From Journal Star.com: Filmmakers to bring ghost-hunting documentary to Ross for one-night even
From the time a young Chad Calek and his family moved to Persia, Iowa, more than 20 years ago, he said, they have been attacked by a paranormal presence.
“And it got to a breaking point, emotionally and physically,” Calek said. “It was the darkest, craziest stuff. When something occurs in front of your eyes that defies all the laws of physics, you don’t shake that off. Especially when it happens hundreds of times.”
When he hit college age, Calek literally ran from home. Despite the fear of the experience -- or perhaps because of it -- he became a paranormal investigator. He eventually landed a job as a ghost hunter on the A&E reality series “Paranormal State,” investigating supernatural occurrences all over the country. But it wasn’t until 2009 that he could work up the nerve to go back home to the town northeast of Omaha and confront his own demons.
“It just kept pursuing me my whole career,” he said. “It led me on to ‘Paranormal State.’ And here I was on this show, gaining fame for helping families. And yet my own family needed help. It became a point of manhood for me. I’ve got to go back and try to fix this.”
During the “Paranormal State” off-season, Calek and fellow ghost hunter Ryan Buell took a camera crew to Persia to fight whatever has tormented his family and film the whole experience. After many long discussions, Calek’s family agreed to be part of the documentary. Calek and his family felt by making this movie, they were all putting themselves in danger. The result is "American Ghost Hunter," which will be shown Saturday night at part of a six-hour event at the Ross Media Arts Center.
“It’s hard to explain to somebody how much this film peels open my life,” Calek said. “There’s some dark, traumatic stuff that went on between my family and me. Going back to this was incredibly hard. I love my parents dearly, and they were brave to do this.”
Not to give away too much of the movie, Calek said, but if anything, making “American Ghost Hunter” bolstered his relationship with his parents. If Calek and his family were ever going to be happy, they needed to close this chapter of their lives. The big question is, how much closure did making the movie bring?
“I went there knowing I had to try everything in my power to stop this,” Calek said. “I had to be able to leave Iowa saying I’ve done everything I can do.
“To that degree, I have closure.”
Wednesday, August 31, 2011
Tuesday, August 30, 2011
UK: Ghost-hunters search for after-life at the Brickworks
From the Western Works Gazette: Ghost-hunters search for after-life at the Brickworks
Paranormal activity could be accompanying visitors to the Bursledon Brickworks on Saturday night (August 27).
Several orbs were captured at Bursledon Brickworks main building last year - reported as a hot-spot for paranormal activity
The Southern Ghost Society is leading a ghost hunt at the brickworks in Swanwick Lane to find out if there really is supernatural life in the Victorian centre.
Daniel Marchant, one of the group’s leaders, is taking a team of 25 paranormal enthusiast’s who believe it will be great for visitors to find out about spirits living in their heritage centre and why they are still there.
Hampshire’s leading ghost-hunters kick-started their quest for ghostly life as a group last year at the brickworks and hope the second trip will prove as spooky as before.
“We got some interesting photos from last year’s investigation,” said Daniel.
“We’re returning to the first place we began as a group. We chose Bursledon Brickworks from the very beginning because we wanted a local event.
“Everyone here knows it. I’ve taken my four-year-old daughter there before. People have a relationship with it and it was something that we wanted to support.
“I was totally inspired by the people who work there. They made it possible for us to do the event and stood there to help us. They gave Southern Ghost Society its start and enabled us to go on to book other events.”
Daniel, his brother Lee and his dad Gary, all from Netley, decided to create the not-for-profit group to share their hobby with like-minded individuals and to give back to historical centres across Hampshire they visited with their families and friends – such as the Brickworks.
A the event the group will search rooms in the centre using cameras, infrared heat sourcing equipment and a number of other methods to contact the after-life, including séances.
A band of light with no obvious start or finish point was taken in the conference room where there was no windows
“Last year the place was amazing and was perfect in terms of what we do in ghost hunting,” Daniel added. “I’d go back every week if I could!
“We can never say that we’re going to be able to contact. But what we’re hoping from this event is to make contact with the people who used to live there and find out why they’re still there.”
The ghost hunt is from 8pm to 2am. Tickets are currently sold out for this event, but to find out if there is last minute spaces available contact the group via their website.
They also hope to be the first team to perform a ghost hunt at Bursledon Windmill.
Visitors need to be over 16 years of age, unless accompanied by an adult. For more details visit www.southernghostsociety.co.uk
Paranormal activity could be accompanying visitors to the Bursledon Brickworks on Saturday night (August 27).
Several orbs were captured at Bursledon Brickworks main building last year - reported as a hot-spot for paranormal activity
The Southern Ghost Society is leading a ghost hunt at the brickworks in Swanwick Lane to find out if there really is supernatural life in the Victorian centre.
Daniel Marchant, one of the group’s leaders, is taking a team of 25 paranormal enthusiast’s who believe it will be great for visitors to find out about spirits living in their heritage centre and why they are still there.
Hampshire’s leading ghost-hunters kick-started their quest for ghostly life as a group last year at the brickworks and hope the second trip will prove as spooky as before.
“We got some interesting photos from last year’s investigation,” said Daniel.
“We’re returning to the first place we began as a group. We chose Bursledon Brickworks from the very beginning because we wanted a local event.
“Everyone here knows it. I’ve taken my four-year-old daughter there before. People have a relationship with it and it was something that we wanted to support.
“I was totally inspired by the people who work there. They made it possible for us to do the event and stood there to help us. They gave Southern Ghost Society its start and enabled us to go on to book other events.”
Daniel, his brother Lee and his dad Gary, all from Netley, decided to create the not-for-profit group to share their hobby with like-minded individuals and to give back to historical centres across Hampshire they visited with their families and friends – such as the Brickworks.
A the event the group will search rooms in the centre using cameras, infrared heat sourcing equipment and a number of other methods to contact the after-life, including séances.
A band of light with no obvious start or finish point was taken in the conference room where there was no windows
“Last year the place was amazing and was perfect in terms of what we do in ghost hunting,” Daniel added. “I’d go back every week if I could!
“We can never say that we’re going to be able to contact. But what we’re hoping from this event is to make contact with the people who used to live there and find out why they’re still there.”
The ghost hunt is from 8pm to 2am. Tickets are currently sold out for this event, but to find out if there is last minute spaces available contact the group via their website.
They also hope to be the first team to perform a ghost hunt at Bursledon Windmill.
Visitors need to be over 16 years of age, unless accompanied by an adult. For more details visit www.southernghostsociety.co.uk
Monday, August 29, 2011
Local Ghost Hunters Sense Paranormal Activity at the Whitall House
From West Deptford Patch: Local Ghost Hunters Sense Paranormal Activity at the Whitall House
Though it will be weeks before any concrete evidence is substantiated, Perceptive Paranormal Research (PPR) co-founders Chrissy Desjardins and Amanda Staszak have reason to believe there is paranormal activity at the Whitall House in Red Bank Battlefield Park after conducting an investigation Tuesday night.
“The minute we walked in, I could feel it,” Desjardins said. “There was a lot of energy, and how could there not be?”
“…It was that ‘elevator’ feeling where your equilibrium just didn’t feel steady,” Staszak said.
“It did not seem eerie at all,” she continued. “It was very fascinating to be able to see a lot of the original artifacts…and to be standing in a room that held so much history.”
Staszak said the building accurately portrayed the Revolutionary War period: “When you first walked in you got that antique type smell showing its age. Not a bad smell at all, just hard to describe.”
“A lot of the original furniture was still in place and the overall set up dated back to its roots. The fireplaces in each room for heating, the different tools used back in the day as far as kitchenware,” she continued.
“They recreated what would look like the beds used for the hospital and the cots on the floors,” Staszak added. “It was amazing how much space was in that house. So many rooms, it was endless.”
Staszak, Desjardins, and fellow PPR co-founder Rosalyn Bown brought along trigger objects such as a teddy bear, marbles and gauze bandages, and played drum and fife music to stimulate any spirits lingering on the site, including James and Ann Whitall.
“If the walls could talk, they would have very much to say,” Staszak said.
As details of the investigation unfolded, the trio felt something may have been talking to them.
“Many different occurrences happened, including disembodied voices within the hospital area, psychic impressions of names, appearances, and even children on both the first floor and within the second floor bedrooms,” Staszak said.
Staszak added that during attempts to capture electronic voice phenomena (EVP), she and her teammates “would feel the air thicken and know a presence was near.”
They also heard random clinks and clacks throughout the night, she added.
“My elbow was touched while standing in a doorway of the first floor… not violently or anything, just as if you were taking someone by the elbow to politely guide them out of the way,” Staszak said.
“We all had personal experiences, but it would be nice to go back and listen to the recordings, look at the pictures, and find something to support those personal experiences,” Desjardins said. “Because it was the first true investigation of the house, we were trying to feel out what was going on there just as much as the spirits were."
Desjardins added that the spirits, like the living, grow more comfortable with strangers over time, so multiple visits usually lead to more substantial interactions.
“Spirits are literally just like us humans without the ‘physical’ vessel,” Staszak said. “How you address them would be how you address a normal person.
