For the longest time, Nicholas Costantino didn’t want people to know that he had cystic fibrosis. “When you have a disease, you don’t want it to be the first thing people think of when they meet you,” said Costantino, a long-time real estate agent in Hoboken. “If you know I have it you might treat me differently, and I don’t like to be treated differently.”
Though he has lived with the genetic deficiency – which attacks the lungs, sinuses, and pancreas – since the age of 11, for many years Costantino only talked openly about cystic fibrosis with his closest friends and family.
As he has gotten older and experienced longer stints in the hospital, Costantino is finally ready to tell his story in hopes that he can help others suffering from his ailment enjoy the same care that has made his life livable.
The First Annual Cystic Fibrosis Gala, which will be held this Friday at the W Hotel in Hoboken, is the breakout event for Empire Cares, the 501(c)(3) charitable branch of Costantino’s real estate company, Empire Realty.
After helping with a fundraiser for the Cystic Fibrosis Foundation last year, Costantino decided to strike off on his own and organize an event that would directly benefit the CF Care Center at Beth Israel Hospital in Manhattan, where he has received his care for the past 36 years.
“The national foundation does amazing things with the money because they’ve been able to fund a lot of these new drug companies that’re coming out…” said Costantino. “I wanted see the money go to the people I grew up with and helped me.”
As with other diseases that have seen dramatic advances in drug treatments and therapy over the past decades, quality of life has become a greater issue as cystic fibrosis patients live longer and longer.“To be in a hospital room for two, three weeks at a time is horrible. The food is bad, the comfort is horrible, you have no dignity,” said Costantino.
“I wanted see the money go to the people I grew up with and helped me.”—Nicholas Costantino
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“While you’re in the hospital,” said Costantino, “a lot of times you get very depressed and it gets really tough to battle what you’re battling, and just having those comforts makes it so much easier.”
But these added comforts are not covered by insurance, which is why Costantino wants to help the center fund additional patients and keep the ones it has.
The attentiveness of the CF Cares faculty to its patients is abundantly clear. In the course of his interview with the Hoboken Reporter, Costantino sent a text to his doctor asking how many people the clinic served and received a response within two minutes (150 adults and children, if you’re wondering).
A menu for a mensch
Even the best hospital food can’t hold a candle to the cornucopia of dishes that will be offered at Costantino’s charity cocktail reception this Friday.
The chef’s tasting menu reads like a who’s who of Hoboken restaurants, including Grimaldi’s, Biggie’s Clam Bar, City Bistro, Johnny Pepperoni, Bin 14, Anthony David’s, The Cuban, Madison Bar & Grill, Clinton Social, Mikie Squared, Margherita’s, Pizza Republic, Choc-O-Pain French Bakery & Café, and the W Hotel’s own restaurant Zylo. Each restaurant’s chef will prepare his or her signature dish.
The event will also feature beer from Pilsener Haus & Biergarten and wine and liquor from Sparrow Wine & Liquors, though Costantino won’t be partaking.
Once upon a time, Costantino was well-known in the city’s bars and taverns. “We had no problem getting a liquor sponsor,” said Lisa Troyano-Ascolese, an Empire Realty sales associate and one of the event’s organizers.
But when Costantino was diagnosed with diabetes, another side effect of CF, three years ago, he quit cold turkey. “I do miss it very much,” he said.
That so many restaurateurs were willing to donate their time and food to the gala is a testament to the forest of friends Costantino has made in Hoboken over the years. Empire Cares may not have an ice bucket challenge or a fun run, but they have Nick.
“So many people jumped on immediately because it’s him,” said Tiffany Wentz, another organizer of the gala.
Costantino demurred. “I’ve spent a lot of time in a lot of these bars and restaurants in my years, so I get to know them pretty well.”
The Bobby Lynch Band from Denville, NJ will be performing their signature mix of eclectic covers at the gala.
“I’m incredibly grateful that people are willing to come out and support what is obviously a very personal cause for me,” said Costantino. “And knowing that whatever funds we raise will go towards making other CF patients’ lives as fulfilling, comfortable and kick-ass as mine continues to be is why we’re doing this – we’re just trying to give a little back.”
Happy in Hoboken
Cystic fibrosis has not halted Costantino, now 47 years old, nor has it stopped him from being one of Hoboken’s best known bon vivants.
In fact, Costantino says he owes his worldview to the disease that has affected him since such a young age. When he was diagnosed at 11, the average lifespan of a CF patient was 13.
“I think you look at life differently when you know that any point it could be it,” said Costantino. “Every little thing means a lot.”
Cystic Fibrosis also brought Costantino back to Hudson County, where he discovered his love for his adopted hometown Hoboken. Costantino was born in Jersey City, but his family only moved from Wayne to Secaucus so they could be closer to the hospitals in New York City after he was diagnosed.
Though he only moved to Hoboken 10 years ago, Costantino said he has spent the greater portion of his adult life in the city. “Before I was a Realtor, we were here every night going out to the bars and restaurants,” he said.
He recalled parking on the abandoned waterfront to go to the dive bars on Newark Street, like Good & Plenty Bar. “I used to hang out there and basically stand on the bar and flip cocktail napkins all over the place.”
Even with all the changes, Costantino’s love for the mile-square city has not slipped an inch. “Literally it’s my favorite place,” said Costantino. “No matter where I am, to me this is my home.”
The Empire Cares First Annual Cystic Fibrosis Gala will take place on Friday, Sept. 12 from 7 to 11 p.m. at the W Hotel at 225 River St. Tickets are $125 each and can be purchased via the Empire Cares website at www.empirecares.org/cystic-fibrosis-gala-2014.html.
Carlo Davis may be reached at cdavis@hudsonreporter.com.