Youth Advocate and Young Adult Peer Advocate Award recipients honored
December 17, 2025North Brunswick honored Richard Hill and Tony Brown as the 2025 Youth Advocate Award recipients and Mia Monteiro and Jayden Lynch as the 2025 Young Adult Peer Advocate Award recipients at the December 15 Township Council Meeting.
We congratulate and thank Richard, Tony, Mia and Jayden for their service and commitment to the Township community!
Below are the recipients’ biographies.
Richard Hill
Richard is a long-time resident of North Brunswick. He is a devoted father, husband, coach, mentor and community servant who consistently exemplifies integrity, compassion and an unwavering commitment to the youth of North Brunswick. His leadership is grounded in service, and he is widely respected for the positive impact he continues to make across the community.
Over the past four years, he has volunteered his time and grilling expertise to assist the North Brunswick Township Police Department by preparing over 1,000 hamburgers and hot dogs at their annual National Night Out event. His consistent presence, reliability and warm spirit make him a bright and trusted figure in our community and a credible mentor to our Township’s youth and organizations that serve them.
Richard has served as a board member of the North Brunswick Basketball Association for more than ten years and as a Youth Sports Festival Committee Member for over a decade, and a member of the Adams Athletic Club. He has further demonstrated his dedication by serving as the director for snack shack operations at Sabella Park for the Adams AC where he supported countless youth sports events and created a welcoming, family-friendly environment.
For more than 15 years, Richard has dedicated himself to youth development through his work as both a football and basketball coach for multiple teams within the North Brunswick Basketball Association’s Travel Division and Pop Warner’s Youth Under Guidance programs. His influence extends far beyond athletics – he is deeply invested in building character, confidence and life skills in every child he mentors.
Richard is married to his loving wife, Latesha. He is a very proud father of four children, Keon, Keyara, Richard Jr. and Savannah, who have all gone through/are going through the North Brunswick Township School District.
Tony Brown
Tony and his wife, Lorraine moved to North Brunswick in 2005. They have five children, twin daughters, Jada and Justine, Myla, SophieLyn and Noah.
Tony started coaching with the Department of Parks and Recreation in 2006. He coached girls’ basketball for 4 years, including arranging a visit to the Rutgers Women’s Basketball practice to inspire his team’s focus on preparing to play. He then stepped up to also coach 7th and 8th grade boys’ Recreation Basketball for 2 years when need, even without a child in the program.
Tony advocates girls’ sports and community engagement, emphasizing the importance of building the pipeline of girls to play sports at the Middle and High School level in town.
Tony has also coached flag football, Mighty Mites and Junior Pee Wee teams for the North Brunswick Indians Football Organization. He served as a volunteer for several years, despite not having a child in the program. Tony has a strong background in competitive football, including two Flag Football World Championship titles. He is an avid NFL enthusiast and is currently pursuing his pilot license.
Tony has been accepted into the New Jersey District 2 Umpire Association and will begin officiating high school baseball games this spring. He also owns a local DJ company and has provided entertainment for many private, school and community events – including the popular “Ice Cream with a Cop” and “National Night Out.”
Mia Monteiro
Mia is a senior at North Brunswick Township High School. She is a group leader in the PUSH, which she has been in since her freshman year. Her group presents and talks with students in grades 3-4 about cybersafe and emotional wellbeing. Since freshman year, she has also been a member of the Key Club and is now president. Mia helps package utensils for Elijah’s Promise, makes cards for children in the hospital as well as collecting cans for the food drive.
Mia is president of the National Honor Society. She volunteers at conferences and aids with the book drive. She also assists with drives for the woman’s shelter and Salvation Army.
Mia has been the Student Representative for the Board of Education for two years. During COVID, Mia, while still in Middle School and in her Freshman year, helped fix up classrooms for a non-profit and held a toy and book drive.
Mia was not only elected to be Student Government President for the 2025-2026 school year but also chosen as the Fall Varsity Cheer Captain. She has received the Outstanding Achievement for Spanish, as well as English. She received AP Scholar with Distinction, National Merit Scholarship Commended Student and won third place at DECA State Career Development Conference.
Mia is a student who empowers her peers and always shows up for her classmates. She advocates for her peers and is a very active listener when being talked to or when people come up to her with concerns. She is genuine and truly hopes to make a difference in the community. Mia has volunteered over sixty hours each year to different clubs and activities.
Jayden Lynch
Jayden is a senior at North Brunswick Township High School. He cares deeply about the community and understands the importance of giving back and actively seek opportunities to serve others. Jayden is very involved with his church outreach to help the community. He has volunteered at the food pantries organized by the church to feed families in the community with food insecurities.
Jayden is always willing to be available to help his church in whatever outreach they do to help the community is a testament to his compassionate nature and empathy. He enjoys being a part of something bigger.
Jayden, through his journey, has really gained a true sense of purpose and recognizes how fortunate he is.
He has achieved Honor Roll A’s and B’s throughout high school. He was inducted into the National Honor Society and will be graduating in the top 10 percent of the class of 2026. Jayden plays the trumpet and baritone and is a valuable member of the concert band, wind ensemble and marching band.
