Alumni Profile: Patrick Constantine

Patrick Constantine grew up in Maine but had never heard about Agassiz Village until a high school friend working at the camp told him about its mission, programs, and kids.

That was back in 1970. His interest piqued, he met with the camp director and was hired as a counselor for the 1971 season, working each summer through 1978. Fifty-four years later, he continues to support Agassiz through volunteer efforts, such as membership on the 90^th Anniversary Celebration Committee.

Pat’s initial impression of Agassiz was unlike most of the counselors who experienced Agassiz for the first time. He had grown up surrounded by woods, mountains, and lakes, so he was familiar with the beauty of the land. But he knew right away that there was something special about the place.

“I recognized Agassiz as a uniquely beautiful spot,” he says. “The program presented activities and opportunities that I knew were new for many of our campers, just as were the surroundings. As I returned each summer and interacted with kids and counselors, I came to regard the camp as ‘sacred ground’…. and still do, today.”

During his time at Agassiz, Pat held a variety of roles. His first year, he was assigned as a counselor in Pioneer Cabin 1; the following year, he was a counselor in Ranger 1. But since he was a competitive swimmer, certified lifeguard, and water safety instructor—who was also knowledgeable in boating, canoeing, and other watercraft—his assignments tended to be on the water. He spent much of his time there until he became assistant section leader of the Ranger section. In his later years, he returned to the lakeside as waterfront director.

In those first few years, Pat witnessed some major changes at Agassiz. When he returned for the summer of 1972, there was a new camp director: Don Welch, who would go on to be the longest-serving camp director in Agassiz history (25 years). However, the biggest change came the following year when the camp became co-ed.  

“When Don first told me we were going to be open to both boys and girls, I thought he was kidding,” says Pat. “It was not common at that time.”

In fact, most all summer camps served only boys or only girls. But with the welcoming of girls to Agassiz, Pat and his fellow counselors had greater insight into the diverse children who came to camp, many with extremely difficult backgrounds.

“Any summer camp is a memorable experience for a kid, but for our kids at Agassiz, camp could be a life-changing experience,” Pat explains. “Every kid was a story, with a complex plot. Every kid could have been a chapter in a mini-series. For a counselor, there was never a wasted day. On the contrary, every day was an opportunity to have an impact on someone.”

Pat felt all the counselors and staff could be positive influences on campers. They might have had them for only a few weeks, but they had them for 24 hours a day. And in that time, he believed they could create an experience that could truly impact their lives for the better.

However, summers at Agassiz not only had impacted campers, but counselors as well. Pat distinctly remembers two incidents that have stayed with him all these years and have shaped who he is today.

The first is the day the Agassiz buses were taking campers back to Boston Common. Normal procedure for the day was to unload the buses in late morning, have lunch, and then load the next group of campers onto the buses to return to Maine.

“I remember one of our campers who had left us when we unloaded the buses in the morning, coming back to us after lunch,” recalls Patrick. “His parents had moved away while he was at camp. They left no forwarding address or instructions. They basically had abandoned him. He was carrying his unrolled sleeping bag and a few clothes and had a truly scared look on his face. ‘Come on!’ I said. ‘Get back on the bus with us. We will take care of you.’”

When they returned to camp, Don Welch contacted Child Welfare Services, who prepared a place for the boy when he returned to Boston after the camp session.

“But we were there for him at that awful moment in his life,” says Pat.

The second incident was the great storm of 1974. It is believed that a tornado ripped through camp, as  the storm took down tall trees, breaking apart the waterfront, and leaving a wake of jagged tree trunks, uprooted trees, broken branches, and the camp’s boats, canoes, and docks spread all around Thompson Lake.

“I was in Ranger 1 during the brunt of the storm, and the rain and wind were so severe that we couldn’t see anything at all out of the windows,” Pat recounts. “We gathered the kids into the center of the cabin—where there were the most walls—as large falling branches began to create holes in the roof and rainwater began to pour inside.”

Pat tried to reassure the kids that branches sometimes break off trees when it’s windy in Maine, and that it was no big deal. But right at that moment he was trying to calm them, a huge pine tree ripped through the roof and walls with great force, cutting through the cabin structure and bending several top bunks down to the lower bunk level.

“At that point, I had run out of assurances for the kids, and the other counselors and I put our outstretched arms around the kids until the worst of the storm had passed. Had we left anyone on their bunks, we would have lost some campers as that tree cut through the cabin that day.”

Luckily no camper was hurt in Ranger 1 or elsewhere in camp that day, although one counselor ended up with a broken arm. But the camp was in shambles. It was left inaccessible as fallen trees blocked the roads, and jagged, broken tree trunks and roots, as well as fallen electrical lines and broken water pipes, were everywhere.

Pat thought the camp would have to close for the remainder of the session to allow time for cleanup and repairs. But then local people from around the lake and surrounding area began arriving at camp to help.

“Chainsaws buzzed all over the camp, logs were moved, electrical lines were disconnected or rehung, and temporary equipment was set up in the kitchen,” says Pat. “The locals heard that the kids’ camp was in trouble and came to our rescue with their saws, tools, and tractors. We were able to remain open, adjusted some of our activities, recaptured our own docks and boats, and made it through the storm.”

The storm left a twofold mark on Pat: the scare at how close Agassiz had come to losing campers that had been on their bunks that day, and the kindness of the local people coming to Agassiz’s aid.

On a much lighter note, Pat’s experience at camp involved much happier memories. His favorite activity was singing after meals in the dining hall.

“We had a large juke box in one of the balconies,” he says. “Kids were chosen based on good behavior to make selections of songs to play after the meals, and everyone would sing along with the songs they knew. Michael Jackson and 70’s disco was big at that time,” he laughs. “We had that dining hall rocking!”

After working at Agassiz, Pat went on to build a family and career. Today, he is the senior vice president of a large multi-state property insurer. An occasional financial contributor to Agassiz while his family was growing up, he is now an active alumnus and financial contributor. The summer after COVID, he returned to the campus for Volunteer Weekend.

“The facilities were in rough shape after being closed for a season,” he says. “But after all those years, I felt I was back on ‘sacred ground’ once again.”

While he has come far in business and is involved with various charities, Pat says Agassiz Village remains a building block of who he is today. 

“After eight years associated with the camp, and the experiences I have mentioned, Agassiz is just part of who I have become. The times, the people, the lives we touched became part of my soul.”