The five winners of the first annual Monk’s Home Improvements Service Scholarship were each awarded their $2,000 scholarship at the Monk’s Home Improvements headquarters in Morristown, NJ on May 20th.
The Scholarship looks to acknowledge and reward kids who are committed to making a difference in their communities.
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Cristine Jones, Warren native and 2014 graduate of Watchung Hills Regional High School, is one of the scholarship winners. She is a weekly volunteer at the Somerset Hills YMCA tutoring center where she helps younger children with their schoolwork. Cristine, who attended the awards ceremony with her parents explained, “They teach me as much as I teach them, which I think is a big part of volunteering.”
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Erica Lindsey is the President of the Ridge HS chapter of Habitat for Humanity, as well as the President of the Raritan Valley Habitat for Humanity county chapter’s Youth Council. Another scholarship winner, Erica shared, “I’m going to Boston College…and they have a campus chapter of Habitat. One thing that I’d really like to do is...the Collegiate Challenge where you build a home in one week over Spring or Summer Break.” She concluded, ”It would be cool to see it all come together.”
Kyle Harcourt, also a Ridge HS graduate and scholarship winner attended the ceremony with his mother. Kyle has been a volunteer firefighter with the Liberty Corner Fire Company for the past two and a half years and was elected Junior Captain by his peers. Kyle added, “I’ve spent over 400 hours training to become a firefighter.” “When I turned 18 I became an interior firefighter, doing everything that no one wants to see, but has to be done.” He continued, “Through becoming a firefighter, I’ve become a part of a brotherhood.”
Tommy Anderson attended the ceremony along with his parents and grandmother. Tommy, a Madison native and Madison HS graduate, is a volunteer for S.C.E.E.P. where he mentors underprivileged children. He explains, “A lot of these kids don’t really have anything…but they are happy.”
Meagan Davis from Chester, NJ, is also a scholarship winner. Meagan is a 2014 graduate of West Morris Mendham High School. Meagan has volunteered with TOPSoccer for the past 4 years. She works one-on-one with special needs children and helps run the practices. Additionally, Meagan is also involved in Relay for Life where she has been a team captain as well as a co-chair for the Luminaria Committee.
“People don’t choose to not give back, they fail to choose to give back”, said Ty Monk, founder of Monk’s Home Improvements. “In the coming years you will need to make an active decision to give back, instead of becoming someone who used to give back. I hope that you will continue making the choice to serve, and to continue to lead and inspire others with your actions.”
Even though this was the first year of the scholarship, it was highly competitive. Applications were received from students across 16 different towns, attending 22 different high schools and universities.
To read more about the winners and their service endeavors, visit MonksHomeImprovements.com/scholarship
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Monk’s Home Improvements is a family-owned home improvements company based at 1095 Mount Kemble Ave in Morristown, NJ. Monk’s has been in business since 2007 providing home improvement services including painting, carpentry, tiling, floor refinishing and kitchen & bath remodeling. Monk’s will be opening a new Kitchen and Bath Design Studio in their Morristown location. Customers will be able to design and shop for a remodeling project all in one place.
