Established in 1970
Grandview Camp was founded in 1970 by Bill Flaherty. It was the first overnight camp in the area for boys ranging from ages 10-15. Grandview was started to teach not only the fundamentals of the game of basketball, but also to allow the participants a chance to develop character and friendships. The camp was designed to bring some of the best coaches in the area to teach these skills at an extremely affordable cost.
The camp enjoyed 20 years of successful operation at St. Mark Seminary and Mercyhurst College with 2 weeks of 125 campers per week. It developed into the premier camp in the area. Approximately 5000 campers from the Erie Region, New York, Ohio and Canada attended Grandview through 1990. Thenumber was limited to ensure proper instruction to the participants. Many of the high school and college players from the area attended Grandview during this time period. The camp, however, was discontinued in 1990 as Flaherty, the director, took on a new business opportunity.
In 2004, Grandview Camp was started up again. Dave Niland, the head coach at Penn State Behrend, and Pat Flaherty, a former assistant coach at Penn State Behrend and current head coach at Fairview High School, worked together to jump start the legendary camp. It has been going strong ever since, increasing in numbers every year. The overall philosophy remains the same-provide a camp at an affordable cost that focuses on fundamentals of the game as well developing character on and off the court.
Presently, the camp is attended by about 170 campers a week. Niland and Flaherty have assembled a staff of some of the best teachers of the game, both from the high school and college level. Grandview stresses the value of competition and the value of playing the game the right way, just as it did when it was started in 1970 and grew into the premier camp in the area.