James Roger Townsend

James Roger TOWNSEND November 9, 1932 - January 17, 2004 Professor James R. Townsend passed peacefully from this life on January 17th in Seattle, leaving behind a legion of devoted family and friends who had flocked to his side during his final months, weeks and days. Professor Townsend was 71. James Roger Townsend was born November 9, 1932 in Hastings, NE. From his humble Midwest roots he rose to become one of the leading China scholars of the 20th century. Remembered by his colleagues for his erudite scholarship, elegant writing, commitment to teaching and promoting goodwill in Sino- American relations for five decades, Townsend is also credited with training the next generation of China experts. Townsend received his Doctorate in Political Science at the University of California, Berkeley in January, 1965. On the Political Science faculty at UC Berkeley during the dynamic 1960's and a leading expert on Maoism, Townsend himself was a moderate. He accepted a tenured position with the University of Washington in 1968, where he held a joint appointment in the Political Science Department and Jackson School of International Studies for three decades. Over his short military (US Army, Korea, 1953-1955) and lengthy academic career Townsend taught, studied and lectured in China, Hong Kong, Korea and around the Pacific Rim for 7 full calendar years. His love and knowledge of Asian culture, history and customs combined with his fluency in Chinese and Confucian ethos of academic integrity and service, served to nurture Chinese and American scholarly and diplomatic relations for over half a century. Townsend met in Berkeley and married in New York City, Ms. Lucile Peake, a fetching and feisty native New Yorker and fellow Berkeley graduate student on December 27, 1960. From this union, two sons were born: Matthew in 1961 and Michael in 1964. The Townsend's lived in Hong Kong for a year in 1966-1967 and moved to Seattle in 1968. James and Lucile divorced in 1974. Later that year, Townsend helped pioneer the opening of China to Western visitors by serving as the political and cultural expert for a National Academy of Sciences' delegation of American surgeons touring the People's Republic of China. In 1978 Townsend met the love of his life, Ms. Sandra Jeanne Perry, whom he married in Seattle on September 20, 1981 after a lengthy courtship via overseas correspondence to Hong Kong, where Sandy was resident as an editor with the Hong Kong Standard. Together, Jim and Sandy enjoyed 20 years of married life and travel, including 3 years at the Johns Hopkins University-Nanjing University Center for Chinese and American Studies, where Townsend taught as an Adjunct Professor in 1986-7, 1990-1991 and 1993-1994. Perry, holding a Doctorate in English from the University of Washington, and Townsend delighted in the birth and raising of their three grandchildren: Lewis, Ruby and Charley. Townsend was deeply grieved to lose his beloved wife Sandy to breast cancer in April, 2001: friends and family are left to speculate on what great witticism their souls now contemplate. James Roger Townsend will be remembered for his remarkable capacity for friendship, his clarity and eloquence in thought and conversation, his vast accumulation of geographic, historical and political knowledge, his patience and playfulness with children, his love of music and sport, his devotion to family and his service to all humankind. Townsend is survived by his son and daughter-in-law Matthew and Denise Townsend of Seattle, WA and their three children Lewis, Ruby and Charley; son Michael Townsend of Eugene, OR; sister and brother-in-law Dorothy and David Bowman of Omaha, NE and brother and sister-in-law the Rev. Thomas and Ruth Townsend of West Bend, WI. Professor Townsend will be remembered at a Public Service on Valentine's Day, Saturday, February 14, 2004 at Perry Hall, Sand Point Community United Methodist Church, 4708 N.E. 70th, Seattle, WA 98115 from 1:00 p.m. to 4 p.m., including a one hour program beginning at 2:00 p.m. Please send remembrances to: James Townsend and Sandy Perry Memorial Scholarship Fund Hopkins-Nanjing Center Washington Program Office 1619 Massachusetts Avenue N.W. Washington, D.C. 20036-2213 USA Make checks payable to: Johns-Hopkins University. The memo line should read: Jim Townsend and Sandy Perry Scholarship Fund. Please contact Ms. Gloria Gonzalez-Micklin at 202.429.0340 x211 for additional information.