Friday, October 23, 2009 6:10 PM CDT
Neoga Booster Club hosts Frightmare Haunted House
By Dawn Schabbing, Features Writer
dschabbing@jg-tc.com
Its success will be measured by screams.
About a dozen people have worked nightly since mid-September preparing for the opening night of the Neoga BOOster Club’s Frightmare 2009 this weekend — for those who dare to come see what’s inside.
The Frightmare is slated from 8 to 11 p.m. today and again next weekend, Oct. 30 and 31 in the former Short’s Furniture Store, located downtown at 625 Chestnut Ave., Neoga.
Admission is $5 for the first visit, but those who want a second look on the same night may pay $2 for a return tour.
A special spook friendly tour of the Frightmare — with the lights turned up — for younger children or the weak at heart will be from 6 to 7:30 p.m. today only. The spookfriendly tour costs $3.
The Frightmare will show horror movies for those waiting in line, and a refreshment stand with food and drinks will be available for purchase. Food items will include candy, soda, water and hot dogs.
The former furniture store has been converted into 18 different rooms of terror. Things that go bump, things that howl, things that are gross, and things that surprise and freak out its guests can be found inside.
About 30 characters in scary — and some gory — costumes will work to frighten guests who dare to enter.
Special effects include strobe lights, black lights, sounds and fog. Some rooms may be dimly lit, while others will be in total darkness.
Proceeds will benefit the Neoga Junior-Senior High School Booster Club, which recently re-organized after a few years’ hiatus, said Jamie Easton, club president.
“We started talking about this in August and work began around mid-September,” said Tim Kastl, chairman of the haunted house committee.
“Individuals have taken different scenes to create (rooms) themselves. Visitors should expect things like zombies, spooks and things that jump out,” he said.
The event is one of the first large fundraiser events, and all proceeds will go into the general fund to aid with extra-curricular activities for Neoga junior and senior high students.
The boosters recently made a donation to the NHS Arts and Drama Department for its upcoming production of “Little Shop of Horrors,” scheduled in November.
The Boosters’ long-term goal is to help the district gain an all-weather track, they said.
April Eaton, public relations spokeswoman, said the furniture store space was donated by the Short and Burrell families. The City of Neoga has cooperated in this event, and has allowed a section of Chestnut Avenue to be closed for these weekend nights for safety purposes. Other supplies also were donated.
Kastl estimated more than 400 2-by-4 studs, 30 sheets of plywood and at least 800 linear feet of black plastic have helped create this Frightmare.
Easton said some rooms were designed based on scenes from scary movies.
The Frightmare guests must have the ability to walk and crawl to finish the entire tour. Some places are high, some are low, and some require squeezing through tunnel-like openings.
“There will be places where the guests will have to make a decision about what route to take,” Kastl said. “It is this decision that could lead to their demise.”
Contact Dawn Schabbing at dschabbing@jg-tc.com or 238-6864.
Add your comments
Not already registered?
Then click Here.
Comment policy:
JG-TC.com encourages readers to engage in civil conversation with their neighbors. Comments that are submitted are not posted to the site immediately. They go into a queue to be moderated and may take several hours to be reviewed. Comments posted on Saturday may not be reviewed until Sunday afternoon.
In order to keep the page a set width, long lines (mostly long links) will be chopped. Try putting spaces in your links or consider using tinyurl.com to make a smaller link that you can include.
We will never edit or alter your comments, but we do reserve the right to remove comments that violate our code of conduct.
No comment may contain:
* Potentially libelous statements; such as accusing somebody of a crime, defamation of character, or statements that can harm somebody's reputation.
* Obscene, explicit, or racist language.
* Personal attacks, insults, threats, harassment or inciting violence.
* Commercial product promotions.
If you have any questions, please contact our moderator.
|
|
|
|
|
Mama says wrote on Oct 25, 2009 1:59 AM:
Just don't give me a heart attack, hehe. "