“If we know a name, we use that name. We try to personalize the conversation to gain comfort in the spirit to communicate,” Staszak continued. “Respect plays a big role in communication to reduce the chance of offending spirits.”
“We call ourselves Perceptive Paranormal because we feel we want to get back to the basics of ghost hunting,” Desjardins said. “Instead of setting up tons of equipment and having it be very scientific, we use ourselves as the tool.
“We do have equipment, but it lights up and makes noise, so you have to wonder if that’s scaring the spirits,” she added.
“I never turn off my recorder: I start it the minute I walk in and I turn it off when I leave,” Desjardins said. “It helps document [each step of the investigation] … I could ask a question and get a response 10 minutes later.”
Desjardins mentioned that spirits are not always able to communicate with receptors: “For a spirit to manifest itself, move something, make a noise, say something, it takes a lot of energy. There’s not always enough energy in the environment while doing an EVP session for it to do what you want it to do or to do what it wants to do.”
“Reviewing the evidence is when we get a good handle on what was going on that night,” Desjardins continued.
“We have four hours of audio, four hours of video, many pictures, etc., to review, each separately,” Staszak said. “So a four-hour investigation can easily take eight to 12 hours for review if sat straight through.
“But also keep in mind when we do locate an EVP or see a photo we may be interested in or catch something on camera, we are watching that over and over and analyzing, which adds up even more,” she continued. “It’s very tedious and time-consuming, but all worth it.”
“The first group of people we’d show the evidence to would be the freeholders and whoever let us into the house,” Desjardins said.
“I hope we have the opportunity to get back in there again,” Desjardins said. “The more we go back, the better the chance we’d have of maybe realizing what’s there.”
Wednesday, August 24, 2011
Local ghost hunters seek scientific evidence at Gilbert Museum
From Examiner.com: Local ghost hunters seek scientific evidence at Gilbert Museum
According to the Dark Cliff Paranormal Research organization, visitors to the Gilbert Historical Museum claim to have experienced “disembodied voices, phantom music and other paranormal activity.” Not the type to shy away from a challenge, Dark Cliff is going to investigate these claims on Friday, August 26, 2011, and they are inviting anyone from the public who would like to try their hand at ghost hunting. They call it a Ghost Hunting Preview Event.
To get to know the group better I sent them a list of questions…
When was Dark Cliff created an who were its founders?
Dark Cliff was created in 2010 by Shaun Jacob, Kris Godinez, Robert Everson and Steve Gresser.
Why was Dark Cliff created?
Dark Cliff was created with the intention of increasing public knowledge about what paranormal investigation really is, gathering data with peer-reviewed sensors and sharing that data both with the scientific community and with other groups. We want to increase the communication and cooperation between groups to increase the amount of data gathered and share thoughts and ideas among investigators. Right now, it feels like many groups treat their methods and their data like a state secret. We want to share as much as possible of anything we find, and to have people examine it for themselves, criticize it, and disagree with us if they have a legitimate concern.
How was the name chosen?
We wanted a name which would be immediately evocative and make people ask us questions. It had to be short, and not an acronym. It had to avoid the usual gothic or showmanship feel. We want people to ask us what we’re about and not decide for themselves just based on our name.
Why do you believe there are ghosts to investigate?
Our goal is to gather data in places where there are claims of paranormal activity, specifically ghosts or hauntings. Despite our own belief systems or experiences, we are doing our best to remain objective and focus on gathering data.
How does Dark Cliff stand out from other paranormal groups?
To achieve our goal, our focus is first and foremost data collection, particularly with sensors recognized as measuring something useful by the scientific community. We also focus on creating the best possible environment for our group’s members. This should be something enjoyable for them. And, we are holding tours for the public to help demystify the phenomenon and the people and methods used to investigate it.
What has been your most memorable investigation?
Every investigation is exciting and interesting, but the investigations we enjoy the most are the ones with the richest history. Because of that, we have to say most of our investigations in Tombstone have been among our most memorable. Just about every time we are in one of the more historical buildings in Tombstone, we each have some sort of personal experience. We understand why Tombstone is often called one of the most significant locations for paranormal investigation in the nation!
What has been your most scary moment on an investigation?
There was an investigation at a bar/restaurant where the claims involved a reaction to provoking, which is pretty much the only time we would consider doing so. Kris and I were in front of the bar and Shaun was behind it, doing some provoking. He decided to join us in front of the bar and as he went through the small passageway from back to the front, he was shoved several feet and landed flat on his face. The sound alone was startling, because besides Shaun hitting the floor it sounded like half of the boxes of beer or wine there were also pushed a bit. Our first concern, of course, was whether Shaun had been hurt (he had not), but we were also rather shocked at the level of reaction we had gotten.
What are your criteria for declaring a location haunted?
We have not ever declared a location haunted. We have come across places which have unexplainable activity, but we have yet to capture the type of evidence which would stand up to the scrutiny of the scientific community.
What made you decide to start holding preview events, and what can an attendee expect if they go?
We decided to hold a Preview Event for the public so we could get feedback on how to hold events the public would enjoy. We always welcome feedback as we see it as an opportunity to improve!
Someone coming to the event can expect to meet Dark Cliff, and to spend time in three rooms at the Gilbert Historical Museum in the dark. Basically, they get a chance to be an investigator for the night!
What do you envision for the future of Dark Cliff?
Dark Cliff will continue to grow into a group with associations with other paranormal investigators around the country and around the world. These associations will allow us to share information, data, ideas and investigating techniques. Our hope for the future is by building an association of groups serious about gathering useable data, we will help end people dismissing the phenomenon as simply not happening.
Is there anything else you like to add that you think people should know about you?
Our philosophy, our group’s information, our blog and our contact information is all on the website. Come check us out, we look forward to meeting you!
For more information visit the Dark Cliff Paranormal Research website.
According to the Dark Cliff Paranormal Research organization, visitors to the Gilbert Historical Museum claim to have experienced “disembodied voices, phantom music and other paranormal activity.” Not the type to shy away from a challenge, Dark Cliff is going to investigate these claims on Friday, August 26, 2011, and they are inviting anyone from the public who would like to try their hand at ghost hunting. They call it a Ghost Hunting Preview Event.
To get to know the group better I sent them a list of questions…
When was Dark Cliff created an who were its founders?
Dark Cliff was created in 2010 by Shaun Jacob, Kris Godinez, Robert Everson and Steve Gresser.
Why was Dark Cliff created?
Dark Cliff was created with the intention of increasing public knowledge about what paranormal investigation really is, gathering data with peer-reviewed sensors and sharing that data both with the scientific community and with other groups. We want to increase the communication and cooperation between groups to increase the amount of data gathered and share thoughts and ideas among investigators. Right now, it feels like many groups treat their methods and their data like a state secret. We want to share as much as possible of anything we find, and to have people examine it for themselves, criticize it, and disagree with us if they have a legitimate concern.
How was the name chosen?
We wanted a name which would be immediately evocative and make people ask us questions. It had to be short, and not an acronym. It had to avoid the usual gothic or showmanship feel. We want people to ask us what we’re about and not decide for themselves just based on our name.
Why do you believe there are ghosts to investigate?
Our goal is to gather data in places where there are claims of paranormal activity, specifically ghosts or hauntings. Despite our own belief systems or experiences, we are doing our best to remain objective and focus on gathering data.
How does Dark Cliff stand out from other paranormal groups?
To achieve our goal, our focus is first and foremost data collection, particularly with sensors recognized as measuring something useful by the scientific community. We also focus on creating the best possible environment for our group’s members. This should be something enjoyable for them. And, we are holding tours for the public to help demystify the phenomenon and the people and methods used to investigate it.
What has been your most memorable investigation?
Every investigation is exciting and interesting, but the investigations we enjoy the most are the ones with the richest history. Because of that, we have to say most of our investigations in Tombstone have been among our most memorable. Just about every time we are in one of the more historical buildings in Tombstone, we each have some sort of personal experience. We understand why Tombstone is often called one of the most significant locations for paranormal investigation in the nation!
What has been your most scary moment on an investigation?
There was an investigation at a bar/restaurant where the claims involved a reaction to provoking, which is pretty much the only time we would consider doing so. Kris and I were in front of the bar and Shaun was behind it, doing some provoking. He decided to join us in front of the bar and as he went through the small passageway from back to the front, he was shoved several feet and landed flat on his face. The sound alone was startling, because besides Shaun hitting the floor it sounded like half of the boxes of beer or wine there were also pushed a bit. Our first concern, of course, was whether Shaun had been hurt (he had not), but we were also rather shocked at the level of reaction we had gotten.
What are your criteria for declaring a location haunted?
We have not ever declared a location haunted. We have come across places which have unexplainable activity, but we have yet to capture the type of evidence which would stand up to the scrutiny of the scientific community.
What made you decide to start holding preview events, and what can an attendee expect if they go?
We decided to hold a Preview Event for the public so we could get feedback on how to hold events the public would enjoy. We always welcome feedback as we see it as an opportunity to improve!
