LI native Scott Kolbrenner to appear on 'Wheel of Fortune'

A Hewlett native living in Los Angeles tries to win money to help two charitable organizations and get the word out about them in Thursday's episode of the TV game show "Wheel of Fortune" (WABC/7 at 7:30 p.m.).

Scott Kolbrenner, 50, a managing director at the investment firm Houlihan Lokey, says he had volunteerism instilled in him by family, particularly his late maternal grandfather, Paul Safro. "He was very civic-minded, and said to me from an early age, 'You know, I'd love for you to be a success in business and with your family, but you're really incomplete if you're not also contributing to your community.' And it stuck with me."

In addition to helping Uplift Family Services, where he serves on the board, Kolbrenner also went on the show to promote the Los Angeles Regional Food Bank. The children these organizations help, he says, "are, through no fault of their own, in very difficult situations. And whenever I hear their stories, it just reminds me how lucky I am. My parents, we were an intact family unit, and I never had to worry about my next meal. These kids have struggles I can't even imagine."

Kolbrenner auditioned for the show after turning to it regularly during the COVID-19 pandemic, when he felt inundated by each day's grim news. "What's more comfort-food than turning on 'Wheel of Fortune' and seeing Pat [Sajak] and Vanna [White], whom I'd grown up watching," he says. "As we got into the summer, I was watching it every night and I would yell out the answers like everybody does when they watch."

When the show began soliciting potential contestants from Southern California, Kolbrenner's wife Caryn, an elementary-school nurse with whom he has teen son Owen and 20-year-old daughter Abby, encouraged him to try.

"I sent in a quick video and a one-page application. I got a call back right away for a Zoom interview" — a mock show, with two other potentials and an associate producer — "which was really fun to do," he says. "I thought I had blown it because I didn't win a lot of the puzzles, but then a couple of days later I got an email that said, 'Your taping day is November 5th. We look forward to seeing you.' I couldn't believe it!"

The 1988 George W. Hewlett High School graduate, who went on to the University of Colorado Boulder and Harvard Law School, still has many relatives in the Five Towns area, although father Bruce, a CPA and former Hewlett Lawrence Soccer Club coach, now lives in Los Angeles and mom Naomi, a retired librarian, lives in Manhattan.

"I really miss Hewlett," says Kolbrenner, who returns with his family each Thanksgiving. "And I will tell you something: When we travel back to New York, every time I'm getting on a plane I always say the same thing to my wife: 'I'm going home.' "