Montgomery Township, NJ -- A garage fire in Belle Mead closed Route 601 for three hours on Tuesday, (Dec. 9), from about 2 pm to 5 pm, creating rush-hour traffic jams throughout the township, especially on Route 206. A Montgomery Township fire marshal investigation indicates the flames originated from a wood stove left unattended in the detached garage of a single-family home. There were no injuries reported during the event.

Move over Pooja Dhingra. Montgomery now has its own Indian French pastry chef. Montgomery Township resident Smita Arora was born in India, but trained at the French Culinary Institute in Manhattan. She owns and operates Ooh La La Patisserie and Bake Shop — a home-based business offering French/Indian pastries, cookies, cakes, and desserts.

Family was important to long-time Montgomery Township, NJ, resident Joan Martha Cosgrove Raymond, who died at age 93 on November 10.

Montgomery Township, NJ - Montgomery Township's newest police officer Oksana Kopyto is a certified Humane Law Enforcement Officer (HLEO), meaning she is trained and has experience investigating and enforcing animal cruelty and welfare laws. She is also known to rescue homeless kittens and cats. Kopyto was sworn-in as a probationary officer at the Montgomery Township Committee meeting on November 13.

Montgomery Township, NJ —Montgomery School Board member Christina Harris reported at the Tuesday, Nov. 18 board meeting that volunteerism — related to the parent-teacher organizations — is down across the school district. "It decreases with each passing year, and gets worse in the upper grades," Harris reported.

Chander Kanta Bahal (nee Chowdhary), cherished mother and grandmother, passed away peacefully on November 5, 2025, at Bayshore Assisted Living in Hilton Head Island, South Carolina. Her daughter lives in Skillman, NJ.

Montgomery Township, NJ - Edwin L. Podsiadlo, 95, U.S Navy Veteran, died peacefully on November 8, 2025 after 95 years of “clean living” as he would say! A long time resident of Montgomery Township, he raised six children with his predeceased, beloved wife Dorothy who taught elementary school at Burnt Hill Road School for decades.