Someone coming to the event can expect to meet Dark Cliff, and to spend time in three rooms at the Gilbert Historical Museum in the dark. Basically, they get a chance to be an investigator for the night!
What do you envision for the future of Dark Cliff?
Dark Cliff will continue to grow into a group with associations with other paranormal investigators around the country and around the world. These associations will allow us to share information, data, ideas and investigating techniques. Our hope for the future is by building an association of groups serious about gathering useable data, we will help end people dismissing the phenomenon as simply not happening.
Is there anything else you like to add that you think people should know about you?
Our philosophy, our group’s information, our blog and our contact information is all on the website. Come check us out, we look forward to meeting you!
For more information visit the Dark Cliff Paranormal Research website.
Monday, August 22, 2011
Season 7 of 'Ghost Hunters' continues Wednesday
From Deseret News: Season 7 of 'Ghost Hunters' continues Wednesday
In a special episode on June 1, The Atlantic Paranormal Society, led by Jason Hawes and Grant Wilson, visited Pearl Harbor to investigate claims of paranormal activity at the Pacific Aviation Museum. The team was joined by special guest Josh Gates from “Destination Truth.”
After the investigation concluded and before the team could review and reveal the evidence they collected, Hawes and Wilson received an urgent call from their TAPS team member still in Rhode Island, where the society is based.
The call concerned a new case involving a small child who had become terrified of her own home. The episode ended with Hawes and Wilson deciding to fly back to Rhode Island for the new case and leaving the rest of the team in Hawaii to finish its work at Pearl Harbor.
This Wednesday’s episode will pick up where the show left off in June. Hawes and Wilson arrive in Rhode Island and participate via teleconference in revealing the evidence collected from the Pearl Harbor investigation. After more than 2 1/2 months, viewers will finally get to see what TAPS was able to capture at the Pacific Aviation Museum.
After concluding the reveal, Hawes and Wilson move on to the next investigation. Several family members in a Rhode Island home, including the family’s 4-year-old girl, have had experiences which make them feel uncomfortable in their house. Hawes and Wilson conduct an investigation to see if they can provide answers for the family.
“Ghost Hunters” has made a great deal of success from muffled voices, unusual flashes of light, and even stranger noises, and they are set to continue this success into the rest of season seven.
In coming episodes, viewers will also get the opportunity to see more of the newest member of the TAPS team, Maddie, Hawes' ghost-hunting dog.
The interesting notion about having a dog on the “Ghost Hunters” team is that, while humans might be able to over-emphasize their reactions to certain circumstances or, as some skeptics might say, fake it, an animal’s reactions are always going to be genuine. Maddie will prove to be an intriguing addition to the show.
As always, “Ghost Hunters” does include suspenseful scenes and some disturbing imagery, but also provides clean and family appropriate entertainment. And now they even have a dog.
In a special episode on June 1, The Atlantic Paranormal Society, led by Jason Hawes and Grant Wilson, visited Pearl Harbor to investigate claims of paranormal activity at the Pacific Aviation Museum. The team was joined by special guest Josh Gates from “Destination Truth.”
After the investigation concluded and before the team could review and reveal the evidence they collected, Hawes and Wilson received an urgent call from their TAPS team member still in Rhode Island, where the society is based.
The call concerned a new case involving a small child who had become terrified of her own home. The episode ended with Hawes and Wilson deciding to fly back to Rhode Island for the new case and leaving the rest of the team in Hawaii to finish its work at Pearl Harbor.
This Wednesday’s episode will pick up where the show left off in June. Hawes and Wilson arrive in Rhode Island and participate via teleconference in revealing the evidence collected from the Pearl Harbor investigation. After more than 2 1/2 months, viewers will finally get to see what TAPS was able to capture at the Pacific Aviation Museum.
After concluding the reveal, Hawes and Wilson move on to the next investigation. Several family members in a Rhode Island home, including the family’s 4-year-old girl, have had experiences which make them feel uncomfortable in their house. Hawes and Wilson conduct an investigation to see if they can provide answers for the family.
“Ghost Hunters” has made a great deal of success from muffled voices, unusual flashes of light, and even stranger noises, and they are set to continue this success into the rest of season seven.
In coming episodes, viewers will also get the opportunity to see more of the newest member of the TAPS team, Maddie, Hawes' ghost-hunting dog.
The interesting notion about having a dog on the “Ghost Hunters” team is that, while humans might be able to over-emphasize their reactions to certain circumstances or, as some skeptics might say, fake it, an animal’s reactions are always going to be genuine. Maddie will prove to be an intriguing addition to the show.
As always, “Ghost Hunters” does include suspenseful scenes and some disturbing imagery, but also provides clean and family appropriate entertainment. And now they even have a dog.
Friday, August 19, 2011
Ghost stories recounted
From News-Press.com: Ghost stories recounted
Honey Archer has seen and heard some spooky things in her 12 years of ghost hunting.
Strange voices. Flickering lights. An unexpected touch in an empty room.
"I had a spirit walk past me, and I could hear his pant legs rubbing together," Archer says. "Then it proceeded to the door and opened it. I didn't see him, but I could hear him.
"That kind of thing only happens rarely in investigations. But when it does happen, it blows your mind."
Archer will tell more ghost stories Friday, Aug. 26, when her occasional "Ghost Hunting 101" class returns to Cape Coral's Rotary Park.
By day, Archer works as an environmental recreation specialist for the City of Cape Coral. But by night, she visits haunted houses with other members of Southwest Florida Paranormal Investigators, the ghost-hunting group she helped found in 1999.
Archer's two-hour class introduces people to the basics of ghost hunting, including the various tools of the trade: video recorders, sound recorders, EMF (electromagnetic field) detectors), temperature sensors (handy for finding telltale "cold spots) and more.
Not everything is a ghost, though, Archer says. Sometimes that flickering light is just some faulty wiring. So Archer and her group spend a lot of time debunking supposed hauntings.
Other class topics include how to conduct a ghost investigation, recognizing false evidence, and the science behind the techniques.
Archer also spends a lot of time answering questions from the class.
One biggie: What happens to us when we die?
After countless ghost investigations, Archer still doesn't know for sure.
"I get a lot of life-after-death questions," she says. "But all I can do is give them my best guess."
Honey Archer has seen and heard some spooky things in her 12 years of ghost hunting.
Strange voices. Flickering lights. An unexpected touch in an empty room.
"I had a spirit walk past me, and I could hear his pant legs rubbing together," Archer says. "Then it proceeded to the door and opened it. I didn't see him, but I could hear him.
"That kind of thing only happens rarely in investigations. But when it does happen, it blows your mind."
Archer will tell more ghost stories Friday, Aug. 26, when her occasional "Ghost Hunting 101" class returns to Cape Coral's Rotary Park.
By day, Archer works as an environmental recreation specialist for the City of Cape Coral. But by night, she visits haunted houses with other members of Southwest Florida Paranormal Investigators, the ghost-hunting group she helped found in 1999.
Archer's two-hour class introduces people to the basics of ghost hunting, including the various tools of the trade: video recorders, sound recorders, EMF (electromagnetic field) detectors), temperature sensors (handy for finding telltale "cold spots) and more.
Not everything is a ghost, though, Archer says. Sometimes that flickering light is just some faulty wiring. So Archer and her group spend a lot of time debunking supposed hauntings.
Other class topics include how to conduct a ghost investigation, recognizing false evidence, and the science behind the techniques.
Archer also spends a lot of time answering questions from the class.
One biggie: What happens to us when we die?
After countless ghost investigations, Archer still doesn't know for sure.
"I get a lot of life-after-death questions," she says. "But all I can do is give them my best guess."
Wednesday, August 17, 2011
SWFL Ghostbusters look into Capt'n Con's
From WINK News Now Aug 10: SWFL Ghostbusters look into Capt'n Con's
BOKEELIA, Fla.- Have you ever heard things go bump in the night and you can't explain it? Have you seen a ghost? You may be interested to know that right here in Southwest Florida there is a group of "ghost hunters" investigating the paranormal.
WINK News spoke with members of "Florida Paranormal Research " at a Bokeelia restaurant and got some haunting results!
From the outside, Capt'n Con's Fish House doesn't look so scary. Quaint surroundings, a nice restaurant by the water, but some say there is something odd going on inside and it's not the fish special.
Ian Hickin is the founder of Florida Paranormal Research. He's investigated this place before.
"I find that with hauntings like this, it is not always someone who died here or some tragic accident it may have been someone who spent their whole life working here," Hinkin said.
Hinkin hosts an Internet ghost hunting show that he has produced for the last three and a half years. The former firefighter says he's seen his share of tragedy and believes that led him to paranormal studies.
"Something very strange happens at the moment of death. So it became my passion to research what happens at that moment," Hinkin said. "What I like about Captain Con's Fish House is that we always get a lot of activity and the activity is usually very positive."
You can watch Hickin's weekly webisode at www.ghostshow.net
BOKEELIA, Fla.- Have you ever heard things go bump in the night and you can't explain it? Have you seen a ghost? You may be interested to know that right here in Southwest Florida there is a group of "ghost hunters" investigating the paranormal.
