How old was it?

Well, for some perspective, none of the nearly 90 boys — in grades 4-9 — attending the Southern Tier Basketball Camp this week were even born when the gray T first saw the light of day.

And although it has been 17 years since it was first issued, the shirt, remarkably, shows no signs of wear, and the marketing slogan — “02 Panama Basketball Camp … Prime Time” — seems perfectly fitting. Because while sustaining anything for a quarter century can be problematic, it appears that Smith’s brainchild that took root in 1995 isn’t about to fade anytime soon.

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Jamestown Public Schools teacher Todel Sykes, left, and SUNY Brockport graduate Josh Nelson of Frewsburg work with campers Tuesday at the Southern Tier Basketball Camp in Panama. P-J photo by Scott Kindberg

Smith is an elementary school math teacher at Panama where he has worked for the last 30 years. He has also coached at all levels in the district, including boys varsity hoops from 1993 through 2000. It was during that tenure that the idea of having a summer basketball camp — a week for girls and a week for boys — was hatched.

“This started simply because we could not beat Sherman or Clymer to save our life,” Smith said. “We’d lose by one and we’d lose in triple-overtime. We’d never get blown out, but we could never beat them. I told Mark Powers, the jayvee coach at the time, that we had to find a way. Our kids are just like their kids, and this is what we came up with.”

Beginning with 35 kids the first year, the Southern Tier Basketball Camp now averages around 200 total during a two-week period each July, with the assistance of area high school coaches.

“We’ve had kids here from China, we’ve had kids here from North Carolina. People plan their vacation from out of state to come and hit this week,” Smith said. “It’s fantastic. It’s humbling, in fact. It’s scary they trust me that much.”

Panama superintendent Bert Lictus certainly does.

P-J photo by Scott Kindberg

“I started in Panama 18 years ago, and as I got to know (Smith) I started to understand just how important (the camps) were to the Panama school,” Lictus said. “It’s not just basketball skills. He talks about all those things you want in your child — teamwork, discipline, following directions, looking a coach in the eye when they’re talking to you. … It wasn’t only about basketball.”

Smith has had plenty of role models to show him the way for more than 30 years, including the likes of former Chautauqua County high school coaches Ray Fashano, Jack Keeney, Tom Herring, Tom Sharrow and Archie Bradley.

“There is a piece of everyone of those guys in this,” Smith said. “I took their best, along with the five or six basketball camps I worked when I was varsity coach. Take the best from whomever and make it your best.”

From afar, the camping experience Tuesday appeared to run like clockwork, both in the new and old gyms. When the youngsters weren’t being run through drills, they listened attentively as staff members spoke.

“You can’t keep a secret from a kid,” Smith said. “They’re going to know if you love what you’re doing. … You can’t hide from them. A kid knows by your actions what you’re here for.”

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On the Southern Tier Basketball Camp website, there are photographs of camp T-shirts dating to the inaugural year.

“It was my wife’s idea (to put them online),” Smith said. “She can’t quilt those, because I still wear them. She said, ‘Do you realize you have a 17-year-old T-shirt?’ I told her, ‘It fits, and I’m happy it fits. I have 25 of them to choose from.'”

The camping memories have been plentiful, too.

“I didn’t know it would last one year, but it took off from there,” Smith said.

Added Lictus: “A few years ago, I had a local resident call me complaining that we didn’t have on our marquee welcoming campers. I was kind of chuckling. It’s Loren’s camp that he happens to run here, but people locally have equated it being a part of our community. I think that really says a lot that he’s just become part of the fabric of Panama Central School.”