Story originally printed in the La Crosse Tribune or online at www.lacrossetribune.com
Published - Sunday, October 24, 2004
Afraid of the dark?
ONALASKA, Wis. — Hiding inside their hooded sweatshirts, Hannah Johnson and Emily McCarty-Johnson took a walk on the scary side Saturday afternoon.
With their uncle, Shay McCarty of Onalaska, the sisters from Austin, Minn., walked — sometimes at a brisk pace — through the Onalaska Area Jaycees Haunted House during its annual lights-on Kid's Day afternoon.
"It allows kids to see the haunted house and not be petrified," said Lynn St. Jacque, the organization's president.
"No one jumps out. We don't want nightmares," she said.
As they entered the house at Clearwater Farm, the girls stuck close and kept each other updated on what was coming.
"There's something behind there," said Hannah, 9.
Both she and Emily, 12, then let out a scream. The monster was a masked Terry Andre of Winona, Minn., in a box, with faux blood spattered all around.
"We came to scare the wits out of these two," McCarty had said before the three entered the house.
By the end, the girls said it had worked.
Friends Synneva Hackman, 8, and Lucee Laursen, 7, both of Onalaska, raced through the house, each holding an arm belonging to Lucee's mother, Jean.
They were convinced a monster was after them.
"It was scary," Synneva said.
"That was freaky," Lucee added.
Trevor Roes, 6, of Onalaska said he screamed a lot, mainly at a skeleton that was alive and a monster hiding in the corner.
"It was scary," he said.
His 4-year-old brother, Collin, said he didn't scream, but was "just scared."
Collin said he and Trevor weren't the only ones in the party scared by the monsters.
"They kept scaring our mom," he said.
Proceeds from Saturday's event will go to benefit the Children's Miracle Network.
The lights will be off again Friday, Saturday and Sunday as the house wraps up its 2004 haunting season. Tickets cost $5 and go on sale at 6:30 p.m. The house's doors open at 7 p.m. Ticket sales end at 10 p.m., and the house remains open until the last person goes through.
For more Coulee Region Halloween happenings, see today's Family section on page I-1.
Autumn Grooms can be reached at (608) 782-9710, ext. 357, or agrooms@lacrossetribune.com.
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