WINK News spoke with members of "Florida Paranormal Research " at a Bokeelia restaurant and got some haunting results!
From the outside, Capt'n Con's Fish House doesn't look so scary. Quaint surroundings, a nice restaurant by the water, but some say there is something odd going on inside and it's not the fish special.
Ian Hickin is the founder of Florida Paranormal Research. He's investigated this place before.
"I find that with hauntings like this, it is not always someone who died here or some tragic accident it may have been someone who spent their whole life working here," Hinkin said.
Hinkin hosts an Internet ghost hunting show that he has produced for the last three and a half years. The former firefighter says he's seen his share of tragedy and believes that led him to paranormal studies.
"Something very strange happens at the moment of death. So it became my passion to research what happens at that moment," Hinkin said. "What I like about Captain Con's Fish House is that we always get a lot of activity and the activity is usually very positive."
You can watch Hickin's weekly webisode at www.ghostshow.net
Friday, August 12, 2011
Woodbury woman recruited for first season of 'Ghost Hunters Academy'
From NJ.com: Woodbury woman recruited for first season of 'Ghost Hunters Academy'
From the time Rosalyn Bown was 7 years old until she was in her 20s, she would know when her family members — or herself — were in trouble.
“My premonitions were while I was awake,” Bown said. “I would just know that something bad was going to happen to a relative.”
These premonitions, which were very specific and eerily accurate, sparked her interest in the paranormal.
“Those premonitions have since gone away, but my interest in the paranormal field has remained,” Bown said.
This interest led Bown to join a local ghost-hunting group in 1999.
“My first ghost hunt was of an historic inn in New Hope, Pa.,” she said, and she hasn’t stopped since.
In 2009, 10 years after her first investigation, Bown was recruited for the first season of SyFy Channel’s “Ghost Hunters Academy.”
The show, an elimination-style competition, features TAPS (The Atlantic Paranormal Society) members Steve Gonsalves and Dave Tango from Ghost Hunters as they lead a group of prospective investigators on various ghost-hunting cases at allegedly haunted locations that were previously investigated by TAPS.
The winner is invited to join the Ghost Hunters or Ghost Hunters International teams.
“I was the only cadet on my season of ‘Ghost Hunters Academy’ who did not audition for the show,” Bown explained. “I was scouted by their talent agency, who emailed me out of the blue to say they thought I would be a good fit for the show, and to ask me to submit an application and a short video about myself.”
Bown spent eight “fascinating weeks” on the road with the “Ghost Hunters Academy” team.
“Filming with ‘Ghost Hunters Academy’ was an amazing experience,” she said. “While the cutthroat competition aspects of the show were stressful and, at times troubling, traveling with the crew and investigating amazing haunted locations that I otherwise would not have had access to, more than made up for it.”
A former member of the South Jersey Ghost Research group, Bown and co-founders Amanda Staszak and Chrissy Desjardins created Perceptive Paranormal Research in January.
Having participated in nearly 200 paranormal investigations to date, Bown names her time at the Mark Twain House in Hartford, Conn., as her most memorable experience.
“I’m a fan of his books and found it humbling to investigate the home where he raised his family and penned some of his works,” she said.
Her scariest moment occurred, surprisingly, in her own home.
“I was actually most frightened by an incident within my own, 80-year-old Woodbury home,” she said. “Late one night a few years ago, I rounded a corner and came face-to-face with a tall shadow person in my living room.”
She said the figure was a solid, three-dimensional man, but was entirely black and devoid of all color.
“It was unnerving, primarily because it was totally unexpected for two reasons — one, I was just minding my own business, preparing a late-night snack, and two, I don’t usually see spirits quite so clearly with the naked eye.”
When experienced investigators such as Bown get “scared,” it’s most likely because they were startled, as in this case, not because something is actually terrifying, she said.
Perceptive Paranormal Research, Bown’s group, offers investigative services to those with haunted homes or businesses, free of charge.
“I hope to teach people, first and foremost, that they don’t have to be afraid of ghosts,” she said. “Rather, they should find hope in the apparent, enduring nature of the human consciousness, and comfort in the presence of their dead loved ones.”
Bown said that an investigation into a home’s haunting can be the first step in coming to terms with any paranormal activity a resident may be dealing with.
Interested in all things paranormal, Bown also enjoys investigating haunted historic locations and urban legends.
Recently, Bown joined cast members from SyFy’s “Fact or Faked,” “Ghost Hunters International” and “Ghost Hunters Academy” to investigate Fort Mifflin in Philadelphia.
Bown was stationed in The Citadel at Fort Mifflin, which she said wasn’t very active during her investigation, but looks forward to combing through the hours of audio and video footage she collected that night in the hopes of discovering something that may not have been evident to her eyes and ears.
On Aug. 20, Bown will join members of “Ghost Hunters Academy” and “Ghost Hunters International,” along with a number of other celebrity investigators for an overnight investigation of the Battleship New Jersey in Camden.
For more information, visit www.perceptiveparanormal.com.
From the time Rosalyn Bown was 7 years old until she was in her 20s, she would know when her family members — or herself — were in trouble.
“My premonitions were while I was awake,” Bown said. “I would just know that something bad was going to happen to a relative.”
These premonitions, which were very specific and eerily accurate, sparked her interest in the paranormal.
“Those premonitions have since gone away, but my interest in the paranormal field has remained,” Bown said.
This interest led Bown to join a local ghost-hunting group in 1999.
“My first ghost hunt was of an historic inn in New Hope, Pa.,” she said, and she hasn’t stopped since.
In 2009, 10 years after her first investigation, Bown was recruited for the first season of SyFy Channel’s “Ghost Hunters Academy.”
The show, an elimination-style competition, features TAPS (The Atlantic Paranormal Society) members Steve Gonsalves and Dave Tango from Ghost Hunters as they lead a group of prospective investigators on various ghost-hunting cases at allegedly haunted locations that were previously investigated by TAPS.
The winner is invited to join the Ghost Hunters or Ghost Hunters International teams.
“I was the only cadet on my season of ‘Ghost Hunters Academy’ who did not audition for the show,” Bown explained. “I was scouted by their talent agency, who emailed me out of the blue to say they thought I would be a good fit for the show, and to ask me to submit an application and a short video about myself.”
Bown spent eight “fascinating weeks” on the road with the “Ghost Hunters Academy” team.
“Filming with ‘Ghost Hunters Academy’ was an amazing experience,” she said. “While the cutthroat competition aspects of the show were stressful and, at times troubling, traveling with the crew and investigating amazing haunted locations that I otherwise would not have had access to, more than made up for it.”
A former member of the South Jersey Ghost Research group, Bown and co-founders Amanda Staszak and Chrissy Desjardins created Perceptive Paranormal Research in January.
Having participated in nearly 200 paranormal investigations to date, Bown names her time at the Mark Twain House in Hartford, Conn., as her most memorable experience.
“I’m a fan of his books and found it humbling to investigate the home where he raised his family and penned some of his works,” she said.
Her scariest moment occurred, surprisingly, in her own home.
“I was actually most frightened by an incident within my own, 80-year-old Woodbury home,” she said. “Late one night a few years ago, I rounded a corner and came face-to-face with a tall shadow person in my living room.”
She said the figure was a solid, three-dimensional man, but was entirely black and devoid of all color.
“It was unnerving, primarily because it was totally unexpected for two reasons — one, I was just minding my own business, preparing a late-night snack, and two, I don’t usually see spirits quite so clearly with the naked eye.”
When experienced investigators such as Bown get “scared,” it’s most likely because they were startled, as in this case, not because something is actually terrifying, she said.
Perceptive Paranormal Research, Bown’s group, offers investigative services to those with haunted homes or businesses, free of charge.
“I hope to teach people, first and foremost, that they don’t have to be afraid of ghosts,” she said. “Rather, they should find hope in the apparent, enduring nature of the human consciousness, and comfort in the presence of their dead loved ones.”
Bown said that an investigation into a home’s haunting can be the first step in coming to terms with any paranormal activity a resident may be dealing with.
Interested in all things paranormal, Bown also enjoys investigating haunted historic locations and urban legends.
Recently, Bown joined cast members from SyFy’s “Fact or Faked,” “Ghost Hunters International” and “Ghost Hunters Academy” to investigate Fort Mifflin in Philadelphia.
Bown was stationed in The Citadel at Fort Mifflin, which she said wasn’t very active during her investigation, but looks forward to combing through the hours of audio and video footage she collected that night in the hopes of discovering something that may not have been evident to her eyes and ears.
On Aug. 20, Bown will join members of “Ghost Hunters Academy” and “Ghost Hunters International,” along with a number of other celebrity investigators for an overnight investigation of the Battleship New Jersey in Camden.
For more information, visit www.perceptiveparanormal.com.
Monday, August 8, 2011
Teens allegedly vandalize Civil War cemetery
The article below seems to be painting ghost hunters with a broad brush. There is a vast difference between teenagers who vandalize irreplaceable monuments because they're "bored" and people who are actually searching for ghosts!
Being teens, they probably won't be forced to repay the millions of dollars of damage they caused. Too bad. In a good justice system, their pay would be garnished for the rest of their lives.
