinner, but only
1,500 of them are expected to attend the other tours, luncheon and
nighttime cruise, according to Carl Forti, congressional committee
communications director.
Conference members are part of the small business council, which
include small business owners from across the country, Forti said.
“Most of them choose to give to the party,” he said. “But you do not
have to give to be part of it.”
Balian has been a party supporter for years. Besides giving to the
Republican party, Balian has been involved in other fund-raising
events, including being named a major donor for the new Kirkjan Family
Hall at the Armenian Apostolic Church of the Desert in Rancho Mirage.
But Balian maintains it is not about the amount of money.
“It is more than fundraising,” Balian said. “It is principle issues
for me.”