Third Annual Randi and Tracy Real Estate Team Scholarship Winner!
Randi Bennett
Randi Bennett is a distinguished real estate agent in Montville, NJ and the surrounding areas in Morris, Essex and Passaic counties...
Randi Bennett is a distinguished real estate agent in Montville, NJ and the surrounding areas in Morris, Essex and Passaic counties...
Congratulations to Asmit Chakraborty
Winner of the Third Annual Randi & Tracy Real Estate Team Scholarship!
All of the students who applied for the Randi & Tracy Real Estate Team Scholarship deserve a round of applause! This year, 27 Montville Township seniors submitted essays about why they love living in our town, and choosing a winner was not easy.
Asmit Chakraborty’s essay stood out because it captured the spirit of Montville through a simple childhood bike ride. What began as a story about learning to ride a bike became a reflection on community, kindness, and the people who helped shape his experience growing up here. His essay was personal, thoughtful, and a wonderful reminder of what makes Montville such a special place to call home.
We are proud to support local students and grateful to everyone who took the time to share their stories.
Asmit's Essay
The first thing I noticed about Montville wasn’t the streets or the houses. It was the feeling of a calm, steady silence.
I’d spent most of my life moving as my father changed jobs—city to city in India, then school to school even after coming to the United States. I got used to living out of half-unpacked boxes, to learning names just enough to forget them, to treating every place like it was temporary. So when I arrived in Montville and started at Lazar Middle School, I didn’t expect anything different. I told myself the same thing I always did: don’t get too comfortable.
However, Montville didn’t feel like a place you pass through. It felt like a place that notices you. I saw it in the small things first. The way people greeted each other like they meant it. The way conversations didn’t feel forced and superficial. At Lazar, it showed up in classrooms where teachers didn’t just focus on lessons, but on people. They took the time to help me adjust, to make sure I wasn’t just keeping up, but actually settling in. It showed up in friendships that didn’t fade after a few weeks, but stayed, grew, and became memories that I still cherish today. For the first time, I stopped thinking about “what’s next” and started being present in “what is.”
The one moment that defined Montville for me happened on the side of the road. I was in eighth grade, riding my bike like it was any normal day, until it wasn’t. I fell hard. My leg throbbed, my thoughts scrambled as I saw the blood, and for a second, everything just froze. I didn’t know what to do. But before I could even figure it out, a car pulled over. The driver stepped out, walked straight toward me, and without asking questions or waiting for me to say anything, helped me up and called my parents. No hesitation. No second thought. Just action.
That moment didn’t make any headlines, but to me, it meant everything. It showed me the kind of place Montville is—a place where people don’t wait to be asked to help. They just do.
In a world where people are caught up in their own routines, Montville feels connected. People look out for each other, not because they have to, but because it’s part of who they are. And being in that kind of environment makes you more aware, more willing to step up, more intentional about how you treat others. Montville gave me something I didn’t even realize I was missing: a sense of belonging that didn’t feel temporary. It wasn’t just about finally staying in one place—it was about feeling like that place welcomed me in.
What I love about Montville isn’t just the town itself. It’s the people. The quiet kindness. And the unspoken understanding that you’re not alone here.