From KSDK.com: Teens allegedly vandalize Civil War cemetery
Being teens, they probably won't be forced to repay the millions of dollars of damage they caused. Too bad. In a good justice system, their pay would be garnished for the rest of their lives.
From KSDK.com: Teens allegedly vandalize Civil War cemetery
Hamblen County, TN (CNN) - Two teens have been arrested for vandalizing an old Tennessee church steeped in Civil War history. They appear to have been ghost hunters, but the damage they've allegedly done is irreplaceable.
Built in 1835, the Bethesda Presbyterian Church is weaved into Civil War history. At one point the building even served as a hospital for General James Longstreet's wounded troops.
"This is one of the true time capsules we're sitting in, here in East Tennessee," said Mike Beck, President of the Tennessee Sons of Confederate Veterans, which is a group that helps preserve the site, which is on the National Registry of Historic Landmarks.
The floor is now covered with melted wax, the windows are shattered, and the cemetery that houses the soldier's graves, spray painted.
"This is the worst that we've seen," said Beck.
In one section of the cemetery, about six headstones were targeted, and workers say because the vandals used silver and gold spray paint, it'll take two to three hours to scrub down each one of them. With words like "Pacman" and some paranormal terms, it is believed the culprits were probably ghost hunting.
"Pacman is a video game where the guys are chasing the ghosts. So essentially these are ghost hunters doing the damage," said worker Joshua Hayes.
The possible ghost hunters also knocked down more than two dozen of the century-old headstones. While CNN was at the cemetery, work was actively going on to put them back up again.
"They like chasing ghosts which is fine, but when you go desecrating monuments, it takes it to a whole new level," said Hayes.
Luckily investigators have been able to track down the two teenage boys they believe were behind the crimes because one of them left behind a bicycle.
"They did it because they was bored and thought it would be cute to desecrate the cemetery," said Sheriff Esco Jarnagin.
The list of charges against them will include arson because of the candles left dangerously burning around the old church.
"They've taken away a piece of our history here in east Tennessee. Some of this is irreplaceable," added Beck.
While the teens are prosecuted, a lot will have to be done to get this piece of our Civil War heritage fixed up again.
Sunday, August 7, 2011
Paranormal Group Publishes Book Entitled, "Ghost Hunting from A to Z, A Scientific Approach to Paranormal Investigation"
Reading, PA Paranormal Group Publishes Book Entitled, "Ghost Hunting from A to Z, A Scientific Approach to Paranormal Investigation"
Reading authors and residents, L. Lindeman and J. Kroenig, have recently published "Ghost Hunting from A to Z, A Scientific Approach to Paranormal Investigation," a 108-page book that details applying the scientific method to the field of Paranormal Research.
Reading, PA, August 04, 2011 --(PR.com)-- Authors L. Lindeman and J. Kroenig, Founders of The Supernatural Research Group, Raise The Bar for Other Paranormal Investigation Groups
Reading authors and residents, L. Lindeman and J. Kroenig, have recently published "Ghost Hunting from A to Z, A Scientific Approach to Paranormal Investigation," a 108-page book that details applying the scientific method to the field of Paranormal Research. The authors were astonished by some of the claims as well as methods being made by others in the paranormal field while investigating claims of paranormal activity.
For a limited time (Thursday, September 1 through Monday, October 31) an electronic book version of "Ghost Hunting A to Z," normally priced at $4.99, will be available to the public at a reduced cost at Smashwords at http://www.smashwords.com/books/view/21976.
While there are many publications out there covering the same topic, none cover it from a scientific prospective in plain English, with as much detail.
For those readers who prefer the printed version, they can purchase a copy at www.ghosthuntingatoz.com for $9.99 ea.
About the Authors
Originally from Pennsylvania, the authors have been formally researching the paranormal for eight years. In August of 2006 the authors joined forces and formed The Supernatural Research Group, a paranormal research team based out of Berks County Pennsylvania, dedicated to applying scientific methods and principles to paranormal research. Their group can be reach via their website www.tsrg.org.
Reading authors and residents, L. Lindeman and J. Kroenig, have recently published "Ghost Hunting from A to Z, A Scientific Approach to Paranormal Investigation," a 108-page book that details applying the scientific method to the field of Paranormal Research.
Reading, PA, August 04, 2011 --(PR.com)-- Authors L. Lindeman and J. Kroenig, Founders of The Supernatural Research Group, Raise The Bar for Other Paranormal Investigation Groups
Reading authors and residents, L. Lindeman and J. Kroenig, have recently published "Ghost Hunting from A to Z, A Scientific Approach to Paranormal Investigation," a 108-page book that details applying the scientific method to the field of Paranormal Research. The authors were astonished by some of the claims as well as methods being made by others in the paranormal field while investigating claims of paranormal activity.
For a limited time (Thursday, September 1 through Monday, October 31) an electronic book version of "Ghost Hunting A to Z," normally priced at $4.99, will be available to the public at a reduced cost at Smashwords at http://www.smashwords.com/books/view/21976.
While there are many publications out there covering the same topic, none cover it from a scientific prospective in plain English, with as much detail.
For those readers who prefer the printed version, they can purchase a copy at www.ghosthuntingatoz.com for $9.99 ea.
About the Authors
Originally from Pennsylvania, the authors have been formally researching the paranormal for eight years. In August of 2006 the authors joined forces and formed The Supernatural Research Group, a paranormal research team based out of Berks County Pennsylvania, dedicated to applying scientific methods and principles to paranormal research. Their group can be reach via their website www.tsrg.org.
Searching for ghosts in Scugog
From Durham Region.com: Searching for ghosts in Scugog
SCUGOG -- Things that go bump in the night -- and creak, and thump, and even, "Geeeeeeeet ooouuuut!" -- were on the minds of those who gathered at Scugog's Museum Village Saturday.
It was Durham's first Paranormal Day, an event that attracted psychics, mediums, and ghost hunters. Members of SCOPE -- the South Central Ontario Paranormal Enthusiasts -- were on hand to show off an array of ghost-hunting equipment they used to scan the historical buildings on the site for denizens of the past who may yet linger there.
SCOPE member Chris Goring of Whitby was happy to discuss the science behind ghost hunting, and the interests that motivate him and his colleagues to tread where those with less of a taste for the paranormal might not.
"We don't necessarily go in to prove a place is haunted. We try to find a rational explanation," he said. "The definition of paranormal to me is something that can't be explained by rational means."
The crew set up cameras in buildings on the museum site and also scanned them with devices that measure temperature, electromagnetic fields and radiation. They also toted sensitive recorders, video and still cameras and meters to measure energy surges.
The arsenal of equipment helps detect phenomena that might indicate a ghostly presence, or some perfectly rational explanation, said Mr. Goring. An energy spike, for instance, might be caused by old, bare wires. A cold patch picked up by an ambient temperature thermometer could be explained by something as pedestrian as a drafty window.
Or it could be something else.
"There is an element of excitement when things happen," Mr. Goring said. Those things, he explained, could range from anomalous readings to ghostly images on photographs to actual contact.
Mr. Goring got interested in paranormal investigations, as you might expect, after a personal experience. Years ago he was installing sprinklers in an aged Toronto building, working alone, when he heard a voice whisper in his ear, "Why?"
"I was freaked out," he said.
But he was also curious. He began looking for ways to delve into the paranormal and discovered SCOPE, a non-profit organization whose mandate is to investigate what appear to be manifestations of paranormal activity. Their motivation is simple.
"For us it's a personal validation of our interests," Mr. Goring said. "We've had experiences we want to validate."
Mr. Goring's first foray with SCOPE yielded a profound experience. It was when the crew was examining audio from an investigation that they discovered what paranormal investigators call an electronic voice phenomenon -- voice-like sounds audible only on recordings. On the sound clip, posted on the SCOPE website, investigators are heard chatting amidst an eerie swirl of ambient sounds. As they pause, there's a sound, like a low growl: "Get out", it seems to say.
"I was hooked," said Mr. Goring.
Most folks, if they believe in the paranormal at all, might be inclined to shy away from such brushes with the inexplicable. Mr. Goring and his colleagues seek them out. But they try to stay objective, looking for explanations for what they encounter. Consequently, they tend not to be too skittish when they do.
"We really don't get on edge. We don't get afraid, because that's what we're looking for," he said. "Not everything is paranormal. There can be a lot of explanations."
So: What happened Saturday night?
For the most part, it was quiet. The SCOPE crew fanned out across the museum site, consulting with mediums to get a feel for the place. Then they worked from 9 p.m. until about 3 a.m., taking readings in various locations. Mr. Goring and his partner encountered a few interesting moments, one of them in the basement of the school house, when a First World War-era gas mask repeatedly fell from a hook as they observed it.
In the Lee House -- where, legend has it, a ghostly lady walks through walls -- they used a ghost box, a device that scans radio frequencies, emitting white noise that can sometimes sound like speech.
"We kept getting the name John Gibb," Mr. Goring said.
"Apparently, he wanted us to leave."
The SCOPE crew now has hours of video and audio tape to review for more hints of anything ghostly.
