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55th time’s the charm: Paul Webb Basketball Camp still going strong

Posted at 5:39 PM, Jul 11, 2019
and last updated 2019-07-11 22:53:43-04

VIRGINIA BEACH, Va. - 55 years ago Paul Webb started a youth basketball camp, and it's been going strong ever since.

"Five or six years ago we started getting kids coming to camp whose grandparents had come to camp, and each year since that time we've had more and more kids coming to camp whose grandmother or grandfather came to camp," said Paul, who coached basketball at Old Dominion University for ten years. "It's really neat."

"You walk down the street and have a parent come up to you and tell you how they remember camp when they were young," added Eddie Webb, Paul's son.

The camp is available to girls and boys, ages 7-17. The Webb family's main goal is to teach the kids basketball fundamentals in a fun environment.

"I want them to walk away feeling that they had a really good time, they enjoyed the week, they learned some basketball that will help them to become better players and that as they get older they'll look back on this being a great experience in their young lives," Paul said.

For Paul, one of the most rewarding parts about putting on the camp is watching players go on to become good basketball players in high school, college and even the National Basketball Association. He listed Moses Malone, Ralph Sampson, Grant Hill, Bryant Stith and Dell Curry as a few who went on to play in the NBA years after attending his camp.

"When you see these younger kids come in for the first time not knowing how to do something and the coaches teach them, and we spend a lot of time teaching and doing fundamentals, by the end of the week you see the smiles on their faces because they've mastered something they haven't done before," Eddie said.

55 years is a long time, but the family has no plans on stopping the camp any time soon.