Refusal to Deal Drugs Brings Aid for Boy : Help: Some offer thousands of dollars, others plan to send $5 to help Sixto Perez after he rejected $100 to sell narcotics at school.

Sometimes, honesty does pay.

Consider Sixto Perez, the impoverished 12-year-old from La Puente who was honored Tuesday for turning down $100 to sell drugs.

His story, reported in The Times, struck a responsive chord that prompted more than 350 people to call and pledge money, food and clothing.

“My heart really goes out to this boy,” said Iris Wexler of Burbank, who said she is on a fixed income but plans to send $5 and a card.

A Chatsworth businessman said he would donate several thousand dollars. “It’s amazing that a 12-year-old would have the fortitude to say no,” said Russell J. Hampshire. “I just want to do something for this kid.”

Some who remembered their own poverty-stricken days offered to buy Sixto sneakers. Others wanted to drop off food or clothes for the family, which includes six children who live in a three-room trailer.

Frank Sinatra’s assistant called, saying her boss wanted to know where to send a contribution. CNN has interviewed Sixto, and Arsenio Hall has expressed interest in having the boy on his show.

The outpouring prompted the City of Industry branch of the Bank of California to set up a trust fund for Sixto’s education. The boy, who is bright but severely dyslexic, has shown mechanical aptitude and dreams of becoming a mechanic.

Sixto does odd jobs to help support his family. Last fall, he was sweeping a mini-mart for $20 a week when a drug dealer offered him $100 if he would sell drugs at his school. The boy refused.

The bank organized Tuesday’s ceremony at the Hacienda Heights Marriott Hotel and gave Sixto a $500 savings bond. The boy, who learned about the dangers of drugs from a sheriff’s program called SANE (Substance Abuse Narcotics Education), was also named an honorary deputy.

Betty Hill of Long Beach, who said she will send a small check, summed up the sentiments of many of the callers who read Sixto’s story.

“I felt it was important to recognize his moral accomplishment in some way,” she said. “There’s so much rotten stuff we read about, and when you have someone who is trying so hard to survive and has such integrity, it’s important to recognize them.”

Donations can be sent to the attention of Connie Clark, Los Robles Elementary School, 1530 S. Ridley Ave., Hacienda Heights 91745. The money will be forwarded to the trust account. Those who send checks should make them out to Sixto Perez.