People : Court Official Repays a Debt by Lending a Hand to College Students

When Thomas Townsend was a struggling law student 30 years ago, police arrested him for failing to pay a traffic ticket. He called one of his professors, who helped him out of the jam.

“Later I said to him, ‘I guess the only way to pay you back is to help somebody else out,’ ” Townsend recalled. “He gave me a look that said, ‘Well, of course, that’s it, stupid.’ ”

In 1982, Townsend decided to make good on his promise. He started a scholarship fund for college-bound seniors who live in Compton, Carson, Lynwood, Paramount and Willowbrook. The following year, six students received a total of $1,000.

This year, the fund awarded $16,000 to 31 students, mostly from low-income families.

“All these kids need money,” said Townsend, 52, a Compton court commissioner since 1991.

Townsend donated $12,000. The rest came from judges in the Superior and Municipal courts in Compton, attorneys and the bar association.

“My home’s paid for, my daughter’s almost through college,” said Townsend, who is paid about $100,000 a year. “I have no bills. My wife and I are happy. We have more than enough.

“It’s a nice gesture for those of us who are blessed to give something back.”

Scholarship recipients have attended Ivy League schools, along with public and private colleges and universities.

An informal study of recipients shows that 90% of them either finished college or are still in school. Though there has been no formal follow-up of the students, Townsend said, he knows of scholarship winners who have gone into law, medicine, pharmacy, education and business.

Most students receive about $500, an award that “is not going to get these kids to college, but at least it helps them ease the burden,” Townsend said. “It lets them know we want them to make it.

“We spend so many resources on kids that are destructive. I’d like to see the good kids get more attention.”

Jimmy Price, a 1993 Lynwood High School graduate and scholarship winner, finished his first year at Harvard University with A’s and a B+. The scholarship helped him pay for books, supplies and travel expenses. Other scholarships, grants and loans help make up the rest of his tuition. “Every little bit helps,” he said.

Townsend went to Price’s high school graduation and the two see each other a few times a year. “You rarely find people willing to help and who are interested in what you’re doing,” Price said.

In the coming years, Townsend said he hopes to expand the scholarship program so that more students receive larger awards. He also wants to launch a follow-up study of previous winners to see what they’re doing now.

As for his debt to his former professor, Townsend said, “I think I’ve paid him back many times over.”