You can visit the SCOPE website at www.scopeonline.ca.
SCUGOG -- Things that go bump in the night -- and creak, and thump, and even, "Geeeeeeeet ooouuuut!" -- were on the minds of those who gathered at Scugog's Museum Village Saturday.
It was Durham's first Paranormal Day, an event that attracted psychics, mediums, and ghost hunters. Members of SCOPE -- the South Central Ontario Paranormal Enthusiasts -- were on hand to show off an array of ghost-hunting equipment they used to scan the historical buildings on the site for denizens of the past who may yet linger there.
SCOPE member Chris Goring of Whitby was happy to discuss the science behind ghost hunting, and the interests that motivate him and his colleagues to tread where those with less of a taste for the paranormal might not.
"We don't necessarily go in to prove a place is haunted. We try to find a rational explanation," he said. "The definition of paranormal to me is something that can't be explained by rational means."
The crew set up cameras in buildings on the museum site and also scanned them with devices that measure temperature, electromagnetic fields and radiation. They also toted sensitive recorders, video and still cameras and meters to measure energy surges.
The arsenal of equipment helps detect phenomena that might indicate a ghostly presence, or some perfectly rational explanation, said Mr. Goring. An energy spike, for instance, might be caused by old, bare wires. A cold patch picked up by an ambient temperature thermometer could be explained by something as pedestrian as a drafty window.
Or it could be something else.
"There is an element of excitement when things happen," Mr. Goring said. Those things, he explained, could range from anomalous readings to ghostly images on photographs to actual contact.
Mr. Goring got interested in paranormal investigations, as you might expect, after a personal experience. Years ago he was installing sprinklers in an aged Toronto building, working alone, when he heard a voice whisper in his ear, "Why?"
"I was freaked out," he said.
But he was also curious. He began looking for ways to delve into the paranormal and discovered SCOPE, a non-profit organization whose mandate is to investigate what appear to be manifestations of paranormal activity. Their motivation is simple.
"For us it's a personal validation of our interests," Mr. Goring said. "We've had experiences we want to validate."
Mr. Goring's first foray with SCOPE yielded a profound experience. It was when the crew was examining audio from an investigation that they discovered what paranormal investigators call an electronic voice phenomenon -- voice-like sounds audible only on recordings. On the sound clip, posted on the SCOPE website, investigators are heard chatting amidst an eerie swirl of ambient sounds. As they pause, there's a sound, like a low growl: "Get out", it seems to say.
"I was hooked," said Mr. Goring.
Most folks, if they believe in the paranormal at all, might be inclined to shy away from such brushes with the inexplicable. Mr. Goring and his colleagues seek them out. But they try to stay objective, looking for explanations for what they encounter. Consequently, they tend not to be too skittish when they do.
"We really don't get on edge. We don't get afraid, because that's what we're looking for," he said. "Not everything is paranormal. There can be a lot of explanations."
So: What happened Saturday night?
For the most part, it was quiet. The SCOPE crew fanned out across the museum site, consulting with mediums to get a feel for the place. Then they worked from 9 p.m. until about 3 a.m., taking readings in various locations. Mr. Goring and his partner encountered a few interesting moments, one of them in the basement of the school house, when a First World War-era gas mask repeatedly fell from a hook as they observed it.
In the Lee House -- where, legend has it, a ghostly lady walks through walls -- they used a ghost box, a device that scans radio frequencies, emitting white noise that can sometimes sound like speech.
"We kept getting the name John Gibb," Mr. Goring said.
"Apparently, he wanted us to leave."
The SCOPE crew now has hours of video and audio tape to review for more hints of anything ghostly.
You can visit the SCOPE website at www.scopeonline.ca.
Friday, August 5, 2011
Paranormal Phenomena Investigated in Wine Country
From Temecula Patch: Paranormal Phenomena Investigated in Wine Country
Mysterious photos, ghostly apparitions and signs of an ancient dwelling were investigated at a house in Temecula.
Full Tech Paranormal Investigations, a Riverside-based group, trekked out to a rural Wine Country home near Lake Skinner on Monday in hopes of verifying -- or dismissing -- the residents' fears that their home is haunted.
Numerous unexplained events happened at the home during the last few years, they told the lead investigator, Jon Kirchoff.
The investigator and his colleague, Jayne Light, sat in the homeowners' living room with two of their friends talking about what they experienced.
The homeowners -- a well built middle aged man with silver hair and his upbeat wife with a propensity for smiling -- wished to remain nameless for fear people might trespass onto their property in hopes of finding ghosts.
While sitting in that same room recently, the female homeowner looked up and saw what looked like a Native American woman dressed in traditional animal skins holding what appeared to be a bundled baby, she told the investigator in quiet tones.
The woman walked to a 500-year-old oak tree and disappeared, she said.
“She walked right into the tree. She looked beleaguered and tired and never looked in my direction,” she said.
The couple's friends also experienced things they can't explain while at the house.
Recently, several friends were sitting around a bonfire on the property and saw orbs of light around that same tree, they said.
People saw unexplained clouds of mist in that area too, the homeowner said.
“One of our friends is extremely skeptical and could not believe what he was seeing,” she said.
The couple thinks their home is the site of an ancient Indian village, they said.
An expert on Native American culture came to the property recently and identified artifacts and signs that a village most certainly existed on their land.
A creek runs through the property, which is shaded by tall trees and dotted with large granite boulders. Numerous smooth indentations in several boulders may have been used for grinding, the couple said.
“The expert pointed out grinding bowls peppered throughout large granite boulders along with tools used to grind acorns. He also pointed out a wash basin and scorch marks on other boulders,” the husband explained.
The couple took the investigators out to the area near the oak tree. Kirchoff opened his toolkit and pulled out a handheld device he said "measures energy."
He held it in front of the tree and read off a series of numbers to his co-investigator as she jotted notes.
Kirchoff is no stranger to supernatural situations. His journey into the world of paranormal began when he was an investigator for the Riverside County Sheriff’s Department.
“As an investigator, I would sometimes have to investigate unattended deaths and photograph the scene,” he said.
One of those pictures changed the course of his life.
“I took a photo and over the body was a mist. It was unexplainable and definitely there,” he said.
He showed the photograph to his colleagues who joked that it could be a ghost. It wasn't a joke to Kirchoff.
From there, he threw himself into studying and learning everything he could about paranormal science. He purchased a simple tape recorder and a digital camera and began investigating cases.
He founded his company, Full Tech Paranormal Investigations, in 1992, and his team of investigators and their arsenal of high-tech equipment has done investigations throughout California, Nevada, Oregon and Arizona.
“We aren’t there to prove there is a ghost or a haunting. We aim to give a reasonable explanation as to what is occurring and what the homeowners are experiencing,” he said. “After an investigation we painstakingly review all of the footage gathered and reveal our findings to the owners,” he explained.
Through all of his investigations, Kirchoff says about fifty to sixty percent are deemed paranormal.
The investigation at the property in Temecula was just a walkthrough, he said, and it revealed some interesting findings.
The team was scheduled to go back to the home within two weeks to perform a longer investigation.
Mysterious photos, ghostly apparitions and signs of an ancient dwelling were investigated at a house in Temecula.
Full Tech Paranormal Investigations, a Riverside-based group, trekked out to a rural Wine Country home near Lake Skinner on Monday in hopes of verifying -- or dismissing -- the residents' fears that their home is haunted.
Numerous unexplained events happened at the home during the last few years, they told the lead investigator, Jon Kirchoff.
The investigator and his colleague, Jayne Light, sat in the homeowners' living room with two of their friends talking about what they experienced.
The homeowners -- a well built middle aged man with silver hair and his upbeat wife with a propensity for smiling -- wished to remain nameless for fear people might trespass onto their property in hopes of finding ghosts.
While sitting in that same room recently, the female homeowner looked up and saw what looked like a Native American woman dressed in traditional animal skins holding what appeared to be a bundled baby, she told the investigator in quiet tones.
The woman walked to a 500-year-old oak tree and disappeared, she said.
“She walked right into the tree. She looked beleaguered and tired and never looked in my direction,” she said.
The couple's friends also experienced things they can't explain while at the house.
Recently, several friends were sitting around a bonfire on the property and saw orbs of light around that same tree, they said.
People saw unexplained clouds of mist in that area too, the homeowner said.
“One of our friends is extremely skeptical and could not believe what he was seeing,” she said.
The couple thinks their home is the site of an ancient Indian village, they said.
An expert on Native American culture came to the property recently and identified artifacts and signs that a village most certainly existed on their land.
A creek runs through the property, which is shaded by tall trees and dotted with large granite boulders. Numerous smooth indentations in several boulders may have been used for grinding, the couple said.
“The expert pointed out grinding bowls peppered throughout large granite boulders along with tools used to grind acorns. He also pointed out a wash basin and scorch marks on other boulders,” the husband explained.
The couple took the investigators out to the area near the oak tree. Kirchoff opened his toolkit and pulled out a handheld device he said "measures energy."
He held it in front of the tree and read off a series of numbers to his co-investigator as she jotted notes.
