The Towns: Linden-area family driven by love, faith encourage others amid difficult times

At a church on the Near East Side called The People After True Holiness, L.B. Towns Sr. leads a small but loyal congregation. 

Every Sunday, the 64-year-old street pastor's wife and 16 of their 19 children join him side-by-side in worship, where their unwavering faith and love for one another reaches its peak.

Several of his children, ranging in age from 2 to 16, help him inside the small sanctuary. Some of them help Towns recite scriptures and act as ushers, while the younger ones nod their heads in support.

Genesis Towns, 3, occupies herself with a tennis ball while sitting on the lap of her mother, Christinia Towns, during Sunday worship at People After True Holiness Ministries church. And when weather permits, the Towns gather at Hoover Dam to ignite the spirits of anyone willing to listen.

Above all things, Towns and his wife Christinia, 44, encourage their children and followers to rely on faith and love when faced with adversity. And with all that has transpired this year, this message has only grown more imminent, Towns said. 

"With everything going on, we need that faith and love," he said. "People are hurting right now."

Throughout the past 10 months of the coronavirus pandemic, the chaotic electoral process and continued social unrest in the U.S., the Towns have showered each other with love and prayer.

“You have to have a heart, a real heart to give to people,” Towns said. “You got to do all you can to make sure you’re compassionate.” 

L.B. Towns Sr. prays with his family at home on Christmas Eve for the health of a relative who has returned home for hospice care.

Towns, who began his path in ministry nearly 30 years ago, said he has always encouraged others to share faith and benevolence. 

As a student-athlete at Linden McKinley High School, Towns earned a partial academic scholarship to attend Ohio University, eventually graduating in 1979.

In Athens, he joined the Campus Crusade for Christ and attended Mount Zion Baptist Church. From there, he continued to study the Bible and said he formed a life-long dedication to his Lord and savior.

“The more I got closer to God, the more he enlightened me about how I should direct my path," Towns said. "That was the peace he gave me, and I trusted Him.”

L.B. Towns Sr. sings and claps during Sunday morning services at People After True Holiness Ministries church.

While preaching at the New Tabernacle Church of Christ on Wentworth Road, Towns and Christinia met through a mutual friend in 2000. The street preacher said they were drawn to each other’s commitment to their faith and shared passion for the local community. 

The two were engaged by September 2000 and married the next month. After 20 years of marriage, Christinia said she couldn’t imagine a better role model for their children and a more fitting presence in their household.

“Just some of the things he instills I think are just so important,” she said. “When I’m out talking, especially to young people, I’ll give them that motto (about love and faith) and they say, 'Oh, I like that.'"

Along with connecting his children to the word of God, Towns said he has instilled a sense of compassion and hard work in them at an early age.

L.B. Towns Sr. and 15 of his children do pushups in the early morning outside of Linden-McKinley High School in Columbus. Towns instills discipline in his children by having them exercise several mornings each week.

Nearly every morning, as early as 6 a.m., he and his children jog to Linden McKinley High to run laps around the track. By the time each child is age 5, Towns said, they are able to recite dozens of Bible scriptures and do nearly 50 push-ups. 

Towns said this routine instills a sense of discipline and stability, which has translated to his children's academic and athletic pursuits. Most of his school-aged children have between a 3.5 and 4.0 GPA, he said, while racking up accomplishments in their individual sports.

“You’ve got to have the desire, the determination," he said. "It’s in your hands. It’s not given to you; you have to earn it. We have standards." 

L.B. Towns Jr., 16, who is the leading point guard at Linden McKinley, said that having an active father and mother has helped him and his siblings press forward in the face of hardship and be successful in whatever avenues they pursue. 

L.B. Towns Sr. yells words of encouragement to his sons' cross-country competitor, Matthew Conroy, during the City League cross country championship at Whetstone High School, as 5-year-old Love-Lea Towns looks on.us

Christopher Towns, 15, a sophomore at Patriot High School, said the biggest lesson he has learned from his father is that nobody can beat you as long as you have God, and the only defeat you can endure is rooted within.

“Just keep your head up, don’t let nothing get in your way," he said. "And if you fall, get up.”

The elder Towns said it’s important for him to keep his kids active, even more than he was, so they are more inclined to stay away from the violence that surrounds their Linden-area home. And while he said he isn't effusive with praise, he is proud of the work they have done and the people they are becoming, a testament to their work ethic and passion to help others, he said.

L.B. Towns Jr. drives in for a layup during his fall league basketball game at Grace New Covenant Church in Columbus. Towns is the point guard on the Linden-McKinley High School basketball team and also runs track for the Panthers.

“I don’t just give them praises but they been getting busy, so I got to give it to them," Towns said. "They have that drive."

Kevin Darthard, head coach of the Linden McKinley basketball team, described the Towns children as "yes-sir and no-sir kids" with a big work ethic and overwhelming level of love for one another.

Despite the family of 18 living in a small home just a few houses from the high school, Darthard said they are instilled with qualities that have inspired him and others in the community. 

"You can just feel the love and respect come from them, even with the things that they may or may not be experiencing," he said.

– The Columbus Dispatch