Genesee Valley Paranormal Investigators is made up of individuals who bring different backgrounds, skills, experiences, and perspectives to every investigation. From field investigation and historical research to technology, documentation, and critical thinking, each member plays an important role in the work we do.
What truly sets GVPI apart, however, is that we are more than a team. We are family. Many of our members are related by blood or marriage, and the trust that comes from those relationships has been built over years. When we enter a client’s home or investigate a historic location, we work together with respect for one another, our clients, and the people whose stories we may be researching.
Ted VanSon Jr.
Founder / Administrator / Lead Investigator
Ted VanSon is the founder and administrator of Genesee Valley Paranormal Investigators. His interest in paranormal phenomena and the unexplained dates back to 1985, giving him decades of experience researching and investigating reported paranormal activity.
Throughout his years with GVPI, Ted has participated in residential, commercial, and historical investigations while also working to educate the public about paranormal investigation and responsible research. His approach emphasizes documentation, historical research, critical thinking, and the importance of considering ordinary explanations alongside the unexplained.
GVPI’s family foundation is especially personal for Ted. His sister, Tina L. VanSon, serves as a Lead Investigator, while their cousins Stacy Knapp and Carrie Anne Harris are also members of the organization. Their niece, Samantha Pellegrino, serves as an Investigator, and the family tradition continues into younger generations through Tina’s children, Corbin and Piper, as well as Stacy’s daughter Cassie. For Ted, GVPI truly is more than an investigative team—it is family working together in the search for answers.
Ted’s paranormal work has also brought him to television. He has appeared on Ghost Nation on the Travel Channel and Paranormal Survivor, which aired on Destination America and the Travel Channel. He has also participated in radio interviews and discussions about paranormal investigation, research, and his experiences in the field.
Ted is the co-author, with Keith Spratley, of Flashlight, Recorder and Comfortable Shoes: A Simple Guide to Paranormal Investigation and the author of Think Outside the Paranormal Box: Ideas Are Opening Up! He is currently working on his third book.
As GVPI’s founder, Ted continues to coordinate investigations, research, public education, and the development of the organization. Despite the television appearances, interviews, and books, his philosophy toward paranormal investigation remains straightforward: follow the evidence, respect the history, and never stop asking questions.
Tina L. VanSon
Lead Investigator
Tina L. VanSon serves as a Lead Investigator with Genesee Valley Paranormal Investigators and has become an important part of the leadership and field investigation team. She brings professionalism, compassion, patience, and a calm presence to investigations—qualities that are especially valuable when working with residential clients who may be frightened or unsure about what they are experiencing.
Tina approaches each case with respect for both the client and the location. She is particularly sensitive when an investigation involves reports concerning children or possible child spirits, understanding that these situations require patience and care rather than sensationalism.
As a Lead Investigator, Tina helps guide investigations in the field, works closely with other team members, and assists in observing, documenting, and evaluating reported activity. Her ability to remain level-headed while still keeping an open mind has made her an invaluable member of GVPI.
Tina is also at the heart of GVPI’s multigenerational family tradition. Her brother, Ted VanSon, is GVPI’s founder and administrator. Her children, Corbin VanSon, who serves as Equipment & Drone / Investigator, and Piper VanSon, a Junior Investigator, are both members of the team. Tina’s cousins Stacy Knapp and Carrie Anne Harris, as well as her niece Samantha Pellegrino, are also part of GVPI. These family connections are one of the reasons trust and teamwork have always been such an important part of the organization.
Stacy Knapp
Lead Investigator / Historian
Stacy Knapp serves as a Lead Investigator and Historian with Genesee Valley Paranormal Investigators. Her ability to combine historical research with field investigation makes her an important part of GVPI’s approach to understanding both a location and the unexplained activity reported there.
Stacy has a strong interest in uncovering the history behind the places GVPI investigates. Property records, former residents, significant events, and other historical details can sometimes provide valuable context when evaluating claims of paranormal activity. Her research helps the team better understand the stories connected to a location before conclusions are drawn.
In the field, Stacy brings determination, initiative, and compassion. She is someone who takes action when something needs to be done while remaining mindful of the people who have invited GVPI into their homes or properties.
For Stacy, investigating the paranormal is not simply about looking for unusual evidence. It is also about preserving history, understanding the people who came before us, and treating their stories with respect.