Kirchoff is no stranger to supernatural situations. His journey into the world of paranormal began when he was an investigator for the Riverside County Sheriff’s Department.
“As an investigator, I would sometimes have to investigate unattended deaths and photograph the scene,” he said.
One of those pictures changed the course of his life.
“I took a photo and over the body was a mist. It was unexplainable and definitely there,” he said.
He showed the photograph to his colleagues who joked that it could be a ghost. It wasn't a joke to Kirchoff.
From there, he threw himself into studying and learning everything he could about paranormal science. He purchased a simple tape recorder and a digital camera and began investigating cases.
He founded his company, Full Tech Paranormal Investigations, in 1992, and his team of investigators and their arsenal of high-tech equipment has done investigations throughout California, Nevada, Oregon and Arizona.
“We aren’t there to prove there is a ghost or a haunting. We aim to give a reasonable explanation as to what is occurring and what the homeowners are experiencing,” he said. “After an investigation we painstakingly review all of the footage gathered and reveal our findings to the owners,” he explained.
Through all of his investigations, Kirchoff says about fifty to sixty percent are deemed paranormal.
The investigation at the property in Temecula was just a walkthrough, he said, and it revealed some interesting findings.
The team was scheduled to go back to the home within two weeks to perform a longer investigation.
Thursday, August 4, 2011
'Paranormal Housewives' hunt for ghosts in California.
From Scrippsnews: 'Paranormal Housewives' hunt for ghosts in California.
VENTURA COUNTY, Calif. - The business analyst, the Spanish professor, the homemaker and the others hang out at graves shaded by coastal pines or hotels haunted by rumors. They use gadgets to track strange electromagnetic fields and record a disembodied voice in the empty room that says "hello."
Call them ghost hunters. They prefer their official title: the "Paranormal Housewives."
"We are a drama-free, all-women paranormal investigative team," said co-founder Kirsten Thorne, sitting on a wall bordering a graveyard outside Fillmore, Calif. She acknowledged skeptics are everywhere and include her husband, though his certainty sometimes wobbles.
"Every once in awhile he'll listen to an EVP (electronic voice phenomena) and say 'What the heck is this?' " she said.
The Paranormal Housewives are made up of five women. They're trying to let area homeowners, church leaders and business owners know they're available to investigate things that go bump in the night -- for free. They'll bring their full-spectrum video cameras and the K2 monitors that flash red lights when detecting energy that could mean spirits are lurking.
There is one caveat.
"We need absolute silence," said Thorne, worrying about the integrity of audio recordings, "and all the dogs must be muzzled."
Thorne, 46, is a professor who earned her doctorate from Yale University and teaches at Pierce College in Woodland Hills, Calif. She sat at Bardsdale Cemetery as trees tossed shadows over headstones that date back to the 1870s. With her was Kimberly Demmary, a community theater actress who plays the canine lead in an Ojai, Calif., production about a talking dog, "Sylvia." Demmary lives in Camarillo, Calif., and works as a health insurance business analyst.
Wearing jeans and carrying their gear in what they call ghost bags, the women said they've been into the paranormal since they were kids. Thorne and Demmary both said they were visited by their grandfathers -- postmortem.
"He would stand in the corner of the room and he would just stand there," Demmary said. "He was a very tall man. He was like Abraham Lincoln."
Demmary and Lizeth Martinez, an office assistant with the Ventura County Probation Agency, were doing paranormal investigations on their own. They hooked up a year ago with Thorne and two of her partners from Los Angeles and San Diego counties: a homemaker and the owner of a loan processing business.
In a surprisingly crowded field of ghost hunters dominated by men and fraught with battles over who's calling the shots, they decided a group of women working together as friends would mean an end to the drama.
"We're nothing like the 'Housewives' TV shows," Demmary said with a laugh. "Our friendships come first."
They've done investigations at a church on Olvera Street in Los Angeles where a request for spirits to announce their presence was followed by a loud bang on a table. They've teamed up with police officers interested in noises and images they can't explain. It was at the Bella Maggiore Inn in downtown Ventura where they entered a room and heard a woman's voice.
"No one was there," Demmary said. They don't make any conclusions about what they've seen or heard until they've examined all the evidence, applying what they called the scientific method.
Bardsdale Cemetery is tucked between citrus groves and South Mountain. "Private Army, World War I," reads one plaque. A large headstone topped by a cross commemorates 11 people who died on March 13, 1928, when the St. Francis dam broke. The flood killed at least 500.
Thorne and Demmary walked to a row of small headstones pockmarked with decay. Four siblings died in 1878 within four days of each other.
The ghost hunters took pictures, then pressed play on their Olympus digital recorder. Thorne crouched down to talk to the graves. "If any of you are still around and you can see us, go ahead and say something," she said.
Nothing happened.
"There will be some times when I say 'This was a bust'," Thorne said, explaining discoveries come later when she reviews the recording. "Then I'll call someone and say 'Oh, you won't believe what I have on audio'."
Demmary said she's seen massive shadow figures, heard voices and has been touched by hands that felt like a child's. Some spirits are friendly; others not so much.
"I was almost strangled by my own necklace at a church," said Thorne.
Many people don't believe the stories. The women said the word they hear often has four letters and rhymes with trap.
But there are enough believers to support a genre of television shows. Group members have appeared on "Ghost Adventures." Now something else is in the works.
"We're working on a project for television and that's all I'm allowed to say," Thorne said.
Wednesday, August 3, 2011
‘From Beyond’…Belief. Another Paranormal Reality Show
From Ghost Theory- Skeptical Approach to the uneplained website: ‘From Beyond’…Belief. Another Paranormal Reality Show
If there is one thing GhostTheory readers know about me, is that I hate/despise paranormal reality television shows. I do. And I say that wiith a total and utter passion. I tend to write less about these shows nowadays. After awhile, it just begins to feel like a Sisyphean task.
There’s this new show though; and this might just end up being the crème de la crème. Not in any good way of course. Telemundo’s sister network ‘Mun2′ or Mundos (worlds) –which is a clever play on the name TeleMUNDO– is now promoting their new paranormal show called “From Beyond”.From Beyond, a chilling new reality series featuring a young psychic medium AJ Barrera and paranormal investigators Christian Vera and Ramiro Ramirez who investigate and document paranormal activity in Latino communities in and around Los Angeles. Throughout the 13 episode unnerving series, the ghost hunters take viewers on a personal journey into hauntings, urban legends and ghost stories proving that the paranormal needs no translation. For more information, visit: mun2.tv/beyond. — Mun2
The three person paranormal crew consists of a “ghost hunter“, a “medium to the rockstars” and a producer.Intuitive A.J. Barrera has helped thousands of people worldwide by sharing with them his experience of The Beyond, giving them an understanding of what spirit communications is all about. A.J. is one of the youngest and most accredited Latino mediums in the industry, with a roster that includes his own radio show on the CBS Radio Network, “Breakthrough with A.J. Barrera, appearances on KOST 103.5 Angels in Waiting and Radio Medium on KBIG 104.3.
Due to A.J.’s amazing reputation and credibility, the media coined him as The Medium to the Rock Stars and Celebrity Psychic Medium to the Stars. Through inspiration and intuitive counsel, A.J. helps people to expand the limits of their own consciousness, explore their inner-guidance, and experience the awakening of a Soul Discover
I’m not so sure A.J. “manager” to freak out his female companion, Christian Vera. She’s fully aware of the frightening events that unfold before the young Latino viewers, after all, she is the writer and producer.Christian Vera is a national television host, correspondent, writer and producer based in Los Angeles, California. Her experience covers all aspects of media, news, politics, entertainment, fashion and music. She can be seen on CNN en Español and on “ABC’s On The Red Carpet”. She is also a writer and producer for the national award winning show American Latino. Christian has been seen on the Emmy Award-winning television show LatinEyes TV, and also breaking entertainment news on E! News Now as well as on the red carpet reporting live for KTLA in Los Angeles.Currently, I’m in mun2’s new paranormal reality series, “From Beyond” where I brings a critical eye, always looking for a logical explanation and asking the questions the viewers are thinking.
The show is written and edited in such ways that it’s clear what the producer’s intentions are: To get the short-lived attention of today’s kids. So they default by adding “spooky” sounds and fake EVP whispers and noises. Which brings me to our last From Beyondcrew member. Ramiro Ramirez.For 15 years Ramiro has experienced personal encounters with the paranormal. He has found a better understanding of what spiritual movement is through his association with 3am Paranormal, a team of respected investigators who have been carefully examining paranormal activity throughout the U.S. for over 22 years. From Fairhaven Cemetery in Santa Ana, California to Private residencies in Guadalajara, Mexico, Ramiro continues to bring pure respect and intentions when conducting professional investigation. Ramiro is a certified EVP/ITC audio analyst who has investigated hundreds of locations throughout the country and over seas.
