Haunted House returns with new attractions
Nevada Daily Mail
James McKenzie is looking for more attendance at this year's Haunted House.
McKenzie, the director of the Vernon County Ambulance District, and his staff host the haunted house as a way to raise money for the holiday toy drive.
This is the sixth year for the haunted house and while the event does make money, it takes a lot of work to do, he said.
"It takes a tremendous amount of planning and coordination," McKenzie told members of the Nevada Vernon County Chamber of Commerce at the group's monthly luncheon.
This year is no different as the volunteers have added several new twists and turns and changed up other areas of the house, located at 337 N. Washington St. in Nevada.
"All three floors will be changed. There will be some new features and some old ones, including a spinning vortex tunnel," labeled the 'Tunnel of Doom,' located in the driveway, McKenzie said.
The idea for that came from an annual brainstorming session to discuss possible changes.
Lumber for the tunnel was donated and staffers worked to cut, weld and fabricate the pieces.
At first, the tunnel was going to be located in the house and initial measurements seemed to be favorable.
But in the construction phases, it became apparent it wasn't going to fit inside, said McKenzie.
By expanding onto the grounds, there will be more to see and do.
The result is that the two-story house, the basement and the outside area will provide plenty of thrills, said McKenzie.
"It's going to be creepy."
McKenzie said he hopes the additions will boost the attendance even more.
"We had almost 1,000 people go through last year. We had people from Joplin, Kansas City, and Springfield.
"But we'd like to double that. We need our community to come out and support it.
"We did bring in $10,000 but we clear just around $5-6,000 after expenses, paying for the materials and utilities.
"It costs us about $1,200 just to have the fire inspection.
"And there's constant maintenance. The VCAD Board members are all really great to come in and help."
McKenzie said this year's goal is $15,000. That would allow the toy drive to reach more needy children, he said.
Approximately 500 children were presented with toys last year and that number grows each year.
"While there is more expense with the haunted house compared to other things we've tried, we know that people, and especially our businesses, are asked to contribute to a lot of causes this time of year.
"We decided we wanted to give something back so that people get something in return for their money."
All of the proceeds from haunted house go to the toy drive.
"People can start dropping off toys," said McKenzie.
And while the haunted house is going to be a scary experience, it will also be a safe experience, he said.
VCAD members and volunteers, with help from the City of Nevada, test the sprinklers and perform a safety and fire inspection.
"We always want everyone to be safe, so we go through the house each year with help from the fire department and address any safety concerns.
"We've been trouble free and accident free," said McKenzie.
Each of the VCAD members who work the haunted house can communicate quickly if there are any concerns.
In addition to those volunteers who are involved in construction and safety, still more fill roles as actors. Typically, it takes 22 to 25 actors in makeup to provide the appropriate look and feel of the haunted house.
"These are all volunteers," said McKenzie. "We have a good core group each year. These people all have day jobs. They take their evenings to do this, each night past midnight. We put in a lot of volunteer hours getting the house ready."
McKenzie said this year's haunted house will again offer two Saturdays for a "no scare" tour, targeted to younger children and for those adults who want to go through without the fright. Those will take place Oct. 24 and Oct. 31 from 1 to 4 p.m.
The haunted house opened Friday night and will be open again Saturday at 7 and then again Oct. 16-17 at 7, Thursday, Oct. 22 from 7-10, and Oct. 23-24 from 7 to midnight, Thursday, Oct. 29 from 7-10 and Oct. 30-31 from 7 to midnight.
In addition, any groups or businesses that want to support the effort and would like to walk through can contact the ambulance district at 667-5079.
McKenzie said such groups should be about 25 or more in number.
Also new this year, the Bushwhacker Committee will have a refreshment stand on site, offering drinks and hot dogs, among other items.
"We hope to make it a good experience," summed up McKenzie. "We enjoy doing it and it's a lot of fun.
"We're also fortunate to have good neighbors who understand our doing this."