Robbie Knapp
Equipment Specialist / Investigator
Robbie Knapp serves as an Equipment Specialist and Investigator with Genesee Valley Paranormal Investigators and is a longtime member of the GVPI team. His years of field experience, practical thinking, and hands-on abilities make him a valuable part of investigations.
As an Equipment Specialist, Robbie helps with the equipment used during investigations and has a knack for finding practical solutions when something doesn’t work quite as planned. His ability to improvise and build solutions has earned a nickname within the team for his “redneck ingenuity.” When an investigation presents an unexpected technical or logistical challenge, Robbie is often one of the people looking for a way to make it work.
Robbie also brings an important sense of humor to GVPI. Investigations can involve long nights, difficult locations, and hours of waiting and reviewing information. His personality helps keep the team grounded and reminds everyone that a strong team works best when its members can rely on—and occasionally laugh with—one another.
As an Investigator, Robbie brings experience, curiosity, common sense, and a willingness to question what the team encounters. Whether he’s working with equipment, helping troubleshoot a problem, or investigating alongside the rest of the team, Robbie’s practical approach has made him an important part of GVPI.
Robbie is married to fellow GVPI member Stacy Knapp, adding another family connection to a team that has always been built around trust, relationships, and working together. Their different strengths—Stacy’s emphasis on research and history and Robbie’s practical, equipment-focused approach—bring complementary perspectives to GVPI investigations.
Cassie Swick
Research / Investigator
Cassie Swick serves as a Researcher and Investigator with Genesee Valley Paranormal Investigators. As a second-generation GVPI investigator, Cassie grew up around paranormal investigation and developed an interest in the unexplained from an early age.
Cassie is the daughter of GVPI members Stacy and Robbie Knapp, making paranormal investigation very much a family affair. Her experiences growing up around the team have given her a perspective that combines the traditions and experiences of longtime GVPI members with her own approach to research and investigation.
Research is one of Cassie’s strengths. She helps dig into the people, properties, events, and historical information connected to cases, looking for details that may provide context for what clients report or what investigators experience in the field. That research can be just as important as the equipment used during an investigation.
As an Investigator, Cassie brings that research mindset into the field, remaining curious while looking for information that can be documented, compared, and evaluated.
Her role represents something especially important to GVPI: the next generation continuing the search for answers while carrying forward the team’s commitment to family, history, respect, and truth through research.
Michael “Mikey” Pellegrino
Lead Investigator / Environmental Systems Specialist
Mike Pellegrino serves as a Lead Investigator and Environmental Systems Specialist with Genesee Valley Paranormal Investigators. He brings a practical, hands-on approach to paranormal investigation and is especially valuable when unusual activity may have an environmental or building-related explanation.
With experience in electrical and plumbing systems, Mike brings knowledge that can be extremely useful during residential, commercial, and historical investigations. Electrical issues, plumbing, heating systems, structural conditions, unusual sounds, vibrations, and other environmental factors can sometimes produce experiences that appear unexplained. Mike’s background helps GVPI identify and evaluate those possibilities.
Mike is also a strong debunker. At GVPI, debunking does not mean dismissing what a client has experienced. It means carefully examining possible natural explanations so that the team can better understand what remains unexplained.
As a Lead Investigator, Mike combines leadership, technical knowledge, critical thinking, and field experience while maintaining an open mind toward phenomena that cannot be readily explained.
His approach represents an important part of GVPI’s research philosophy: before calling something paranormal, first determine what it isn’t.
Mike is the twin brother of fellow GVPI Investigator Matthew “Matt” Pellegrino. Twins have long been associated with stories and theories about unusually strong intuitive or emotional connections, sometimes described as a “twin connection.” GVPI does not assume such a connection is paranormal, but having twin brothers investigating together adds an interesting dynamic to the team and another opportunity to observe how two closely connected individuals may perceive and respond to the same environment. During one GVPI investigation at a local hotel, Mike experienced something that caught even this practical-minded investigator off guard. He reported feeling as though he had been grabbed forcefully by the back of the neck, an experience that genuinely startled him.
Matt was not present when the incident occurred, but was told shortly afterward what had happened to his twin brother. His reaction was immediate and intense. Matt later went to the hotel parking lot and conducted an EVP session of his own.
