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The Great Valley Community Organization helps build a strong, vibrant and connected community
by providing facilities, activities and programs enriching the lives of all local residents.
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June 2024 GVCO Newsletter | |
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Community members,
We are now past 6 months at our new GVCO Community Center complex and rolling into our summer programming for the 1st time in the new building. The place is a buzz of activity. We have youth basketball, badminton & pickleball summer camps scheduled. Our GVBL Summer League is up and running in the evenings for the 23rd year. We have had some birthday parties and group & neighborhood adult pickleball events on the weekends, and you will see our GV Cheerleading group out on the playing field for their summer fitness program.
However, it is the second half of 2024 that we are really focusing on as we continue to create programming and build out our calendar of offerings. Some of the things either planned, or in the works: Our 2nd Red Cross Blood Drive; further free seminars for our Medicare 101 series as fall enrollment for adults 65 and older happens in the fall; a pet expo; a new free English Language Learners program for local residents that may have difficulty with speaking or understanding the English language; a partnership with CCIU and their Discover program.
This fall, we plan on opening the center for more open gym time, increased pickleball hours for adults and offering more hours of meeting space for small community meetings and get-togethers. This is on top of the youth sports programming we have been offering for two decades. We are adding things, big and small, to help make this wonderful community asset a place to gather and have fun, for everyone in the community, old and young.
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Keith Walsh
GVCO Executive Director
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GVCO Caring Hands & the Community | |
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SPCA Kong Making
Caring Hands had their annual Kong Making for the dogs at the Brandywine SPCA. Thank you volunteers for making 200+ peanut butter and dog treat filled Kongs for the dogs!
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E-Waste Recycling Event
On April 21st, GVCO hosted their first electronic waste recycling event for the community. Cables, tvs, cell phones, small appliances and other electronics were recycled instead of going to a landfill.
The E-Waste Project serves the local tri-state area. We're so happy we could be a part of their mission
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Flower Pots for Green Meadows
In May, Caring Hands decorated flower pots and plant flowers in them for patients at Green Meadows Rehabilitation and Nursing Center. Volunteers included cards of encouragement for the patients. We appreciate the efforts by our volunteers to make this happen!
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Upcoming Community Events | |
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Semi-Annual Red Cross Blood Drive
GVCO looks forward to hosting its next semi-annual Red Cross blood drive on September 18th!
If you are interested in participating, stay tuned for more details!
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Free Adult ELL Classes
Starting this Fall, GVCO is hosting small group seminars for adult English Language Learners (ELL) in the community.
The necessary materials are complimentary and the classes are completely free. These sessions are tutored by Back to Basics: Learning Dynamics.
The classes will be held at the GVCO Community Center on Tuesdays and Thursdays from 6:30-7:30pm. Classes will run from September 17th until November 14th.
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Are you 65 or older?
It's time to start thinking about Medicare.
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The Medicare Open Enrollment Period, which occurs each year from October 15th to December 7th, gives you the chance to review and make changes to your current Medicare coverage.
GVCO has a set of free seminars to help you understand more about Medicare and answer any questions you may have about the process.
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The Fall Medicare 101 seminars will be held on Tuesday, September 24th @ 9am and on Tuesday, October 22nd @ 9am at the GVCO Community Center. They will be hosted by long time Great Valley resident and Medicare expert Dana Matkovic. | |
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We welcome all Pickleball players - residency is not required.
Schedule your play time at the four GVCO indoor courts via the Team Reach app. Install the Team Reach on your mobile device and use the Group Code GVCOPB. Dates and times will be listed in the app.
The cost to play is $7 per person which can be paid via Venmo, PayPal or cash at the door. Each player must complete a one-time pickleball waiver form. For questions or more information, contact pickleball@gvco.org
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Badminton Open Play
at GVCO
This program is being administered by Philadelphia Badminton.
Its successful badminton training program uses USA Badminton-certified and US center for Safe Sport trained coaches. For more information, contact badminton@gvco.org.
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College Students
GVCO is looking for a self-motivated college student interested in assisting our organization with its programming. Read the job description for the
Fall internship position.
The ideal candidate should have strong interpersonal and organizational skills, be able to work in a team environment, and enjoy working with youth. The candidate should have a background or interest in athletics, an understanding of scheduling, budgeting and basic finance.
The individual would perform facilities management, scheduling management and oversight of programming, administration assistance with GVCO communications, assisting with sponsorship marketing and start up support of fall youth programming.
For questions, contact Internships@gvco.org.
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GVHS Cooperative Education
The GVHS Cooperative Education Internship is an option for seniors with enough credits to attend school for only part of the day. Contact the Great Valley School District Counseling office for more information. Read Maddy Camp's testimonial about her Work Release internship at GVCO.
Maddy Camp was also this year's recipient of the GVCO Caring Hands Scholarship. She exemplified all of the ideals of this organization and the caring Hands program, which led to her selection. In the Fall, she plans to attend Pennsylvania State University.
Congratulations Maddy, and thank you for all of your hard work and dedication! Your community service efforts did not go unnoticed.
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The first GVBL Summer League season in the new Community Center officially began on Monday, June 17th! Make sure you download the GVBL app and check your email regularly to stay updated on the schedule, rosters, and more!
