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A great group of volunteers is ready to scare the pants off of even the most daring of individuals during the Festival of Frights at the Humboldt Vintage Club. Pictured (L to R): Back Row - Kala Abrahamson, Heather Tieber, Pam Arnason, Joanne Grywacheski, and Niki Sokolan. Front - Sandy Sokolan, Tracey Sokolan, and Autumn Grywacheski.
Enter if you dare

Festival of Frights back for second go at scaring Humboldt for Halloween fundraising

Oct 20, 2023 | 8:00 AM

The Festival of Frights is coming back to Humboldt for their second year.

Set up once again at the Humboldt Vintage Club just five minutes south of the city, volunteers will be creating some scary scenes to scare the pants off even the most hardened Halloween fans with all the funds going to a good cause.

Big Brothers Big Sisters took on the challenge last year for something new in the community. Around 700 people came through their haunted house with $10,000 raised for BBBS programming. This year the newly created Humboldt Lions Club has taken the reins and will make a sizable donation to Big Brothers Big Sisters, as well as distribute some of the funds throughout the area following the event.

“Everybody’s looking forward to it this year,” said Joanne Grywacheski, Lions Club member-at-large. “When the opportunity arose, the Lions Club was excited to go ahead and lend a hand.”

With plenty of goblins and ghouls popping up to offer a scare, the haunted house vibe is very volunteer heavy.

Given the response last year, plenty of volunteers are back with many more jumping at the chance to help out, said Grywacheski.

Tammy Ruedig provided assistance and guidance as the project changed hands, Grywacheski said, with a lot of help from Tracy, Nikki, and Sandy Sokolan who volunteered last year.

Snaking its way through the Vintage Club with plenty of old machinery to help with the vibe, visitors will make their way through different sections of fright. There was no shortage of ideas, said Grywacheski, and they have kept expanding on things even in the few days leading up to opening night.

“I think the very first station will surprise a lot of people with the amount of interesting props and actors that are going to blow this away. A lot of little details as well,” she said, if people can hang around in one area long enough to have a look around.

Grywacheski will be excited to see people’s reactions to their hard work as she watches from the wings, she said.

Thrill seeking visitors will have five chances to test their courage before Halloween with opening night on Oct. 20 from 7 p.m. to 10 p.m. following shows on Oct. 21, 26, 27, and 28. Admission is $15/person or $50 for a group of four. Humboldt Collegiate students will also be volunteering to run a concession with all funds going to school clubs.

becky.zimmer@pattisonmedia.com

On Twitter: @bex_zim