The last nails in the coffins: Cobwebs in place at Haunted Granary

By Gail Franklin

It’s the 13th year of the annual Lemont Haunted Granary, but organizers hope to be lucky with large crowds who will find a longer scary maze inside the historic building and more fun attractions for families outside.

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• Hauntings planned Saturday in Benner Township park

A host of volunteers pitched in to keep the event going when Susan F. Smith, who organized it for the past 10 years, decided to step down from the spooky business.

Open this year during the Oct. 23 and 24 event will be the massive wooden rail shed where coal trains once pulled in to unload at the 1885 John Irvin Thompson Grain Elevator and Coal Sheds. The beautiful wood floor and an emergency exit door were installed with money raised during past Haunted Granary and other events.

“We couldn’t use it previously because it had no floor,” explained Nathaniel Peters, 19, who volunteered during his high school years to decorate for and perform in the annual event and remains active now that he’s a Penn State student. “The floor you walk on now was literally paid for by the Haunted Granary. You’ll be walking on the fundraising we’ve been doing for the past 13 years.”

The October event usually brings in about $10,000 to support restoration of the granary, and supporters are working to raise an additional $100,000 to pay for remaining work, such as indoor plumbing and a stairway.

However, judging by red-stained sheets, a gory kitchen and the antics planned by spooky volunteers a week before opening night, attendees might forget to appreciate the fine woodwork.

Those families and individuals who can’t stomach the spooky surprises of the haunted maze, witches skits and haunted school bus can safely enjoy the community atmosphere across the street in the parking lot of the Lemont Post Office, where there will be music and dancing, a costume contest, and food, candy and T-shirts for sale.

In years past, the wait to get into the maze has been as long as an hour or more. Everyone in line this year will be entertained by zombies dancing to Michael Jackson’s “Thriller” every half hour.

Karen and Jenny Trippett, a mother and daughter from Lemont, volunteered to be in charge of the festivities at the post office parking lot as well as promotions for this year. They said they hope to see more people spending the evening at the event.

“If you don’t like the scary stuff, come over and visit, dance a little bit and look at the costumes,” said Karen Trippett.

Jenny, her 18-year-old daughter, designed the T-shirts that will be sold, and launched a web site, www.hauntedgranary.com, to get the word out.

The high school senior also created a spooky short story contest for students in six through 12th grades. Winners will receive a free T-shirt and ticket to the event.

A special children’s event will be held from 1 to 3 p.m. Saturday and include maze tours, face painting and mask making.

Free parking and a shuttle bus service is available from the Mount Nittany Methodist Church at 1500 East Branch Road.

IF YOU GO

What:Lemont Haunted Granary and Halloween Bash

When:Both begin at 6:30 p.m. Friday and Saturday. The Haunted Granary runs through 10 p.m. nightly; the bash lasts until 11 p.m.

Where:Thompson Granary in Lemont, and across the street in the Lemont Post Office parking lot.

Admission:$8 for Haunted Granary (not recommended for children under 8) and $2 for Halloween Bash. For the Kids:

A special children’s event, from 1 to 3 p.m. Saturday, which includes maze tours, face painting and mask making, is free to children; $1 for adults.