During that session, Matt asked, “Did you take the easy way out?” On the recording, the team heard what they interpreted as a distinct response: “YES.”
For GVPI, the incident remains memorable for several reasons: Mike’s reported physical experience, Matt’s strong reaction after learning about it, and the audio captured during Matt’s subsequent EVP session. Whether any of these events were connected—and whether the brothers’ relationship as twins played any role—is something GVPI cannot prove. It remains exactly the kind of experience the team believes should be documented, researched, questioned, and left open to interpretation.
Matthew “Matt” Pellegrino
Investigator / Resident Skeptic
Matthew “Matt” Pellegrino serves as an Investigator and Resident Skeptic with Genesee Valley Paranormal Investigators. Matt brings a practical, questioning perspective to the team and is often the person willing to challenge an experience before accepting it as paranormal—an important quality for an organization committed to investigating rather than simply believing.
Matt’s background as a volunteer firefighter and fire chief has given him experience remaining calm, observant, and level-headed in unusual or stressful situations. Those qualities carry over into paranormal investigation, where investigators often work in dark, unfamiliar environments and must evaluate situations carefully and responsibly.
As GVPI’s Resident Skeptic, Matt isn’t afraid to question an assumption, challenge a theory, or look for another explanation. His skepticism isn’t about dismissing paranormal phenomena or what a client has experienced. Instead, it provides an important balance by encouraging the team to question what they see, hear, feel, and record before reaching a conclusion.
Matt is also the twin brother of GVPI Lead Investigator and Environmental Systems Specialist Michael “Mike” Pellegrino. Twins have long been associated with stories and theories involving unusually strong intuitive or emotional connections. GVPI does not assume that such connections are paranormal, but having twin brothers investigating together creates an interesting opportunity to observe how two closely connected individuals perceive and respond to the same environment.
That twin connection became particularly memorable during a GVPI investigation at a local hotel. After learning that Mike had experienced what he described as being grabbed forcefully by the back of the neck, Matt reacted strongly and later conducted an EVP session in the hotel parking lot. During that session, Matt asked, “Did you take the easy way out?” The team subsequently heard what they interpreted as a clear “YES” response on the recording. The experience remains one of those unusual moments that GVPI documents without claiming to have all the answers.
Matt’s combination of skepticism, field experience, and willingness to remain open to what cannot be readily explained reflects an important GVPI principle: question the evidence, look for reasonable explanations, and remain curious about what remains unexplained.
Samantha Pellegrino
Investigator
Samantha Pellegrino serves as an Investigator with Genesee Valley Paranormal Investigators. She brings a thoughtful and measured approach to the field and, like her husband Matt, isn’t afraid to consider the skeptical side of an unexplained experience.
Samantha’s professional background in medical coding has developed an attention to detail that carries naturally into investigation and evidence review. Paranormal research often involves looking closely at small details, documenting observations accurately, and avoiding conclusions that aren’t supported by what was actually recorded or experienced.
Samantha is married to fellow GVPI Investigator and Resident Skeptic Matthew “Matt” Pellegrino. Together, they represent another of the family connections that have helped shape GVPI into a team built on trust both inside and outside an investigation.
That family tradition is now continuing into another generation. Matt and Samantha’s daughter, Shelby, serves as a Junior Investigator with GVPI, giving the family three members involved with the team and helping introduce a new generation to responsible paranormal research.
Samantha brings curiosity, attention to detail, a healthy degree of skepticism, and an open mind to each investigation. Her approach reflects GVPI’s belief that investigators don’t have to choose between skepticism and curiosity—the strongest investigations make room for both.
Christain Frazer
Equipment Specialist / Investigator
Christain Frazer serves as an Equipment Specialist and Investigator with Genesee Valley Paranormal Investigators. He brings curiosity, personality, and a willingness to explore unusual possibilities to the GVPI team.
Christain has a particular interest in cemeteries and historically significant locations, where respect for both the property and the people connected to it is especially important. Like the rest of GVPI, he understands that investigating these locations isn’t simply about searching for something paranormal—it is also about recognizing and respecting the history represented there.
As an Equipment Specialist, Christain assists with the investigative equipment used in the field and helps ensure the team has the tools needed to document unusual activity. As an Investigator, he observes, questions, experiments, and participates in evaluating what the team encounters rather than assuming every unusual occurrence has a paranormal explanation.