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Summer Camp Highlight
This week, Coach Shawn Werdt is hosting his first of two basketball camps at GVCO this summer. The "Skillz and Drills" camp is for boys entering 3rd through 6th grade.
At Skillz and Drills, the campers are having a blast with fun games and stations designed to teach them fundamentals while playing the sport they love with their peers.
If your child is interested in attending Coach Werdt's second summer camp called "Nothing but Net" from August 5th-9th, register today by clicking the link to the left!
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GVCO is hosting several other camps this summer. Registration is open for a variety of basketball camps, badminton camp, and pickleball camp. | |
Hear from our Summer League players every week with our "Hey GVBL" question of the week segment on Instagram! View this week's video to see if you or someone you know was featured. We will have a new question every week, so stay tuned! | |
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GVFL Tackle Football
The Great Valley Junior Patriots is an instructional tackle football program for kids in grades 4-6. Players will be assigned teams based on the grade entering in the Fall. There is no residency requirement for tackle football.
Click for More information about GVFL tackle football.
Registration is now open for tackle football.
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Summer Cheer Conditioning
All athletes interested in training and enhancing their strength to get ready for the fall sports season are welcome to sign up for our summer conditioning clinics.
This is open to all boys and girls who want to get back outside and workout with other athletes.
Location: GVCO field
Times: Tuesdays from 6-7pm
Dates: June 18th - July 23rd
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Whether your athlete dreams of a collegiate career or seeks to refine their skills and build lasting friendships, Uptown Basketball Club is the premier destination for boys' basketball in the Southeastern Pennsylvania area. Teams will be drawing from the Chester, Montgomery and Delaware county areas.
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Tryouts will take place on August 27th and 29th for the 13U and 14U teams. 13U will have tryouts at 5:30pm and 14U will have tryouts at 6:30pm on those dates. For any questions, please send an email to uptownbasketballacademy@gmail.com. | | |
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Are you interested in using the GVCO Community Center for a birthday party or another celebration?
We've got you covered! Rent out our space on a weekend to make the most of your birthday party needs. We can set up sporting equipment and accommodate other activities as well!
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Have a request for an activity, event, or game, or want to learn more about hosting a party at GVCO? Please email community@gvco.org. | |
Chester County Seeing Eye Puppy Club | |
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The Seeing Eye is a philanthropic organization whose mission is to enhance the independence, dignity, and self-confidence of blind people through the use of Seeing Eye® dogs.
The Seeing Eye's vision is to be recognized for sustained excellence and continuous improvement as the best guide dog school to attend and to support, as a donor, volunteer, puppy raiser, or employee.
GVCO is proud to have partnered with this wonderful organization. We look forward to having them back as we open the new GVCO Community Center complex after a hiatus due to the closure of our old GVBL Center in 2020.
To learn more about the Chester County Seeing Eye Puppy Club along with their mission visit The Seeing Eye.
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The Siddhant Suresh Scholarship Fund
The Suresh fund was created to honor the memory of Siddhant Suresh, a wonderful son and brother and an outstanding student who loved basketball and chess.
Over two years, this fund has awarded over two thousand dollars in scholarships to help many Great Valley children and families participate in GVCO programming.
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GVCO seeks to partner with the local business community in programs that not only benefit our GVCO organization, but also give something back to the local business owner.
GVCO is interested in starting a business relationship or "partnership" in hopes that it creates greater awareness for the local business. These will hopefully provide additional clientele; greater awareness of GVCO's initiative to help connect our organization with the local business community, and the financial benefits that the specific initiative may provide GVCO.
Read more about GVCO and business sponsorship. Questions can be directed to sponsorship@gvco.org.
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Charlestown Paving is one of GVCO’s longstanding sponsors over the past two decades. Drew Alleva, the company and his family have been instrumental in GVCO’s success through the years. We are thankful for all they have done and proud of the long time partnership.
Charlestown Paving & Excavating offers a variety of services including township/municipality work, industrial/commercial work and residential paving. They provide dependable solutions to your paving problems, and ensure that your project stays within your budget while minimizing any disruption to your operations.
Expect top-notch workmanship and service from Charlestown Paving because they have loyal, experienced employees, and they own and maintain a full fleet of trucks and heavy equipment. They have built our reputation on the referrals of satisfied clients and earned the trust of property managers, business owners, and homeowners throughout the region.
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Tom Farrelly
Daughter: "Hey Dad"
Me: "Greatest thing I'll ever be"
What GVCO provided for me and the girls CAN NOT be overstated. Picking them up after school, getting to practice/games, out to eat, hanging with other parents, etc. We got to interact/experience a bit of actual day/day life on life's terms. Nothing takes the place of being there and for sure some things would have been different. So many experiences, "Experience is what you get when you don't get what you want". I got to play Dad and coach...and the girls had a role model.
Know that GVCO has made a difference in the lives of my daughters and myself. That is very noble.
-Tom Farrelly, GVBL Ref & GV Dad whose daughters are GVSD graduates and GVBL participants.
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We need your help to finish what we've started! We will not get the necessary financing to complete the project without raising additional funds.
DONATE NOW to finalize the building of our brand new GVCO Community Center!
The time is NOW.... Together we can make it happen!
Check out the program pages:
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For further details on the project, how you can make a significant financial impact or information with regard to Naming Rights for the complex and areas throughout the project, please reach out to Keith Walsh at execdirector@gvco.org
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