When sports legend William “Bill” Casavant died on Dec. 3, he left behind an iconic legacy of dedication, mentoring and a passion for the game, any game.
Umpire, coach, athletic director, sports broadcaster and player, Casavant’s stories carry on in the lives of kids, families, athletes and colleagues he connected with for more than half a century.
“As I look back on my journey as a basketball player, I can’t help but reflect on the profound influence Coach Bill Casavant has had on me,” Maine athlete and coach Tracy Guerrette said. “His unwavering support, advice, and belief in my potential helped shape my approach to coaching and my own development as a leader.”
Like Guerrette, many share stories about Casavant’s love of the game, his discipline and lessons, his absolute integrity and knowledge of baseball, basketball and soccer. The words come easily, recounting remembered details about the man who lived and breathed sports since he was a kid in Holyoke, Massachusetts, where he was born on Aug. 22, 1947.
And most anyone who knew him, can’t help but smile when reflecting on their time together.
He had a great sense of humor, said broadcasting legend Don Shields of WBQX in Rockland, who is best known these days as the radio voice of the University of Maine women’s basketball team.
“When I think of Bill, I think of laughing with him at tournaments. When I remember him it puts a smile on my face,” Shields said.
For the better part of 15 years, Casavant and Shields became the soundtrack for the eastern Maine basketball tournament at Bangor Auditorium. Casavant covered Aroostook County and Shields the midcoast.
Shields fondly recalls broadcasting the games long before digital. They would show up at the tournament with their land line phones and plug in to cover the games, he said.
“Bill was the top umpire in the state. He had a reputation as a great man, supportive of kids,” Shields said. “A gentleman always. A top notch guy.”
Umpiring peewee baseball games in Massachusetts by the time he was 15, Cassavant joined the Northern Maine Board of Approved Baseball Umpires after graduating from the University of Maine at Presque Isle.
“Throughout his 50-year career in umpiring, Bill Casavant was widely respected for the level of professionalism he brought to the baseball diamond and his induction into the Maine Baseball Hall of Fame in 2014 was richly deserved,” said Don Douglas, a member of the Maine Baseball Hall of Fame committee. “He occupies a worthy perch in Maine’s pantheon of preeminent baseball umpires.”
Just as he loved sports as a kid and as he shared it with his own children, Casavant wanted all kids to have that chance and he founded and directed Aroostook Basketball Camp in Presque Isle.
Starting at the age of 9, Guerrette began attending Casavant’s Aroostook Basketball Camps, which were instrumental in her growth and development as a young athlete, she said.
“His commitment to teaching basketball IQ and fundamentals, along with the intensity and competitiveness of those camps, truly set them apart,” she said. “But it wasn’t just about the X’s and O’s, Mr. Casavant taught me how to approach the game with a mindset of discipline, hard work, confidence, and relentless improvement.”
Guerrette and Casavant continued working together as he supported and encouraged her throughout her playing career at Wisdom High School and University of Maine from 1998 to 2002. Following graduation, Guerrette began coaching high school basketball for three years then at UMPI and University of Maine. Today she is mentoring and ministering to high school and collegiate athletes and coaches throughout The County using the teachings of the Catholic Church.
“I was fortunate to have him as my Athletic Director during my time as the head women’s basketball coach at UMaine Presque Isle,” she said. “I will forever be grateful for the opportunity to learn under his guidance, and I carry the lessons he taught me every time I step on the court.”
Casavant and his wife Daryl Casavant lived in Presque Isle and were married for 54 years. Casavant is survived by Daryl and his sons Chris, Matt and Nick, and several grandchildren, among other family.
A celebration of life will be announced at a later date.
