DECEMBER 15 • 2022 | 77

B

irmingham-based 
architectural and 
interior design firm 
DesignTeam Plus makes it a 
mission to pay its employees 
to give back. The six-per-
son team, led by co-owners 
Harold Remlinger (principal 
architect) and Shari Stein 
(principal interior designer), 
is fueled by social responsibil-
ity and community activism.
“It’s really at the core of 
who we are and what we 
do,” explains Stein, an Adat 
Shalom member and active 
contributor to the Metro 
Detroit Jewish community. 
“Everyone here [at the firm] 
is passionate about giving 
back to our community.”
For Stein, it’s a lifelong 
passion that continues to 
shape the firm’s values today. 
Yet the seeds for giving back 
were planted early on, long 
before the award-winning 
DesignTeam Plus opened its 
doors in 2012.

PLANTING SEEDS 
FOR ACTIVISM
Prior to launching the firm, 
Stein worked as an instructor 
at Lawrence Technological 
University. There, she partnered 

with students on pro bono work 
for Yad Ezra, which helps feed 
hungry families in the Jewish 
community.
They designed an outdoor 
mural, among other initiatives, 

that eventually led Yad Ezra to 
become a client. Several years 
later; the firm designed a green-
house for the Berkley-based 
food pantry in 2015.
Yet, while she was still work-
ing at Lawrence Technological 
University, Stein began to think 
of ways to merge communi-
ty activism with her love for 
design. While the project for 
Yad Ezra served as a major 
inspiration for launching 
DesignTeam Plus, a second 
volunteer initiative also played a 
role in developing the business.
When Stein was 
approached by Friendship 
Circle, where she was serv-
ing as a volunteer, to design 
an apartment for Lilya 
Bromberg, a 21-year-old 
woman with cerebral palsy 
and cancer, she knew it was 
an opportunity she wanted to 
pursue.
“Everybody in the commu-
nity provided products, and 
we designed a fully accessible 
shower for her,
” Stein recalls. 
“Prior to that, she had no place 

BUSINESS

Design with 
Heart

ASHLEY ZLATOPOLSKY 
CONTRIBUTING WRITER

Giving back to the 
community is at the core 
of DesignTeam Plus.

Harold Remlinger 
and Shari Stein 
at a Habitat for 
Humanity project.

Lily is chief 
morale officer at 
DesignTeam Plus

continued on page 78

