“You’re in for a Hell of a time,” a man dressed in all black and a hockey mask uttered, welcoming guests into Muncie’s Haunted Forest.
The forest, which spans a little over a mile long, contains 20 horror-filled moments.
Opening night for the Haunted Forest was Friday, starting just after sundown. The forest will be open on Fridays and Saturdays in October, as well as Halloween.
The forest is open 8 p.m. to 11 p.m. and costs $12 per person.
Once they have completed the course, customers can pay $5 for one minute inside a moving coffin. A camera is wired into the coffin connecting to a monitor outside, for friends and family to see the reactions of those brave enough to enter.
This season marks the second annual Haunted Forest operation, with an extended route nearly twice as long as last year’s course.
The forest is located at 6490 Cornbread Rd. in Muncie, home of Haunted Forest co-founder Bob Walsh.
Walsh is a board member on the Back to School Teachers Store committee, a company designed to provide free school supplies to classrooms throughout Delaware County. All proceeds from Muncie’s Haunted Forest go toward the Back to School Teachers Store.
Back to Teachers Store co-chairperson Nancy Carlson said the idea for a Haunted Forest charity came by searching for something new.
“We were looking for a fundraiser that was different than other charities, like banquets and 5ks,” Carlson said.
Though 90 percent of funding for the forest comes from sponsors, such as Walsh’s personal branch of Baskin-Robbins, the Back to School Teachers Store employees are in charge of creating scares.
For Carlson, scaring comes naturally.
“We’re just half sick, sickos. Crazy people who like to scare,” she said.
Carlson said several telecommunication students participated in an immersive learning activity creating TV, radio and print ads for the forest. In addition, students volunteered their time at the forest, working as everything from monsters and makeup to forest clean up and line managers.
The Haunted Forest is still accepting online applications for volunteers for upcoming weekends.
Amy Mansfield, executive director of the Back to School Teachers Store, greets survivors of the Haunted Forest as they exit.
To Mansfield, the project is all about the charity.
