Sober Seniors hosted a haunted house in the old Lander County Jail for the second year in a row. The kids created a truly haunting experience with the help of Cassie and Casey Gunther.
The haunted house in Battle Mountain took a dark turn with the addition of creepy halls inside the old county jail, no longer used to hold inmates. The prison of horror provided visitors with the hair-raising feeling they craved while they walked through several different themed areas.
“This is the second year that the Sober Seniors have done the haunted house. Casey and Cassie Gunther have spearheaded it both years. We have students from all grades working the event to earn tickets for their graduating class,” explained Sober Senior volunteer Holly Heese.
Heese continued, “There are five different themes in the there, including a clown theme. Cassie (Gunther) has worked all year creating props for this. She had collected dryer lint and used that to create fake cotton candy in the clown section.”
That wasn’t it for the creative ideas inside the jail. Gunther and the volunteer students created cages out of laundry baskets and used bags and black light paint to hide the actors in plain sight.
The Haunted House had two levels. On the “marshmallow” level, the actors would not jump out and scare patrons but were instead posed in scary positions. This less frightening level was for the small children so they could enjoy the haunted house without getting too scared.
The second is what Heese and Casey Gunther called the “extreme” level. In this level, strobe lights and terrifying noises caused screams throughout the evening. In one section of the cells, the lights turned off and several bloodied inmates grabbed visitors’ arms while making loud noises. The clown section was saved for last — and for good reason. Bright colors complimented the sounds of children singing “Ring Around the Rosie” while two clowns jumped out at visitors.
“The kids put a lot of time and effort into this,” said Cassie Gunther, “They helped us make props and created the environment that makes this a success.”
The Haunted Jail was open from Oct. 19-21, and Oct. 26-28. Admission was $7 per person.