Christain also brings his own unusual sense of humor to the team, which can be especially appreciated during the long hours that often accompany paranormal investigations.
His combination of curiosity, equipment knowledge, respect for historic locations, and personality makes Christian an important part of the GVPI family.
Corbin VanSon
Equipment & Drone / Investigator
Corbin VanSon serves as an Equipment & Drone Specialist and Investigator with Genesee Valley Paranormal Investigators. He brings a younger generation’s perspective to GVPI along with a strong interest in technology, investigative equipment, and finding new ways to document the locations the team investigates.
Corbin’s curiosity extends beyond traditional paranormal investigation. He has a strong interest in mythical creatures and legends, particularly dragons, which gives him a different perspective when approaching stories of the unknown. That interest encourages him to look beyond conventional ideas, ask unusual questions, and consider possibilities others might overlook.
For GVPI, that kind of curiosity has value. Paranormal research often begins with someone being willing to ask “What if?” Corbin brings that willingness to explore the unexplained from a different angle while still working within GVPI’s research and investigative approach.
Corbin assists with the technical side of investigations, including equipment used to observe and document reported activity. His work with drone technology also gives GVPI another valuable tool for documenting properties, examining difficult-to-reach areas, and gaining a broader perspective of investigation locations when appropriate.
Corbin is the son of GVPI Lead Investigator Tina L. VanSon and represents another generation of a family that has made paranormal investigation a shared pursuit. His sister, Piper, is also involved with GVPI as a Junior Investigator.
As both an Investigator and a technical member of the team, Corbin combines curiosity, technology, and hands-on field experience as GVPI continues to explore new methods of paranormal research.
His involvement represents an important part of GVPI’s future: new generations, new technology, and the same commitment to searching for answers.
Diane McCarthy
Investigator
Diane McCarthy serves as an Investigator with Genesee Valley Paranormal Investigators. She brings field experience, curiosity, compassion, and a willingness to approach unusual experiences with an open mind while remaining focused on what can be observed and documented.
Diane has participated in a variety of paranormal investigations with GVPI, including residential cases where sensitivity toward the client and their experiences is especially important. She understands that being invited into someone’s home requires trust, discretion, and respect.
One particularly memorable chapter in Diane’s paranormal experience was her involvement alongside Ted in the “Amelia” case in the Brooktondale/Ithaca, New York area, which was featured on Ghost Nation. That experience gave Diane the opportunity to participate in an investigation that ultimately reached a national television audience.
Despite experiences with unusual activity, Diane understands that paranormal investigation is about more than simply searching for a ghost. It requires listening to clients, examining the circumstances surrounding reported activity, documenting what occurs, and being willing to accept that sometimes there may not be an immediate answer.
Diane’s experience and steady approach make her a valued member of the GVPI investigative team.
Billy Boyd
Lead Investigator
Billy Boyd serves as a Lead Investigator with Genesee Valley Paranormal Investigators, bringing previous paranormal investigation experience along with a professional background that emphasized communication, observation, and remaining composed in difficult situations.
Billy also previously worked as a Livingston County Sheriff Dispatcher, a position requiring the ability to listen carefully, communicate clearly, process information, and remain calm when situations become stressful or uncertain. Those skills translate naturally into paranormal field investigation, particularly when coordinating investigators and responding to unexpected situations.
Before joining GVPI, Billy gained paranormal investigation experience through his involvement with Spirit Diggers and ROC City Project Paranormal. That prior experience gives him the perspective of having worked with different investigators, techniques, and approaches to paranormal research.
As a Lead Investigator, Billy helps provide direction in the field while encouraging investigators to remain observant, professional, and focused on documenting what actually occurs rather than jumping to conclusions.
His combination of previous paranormal experience, leadership, communication skills, and a level-headed approach makes Billy a valuable part of GVPI’s investigative team.
Bonnie Swift
Lead Investigator / Maple City GVPI
Bonnie Swift serves as a Lead Investigator with Genesee Valley Paranormal Investigators and oversees Maple City GVPI in the Hornell, New York area, helping extend GVPI’s investigative presence into the Southern Tier.
