Tourists Dismembered at Kiwanis’ Fright Nights

Fannin County High School drama students are among the perpetrators and victims

 

According to Kiwanis Past-President Forrest Hamm, Jones, former owner of the Kiwanis Fairground Property during the early 1900’s, didn’t take a liking to train tourists trampling through his property on the way from the train in downtown Blue Ridge to sip the curing waters at Mineral Springs.  He especially didn’t like it when one of the male tourists absconded to Marietta with his unmarried adult daughter.  No word on whether the daughter went willingly.  So, Jones decided to get even with drills, hammers and a chainsaw.  Jones went after both tourists and townspeople who welcomed them. Hamm contends that before opening Fright Nights at the Fairgrounds, the Kiwanis Club conducted extensive research into the accuracy of the Jones’ family legend, including exhuming Jones’ bones.  The bones are displayed along with other exhumed body parts in the passages at Fright Night at the Fairgrounds.

A woman sitting at the entrance to the chamber of gruesome rooms warned people not to go in, but they did. A psychotic bloodbath awaited them. FetchYourNews attempted to take photos of the rooms.  However, Kiwanis member Tony McConnell denied entry with photography equipment saying, “We are as good as Universal Studios and Universal Studios doesn’t allow photos for fear of revealing their haunted house tricks and Kiwanis Fright Nights at the Fairgrounds can’t reveal its trade secrets as well.”  McConnell added that Fright Nights at the Fairground “will scare the living yell out of you.”

So, FetchYourNews relied on reports from people exiting the carnage to describe what they saw.

Tourists Fred and Karen Bunnell from Miami emerged from the chambers unscathed.  They had come up to Blue Ridge to see the fall leaves.  “We got cheated.  It’s dry,” said Fred Burnell.  Being haunted house aficionados, they saw the roadside advertisements and decided to come. The Burnell’s fright scale rating: “9… very well done.”

It was FCMS student Bralyn’s first time in a haunted house. Bralyn said it was “really cool, especially the person lying on the bed trying to help you.” Bralyn was proud that she held her screams at her first haunted house.  Bralyn’s fright scale rating: 10.  Mattie Prince was unnerved by “this crazy guy freakin’ out on the bed.” Her fright scale rating: 8.

 

FCHS students Shanya Bowyer, Allyson Cole, Alexis Terry and Jerritt Holloway described the scene in one giant, jumbled conversation:  “Scariest parts, every bit of it… What got me was the dark…. I broke my toenail…. Darkness was good, usually frightening… Some sort of smoke… Strobe light seizures.”  Their fright scale rating:  good 8.

For UCHS student Jake Chastain and FCHS student Kate Weaver the chainsaw got them.  Their fright scale rating:  11 and the Fright Nights at the Fairgrounds date-night rating:  two thumbs up.

 

Kim Foster and Glenn Lewis enjoyed it all, especially the dark and claustrophobic spaces.  Their fright scale rating: 9.5

 

Blue Ridge Kiwanis Club is looking to make “Fright Nights at the Fairgrounds” an annual fundraiser.  The Club invested money in its collection of super-scary props for this year’s fright night and see the event becoming bigger and scarier in years to come.  Kiwanis is considering not continuing with its spring fair with an amusement rides midway because it is difficult to book reliable midway companies for a fair in an area with a small population like Fannin County. After the fair this April, Kiwanis realized it need to look at options to replace the spring fair.

Kiwanis also chose to create a haunted house due to the lack of community Halloween events for pre-teen and teenage youth in Fannin County.  Young children have a great community sponsorship and participation in the Trick-or-Treat Safe Zone on East Main Street at Halloween.

Fright Nights at the Fairgrounds continues until Halloween with the following schedule:  Thursday – 6 to 10 pm, Friday – 6 to 12 am, Saturday – 6 to 12 am, Sunday – not open, Monday – 6 to whenever.  Tickets are $7.

FetchYourNews asked Hamm how appropriate Fright Nights is for kids 10 and under.  Hamm said, “I took my 7 year-old through it backwards last night during the run-through.  It was still scary enough he slept in my bed.”