Oct 14

Written by: ngreditor
10/14/2008 6:49 PM 

“Is it scary yet?” Work goes on at the haunted house

Kenneth Purscell

Work, reaching out from beyond the grave.

At first glance it’s not remarkable at all: a box containing tools and equipment for some kind of project. Then you notice—it’s not just a box. It’s a coffin.

Tom Haase took me on a quick tour of the free Haunted House, which will be at the Legion Hall October 24 and 25.

“We’re able to do a lot more this year because of a donation from West Lumber,” Tom says.

The evidence is everywhere. The large spaces upstairs have been broken up into smaller “rooms” and narrow hallways, divided by frames supporting black plastic sheeting.

“The lumberyard gave us the lumber and plywood, and we’ll just take it back to them when we’re done,” said Tom. “We still have a lot of work to do, so it doesn’t really look spooky yet.”

Tom Haase, contemplating the white masks of death--or the decorations in one of the rooms.

I beg to differ. It’s a dreary day outside during my visit, but it’s still daylight out. Inside, there are places where it’s really dark. The walls are close enough that I can feel my spine tingle. Claustrophobia comes to mind.

“We’ve done this for a few years now,” says Tom. “At least it’s not in my garage anymore.”

Part of the challenge with construction comes from the space in which they’re working. Imagine putting a good-sized maze into a large room. Now imagine doing that without putting nails in the floor, ceiling, or walls.

“Everything’s anchored together pretty well,” he says as he shows me the braces connecting the walls of the maze. “We’ve also put in plywood where someone might stumble through. There’s a lot of support.”

For those who have visited in the past, the route through the “Legion Hall of Doom” will be reversed this year. The groups will begin by descending to the basement.

Daidrea, excited about the crowds coming to visit soon.

At the bottom of the stairs I found Daidrea Donelson, putting bloody handprints (decorations only) on a window and trying to get the drops of fake blood not to go upward.

“We’re doing this for fun,” she says. Sometimes fun is a little bit scary. “Each year we’ve done this it just kept growing.”

The Haunted House will be open Friday, October 24, from 7:30 to 10 pm. On Saturday the 25th there will be a special time for “small spooks and the weak hearted” from 7 to 8 pm, and then “back to horror” from 8 to 10 pm.

Admission is free, except for the price of sheer fright.