Bonnie brings a professional background in ICU nursing, where remaining calm, observant, compassionate, and focused during difficult situations is essential. Those qualities carry naturally into paranormal investigation, particularly when working with residential clients who may be frightened, overwhelmed, or simply looking for someone willing to listen.
As a Lead Investigator, Bonnie brings leadership and a steady presence to the field while helping ensure investigations are approached professionally and respectfully. Her experience working closely with people during challenging circumstances also gives her an understanding of how important compassion can be when someone reaches out to GVPI for help.
Through her work with Maple City GVPI, Bonnie also helps carry GVPI’s philosophy into the Hornell area: respect the client, respect the history, document the experience, and follow the evidence wherever it leads.
Carrie Anne Harris
Research / Investigator in Training
Carrie Anne Harris serves as a Researcher and Investigator in Training with Genesee Valley Paranormal Investigators. Her role allows her to contribute to the research side of GVPI while continuing to develop her experience and skills in paranormal field investigation.
Research is an important part of the GVPI process. Understanding the people, properties, events, and history associated with an investigation can sometimes provide valuable context for what a client is experiencing or what investigators encounter in the field. Carrie helps support that work while bringing her own curiosity and perspective to the team.
Carrie is also part of the family foundation that runs throughout GVPI. She is the sister of Stacy Knapp, aunt of Cassie Swick, and cousin of GVPI founder Ted VanSon and Lead Investigator Tina L. VanSon. Her involvement adds another branch and generation of connections to a team where trust and family have always played an important role.
Carrie has a longtime appreciation for the unusual and mysterious—including a particular fondness for Halloween and Michael Myers—so an interest in the strange and unexplained comes pretty naturally.
As an Investigator in Training, Carrie continues gaining field experience while contributing her research abilities to the team. Her progression reflects something GVPI believes strongly in: good investigators never stop learning, questioning, and developing their skills.
Shelby Pellegrino
Junior Investigator
Shelby Pellegrino is a Junior Investigator with Genesee Valley Paranormal Investigators and represents another generation of the GVPI family becoming involved in paranormal research.
Shelby is the daughter of GVPI Investigators Matthew “Matt” Pellegrino and Samantha Pellegrino. Growing up around family members involved in paranormal investigation gives her an opportunity to learn about the field from people who approach it from different perspectives—including her father’s well-known skeptical point of view.
As a Junior Investigator, Shelby has the opportunity to learn the fundamentals of responsible paranormal investigation, including observation, documentation, respect for investigation locations, proper use of equipment, and the importance of looking for reasonable explanations before assuming something is paranormal.
GVPI believes the future of paranormal research depends on younger investigators learning that investigating the unknown isn’t simply about being frightened or searching for ghosts. It is about curiosity, responsibility, respect, and asking good questions.
Shelby’s involvement continues one of GVPI’s proudest traditions: family teaching family while another generation begins its own search for answers.
Piper VanSon
Junior Investigator
Piper VanSon is a Junior Investigator with Genesee Valley Paranormal Investigators and represents another generation of the GVPI family developing an interest in paranormal research and the unexplained.
Piper is the daughter of GVPI Lead Investigator Tina L. VanSon and the sister of Corbin VanSon, GVPI’s Equipment & Drone / Investigator. With both her mother and brother involved in investigations, Piper is growing up around a family where curiosity about the unknown, asking questions, and searching for answers are familiar territory.
As a Junior Investigator, Piper has the opportunity to learn the fundamentals of responsible paranormal investigation, including observation, documentation, respect for clients and locations, proper investigative techniques, and the importance of considering reasonable explanations for unusual experiences.
GVPI believes younger investigators should learn that paranormal research is not about trying to scare themselves or prove that every unusual occurrence is a ghost. It is about curiosity, patience, respect, critical thinking, and learning how to investigate responsibly.
Piper’s involvement helps carry GVPI into another generation while continuing one of the things that has always made the organization unique: family investigating, learning, and searching for answers together.
More Than a Team
The members of Genesee Valley Paranormal Investigators bring different backgrounds, experiences, specialties, and perspectives to every investigation. Some are skeptics, some are researchers, some specialize in technology, and others have spent decades investigating the unexplained.
What connects us is something much simpler: family, trust, curiosity, and a shared desire to understand what we cannot yet explain.
Family. History. Respect. Truth Through Research.
— Genesee Valley Paranormal Investigators