When Antonio “Nino” Constantino leaped into the lake during his scout troop’s water safety test for summer camp two years ago, he didn’t really think about the fact that he couldn’t swim. Lifeguards helped pull him out.
“I’m like, ‘Oh, dude, what’re you doing?’” said Bruce Schultz, leader of Scout Troop 7292 in Clayton, Gloucester County. “He said, ‘I didn’t want to let the troop down, Mr. Bruce.’”
Schultz has recounted that story a lot lately, laughing his way through it. When Troop 7292 goes to camp again this summer, the trip will be dedicated to Nino. Schultz is working to prepare vigils.
On July 6, Nino died after getting trapped underneath an overturned farm tractor in Franklin Township. He was 13 years old.
Nino, an only child and incoming eighth grader at Gateway Regional High School in Woodbury Heights, lived with his mother, Linda Brittingham, in Westville.
Family and friends described the teen as kind, adventurous, an old soul, a farm kid, and a lover of the outdoors. He liked to play video games and hang out with his cat, Kody.
As a scout, Nino was always the first to try new things. He had recently been baptized at the Bridge Bible Church in Mantua. Brittingham said there are still pigs in a blanket in the freezer that they were going to make together.
“There’s so many people that loved him,” said Brittingham, 47. “Everybody came into his life.”
A sense of adventure
Nino spent one of his last days at Cowtown Rodeo in Salem County. He and his family wore cowboy hats and boots and rooted for the animals.
At school, Brittingham said, he liked math, but probably recess more. He spent his free time outside, riding dirt bikes, quads, mudding, and visiting the Shore. His favorite foods were ham, cheese, and mayo hoagies; mac and cheese; tater tots; and spicy ramen with Flamin’ Hot Cheetos.
Jay Urbaniak, 45, of Lindenwold, met Brittingham and Nino through a program at Bridge Bible. Urbaniak, who created a GoFundMe page to help support Nino’s family after his death, became fast friends with the pair.
“He had a way of making every moment more fun. … More than anything, he had an infectious enthusiasm for life,” Urbaniak said via text. “Every time I’d call or stop by, his face would light up with excitement.”
Many things excited him, including the bearded dragons belonging to his uncle, Tony Perez, as well as cats, dogs, and pretty much any type of motor vehicle, from WaveRunners to trucks.
“I make silly dad jokes, and the smile he would give — no one else had that smile,” said Perez, 41. “That would make me laugh even at my own stupid joke. Every time I got to see that smile, that was a memory to cherish.”
Schultz said it had been a while since Nino had gone to a scout meeting, since he took a break. He was set to return this August, though, which the troop was excited about, he said. Schultz expected Nino to become an Eagle Scout someday, a rare rank.
“He was just that beacon,” Schultz said. “I’m going to miss him a lot.”
‘The kindest kid you’ve ever met in your life’
Drew Smith, 33, of Newfield, is known by one wing at Gateway Regional High School as “Nino’s uncle.”
Really, Smith is the school’s custodian and a fellow congregant at Nino’s church. But Smith runs in the family friend group, so every day through his seventh-grade year, Nino approached Smith in the lunchroom to ask how he was doing and gave him a hug.
On days when he was not doing so hot, Smith said, Nino would usually say the same thing.
“‘I’m praying that you have a better day. I love you, Uncle Drew,’” Smith said. “‘I love you.’”
When Smith collected trash around the building on his golf cart, Nino liked to ask how fast it could go.
“I worked at this school over 10 years now,” Smith said. “There’s not many that set an example like he did, the manners and morals and values. There aren’t many kids that are in seventh grade and act like that.”
Louis Raba, the middle-level assistant principal at Gateway, said Nino was successful both in the classroom and in making new friends, though he had just transitioned to the school district in the fall. He said the district’s middle school community was “deeply saddened” by Nino’s death.
“Nino was kind hearted with a tremendous sense of humor. Personally, I will always remember his smile and his growth during his seventh-grade year,” Raba said by email.
Nino was known by family for his manners. He always said “please” and “thank you.” Even in violent video games, he tried his best to be civil.
When Perez let his nephew try out Grand Theft Auto V, an action game known for crashing cars and hit-and-runs, Nino avoided collisions and obeyed traffic lights.
“I never met anyone who didn’t do crime or something. He thought you’d get points and stuff for being good, polite,” Perez said.
Back at camp, Schultz said, Nino always offered help to his fellow scouts and did a little bit of everything, from compass work to community service. He rarely complained.
“This is the kind of kid we’re looking for. Good human beings,” Schultz said. “He was that kid that would do anything for anybody. He was like the kindest kid you’ve ever met in your life.”
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