What’s worse is that I couldn’t even bring myself to watch an entire episode. From the moment A.J. Barrera butchers the pronunciation and use of the words apport and “repport”, to minutes later when the show added a ghostly exhale effect during an EVP session, I clicked it off. The show is riddled with a lot of ghostly sound effects and catholic symbolism to appeal to the young Latino crowd. It’s a shame really, because a more interesting show would focus on what scholars think the paranormal is, and how we go about quantifying the unexplained. Instead, we are left with kids running around in the dark with night-vision cameras pantomiming their confrontations with the unseen spirits.
Who cares though. Do the fans of these shows really care about critical thinking or fringe science? I’m not saying that their audience is composed of mindless zombies, but what I am saying is that these young viewers really can’t be bothered with research and proper scientific conduct. I do want to believe that their audience is more demanding and could see through the smoke and mirrors — and sometimes sound effects– But, alas, browsing through the From Beyond website, I’m reminded why I consider writing about paranormal reality shows a Sisyphean task.
Monday, August 1, 2011
Are Ghost-Hunting Shows Real or Faked?
From EOnline. The Answer Bitch. Are Ghost-Hunting Shows Real or Faked?
Why are people so obsessed with these ghost-hunting shows, when they are so obviously faked? I don't want to believe that people are this stupid.
—Justin M., via Facebook
Well you've just scared up a big old mess for me, haven't you? There are plenty of those shows: Ghost Hunters, Ghost Adventures, Haunted Collector, Ghost Hunters International, How I Met Your Mummy (I made that last one up ... or did I?). If you're a fan, I have some dish you'll definitely want to read:
For this, I donned my jumpsuit, grabbed a ghost trap and solicited the help of Benjamin Radford, managing editor of the Skeptical Inquirer science magazine and a research fellow at the Committee for Skeptical Inquiry. The reason I chose Radford is that, though he is, by definition, a skeptic, he also conducts scientifically based ghost hunts of his own, and leaves his mind open to the idea that, sometime, maybe, in the future, a real ghost just might come along and blow all our minds. (Probably not.) (But maybe.) (Not that he's ever found a ghost on one of these hunts.) (But you never know.)
As part of his work, Radford has ridden along on some of those ghost hunts that you see on TV. He says he's never seen blatant evidence of deliberate fakery. However, one former Ghost Hunters castmember, Donna LaCroix, has hinted that the Syfy show may not totally be on the up and up. She wasn't specific, though, and, for the record, she also stated that she was upset over how show producers had treated her.
Hello, you either have JavaScript turned off or an old version of Adobe's Flash Player. Get the latest Flash player.What Radford has seen, though, is earnest people, at least some of whom genuinely believe they're interacting with ghosts, psyching themselves out, fielding perfectly earthly noises and sights and leaping to the conclusion that they can't be explained. Example: The show MysteryQuest. Radford says he went along for an investigation of the Wolfe Manor in Clovis, Calif.
"People who were there when I was there weren't necessarily faking anything," he recalls. "But I did see cases where the crew inadvertently made sounds or lights that were at least briefly interpreted as ghostly."
Indeed, many ghost-hunting shows rely heavily on sounds they say they can't explain or debunk—footsteps, squeaks, even voices. However, Radford notes, those shows also appear to have only two or three people in a dark room at the same time. Not so; there are actually as many as eight or nine, exponentially upping the chances that a random sneaker squeak or sigh from a second A.D. could appear to be unexplained.
Or maybe it isn't so random.
"Even if the people you see on camera aren't intentionally hoaxing, there is no reason why the rest of the TV crew isn't doing that," Radford tells me. (Indeed: Listen to that podcast featuring LaCroix above.)
Either way, Radford says, "What investigators tend to assume is that, if they can't re-create it, therefore, it is a ghost. But just because they may not be able to figure out what that weird light was, it doesn't mean it was a ghost."
Lastly, let's talk about the equipment: Ghosty hosts love to whip out blinking electromagnetic field detectors and laser grids and infrared lighting, all in hopes of trapping missives from the spirit world. It's always fun to watch those instruments freak out all by themselves. Trouble is, what does it mean?
"When you actually pin down these investigators, and ask what exactly are you claiming the connection is between an EMF detector and ghosts, they don't really have an answer," Radford says. "They just say that, you know, it's thought that, or some people claim, that ghosts give off EMFs."
All that said, for the record, the people currently on these shows, particularly Ghost Hunters, insist that they have no reason to lie.
Can I take off this jumpsuit now?
Nevada X-Ray Technician Moonlights as Ghost Hunter
From Fox News: Nevada X-Ray Technician Moonlights as Ghost Hunter
Brian Purdy's colleagues at a Nevada trauma center think his hobby is a little, well, spooky.
The Nevada X-ray technician and surgical assistant works up to 60 hours-a-week helping with medical procedures such as extracting kidney stones and tending to dialysis patients.
But in his downtime Purdy is a ghost hunter.
"They think I'm crazy," said Purdy when asked what his co-workers thought about his side gig. "Some of them believe (in ghosts), some of them don't."
Purdy is the founder of Elite Vegas Paranormal Society, a Nevada-based paranormal investigation team that searches for evidence of ghost activity in buildings and homes.
The investigation team includes his wife, Linda, who serves as one of the lead investigators, and their 19-year old son, David. He also helps out with the investigations, but is also in charge of purchasing the ghost-hunting equipment.
"We go through every frame, every audio, every video captured," said Brian. "When I'm done reviewing it, David will review it, Linda will review it, and then we'll call in each other to sit down and discuss it."
The Purdys interest in the paranormal began after David, who was then just 5 years-old, claimed his baseball uniform smelled like his recently deceased great grandmother's perfume after a Little League game.
"For a week straight, (the uniform) had the smell of her," said the youngest member of the investigation team, "and then it just disappeared instantly."
The family began doing some research and this, coupled with their innate fascination with the current slate of ghost-hunting reality television shows, led to the creation of their own ghost tracking company in 2008.
The team has all of the necessary ghost-hunting equipment, including night-vision cameras, laser thermometers that read the temperature of the building, and the all-important Ovilus X, a small black device that’s used to talk to ghosts, said Brian.
So how much did all of this stuff cost?
"Right now, probably with the computers at all, about $10,000," said Brian.
And despite the expensive gear, the Purdys don't get paid, at least in real-live dollars, because their services are free.
So far, the Purdys have taken part in about 10 investigations throughout Nevada, New Mexico and California. But as with any family, they're bound to have their fair share of disagreements.
"It’s fun and frustrating," laughed Linda. "You know, it's just like any normal family would be. But once we get down to business, we know our jobs.”
In the meantime, Brian continues to work long hours at the trauma center, in part to help pay for his passion. As far as getting one of his co-workers to join him on a ghost-hunting mission, well, that's another story.
"I offered every one of them to come out with me on a hunt and they've said 'I can't do that, I just can't do that," said Brain. "I don't think you grow up saying you want to be a ghost hunter, however, I can't imagine not doing it.”
Brian Purdy's colleagues at a Nevada trauma center think his hobby is a little, well, spooky.
The Nevada X-ray technician and surgical assistant works up to 60 hours-a-week helping with medical procedures such as extracting kidney stones and tending to dialysis patients.
But in his downtime Purdy is a ghost hunter.
"They think I'm crazy," said Purdy when asked what his co-workers thought about his side gig. "Some of them believe (in ghosts), some of them don't."
Purdy is the founder of Elite Vegas Paranormal Society, a Nevada-based paranormal investigation team that searches for evidence of ghost activity in buildings and homes.
The investigation team includes his wife, Linda, who serves as one of the lead investigators, and their 19-year old son, David. He also helps out with the investigations, but is also in charge of purchasing the ghost-hunting equipment.
"We go through every frame, every audio, every video captured," said Brian. "When I'm done reviewing it, David will review it, Linda will review it, and then we'll call in each other to sit down and discuss it."
The Purdys interest in the paranormal began after David, who was then just 5 years-old, claimed his baseball uniform smelled like his recently deceased great grandmother's perfume after a Little League game.
"For a week straight, (the uniform) had the smell of her," said the youngest member of the investigation team, "and then it just disappeared instantly."
The family began doing some research and this, coupled with their innate fascination with the current slate of ghost-hunting reality television shows, led to the creation of their own ghost tracking company in 2008.
The team has all of the necessary ghost-hunting equipment, including night-vision cameras, laser thermometers that read the temperature of the building, and the all-important Ovilus X, a small black device that’s used to talk to ghosts, said Brian.
So how much did all of this stuff cost?
"Right now, probably with the computers at all, about $10,000," said Brian.
And despite the expensive gear, the Purdys don't get paid, at least in real-live dollars, because their services are free.
So far, the Purdys have taken part in about 10 investigations throughout Nevada, New Mexico and California. But as with any family, they're bound to have their fair share of disagreements.
"It’s fun and frustrating," laughed Linda. "You know, it's just like any normal family would be. But once we get down to business, we know our jobs.”
In the meantime, Brian continues to work long hours at the trauma center, in part to help pay for his passion. As far as getting one of his co-workers to join him on a ghost-hunting mission, well, that's another story.
"I offered every one of them to come out with me on a hunt and they've said 'I can't do that, I just can't do that," said Brain. "I don't think you grow up saying you want to be a ghost hunter, however, I can't imagine not doing it.”
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