By Brian Argabright
The 830 Times
For years Paul Mancha has been investigating odd cold spots in buildings, apparitions and things that go bump in the night. Now he’s bringing an entire event to welcome the public into his world of the supernatural.
Mancha, owner of Haven’s Toys & Collectibles on South Main Street and founder of Del Rio’s Silent Society of the Paranormal, is the lead organizer behind the inaugural Paranormal Fest Saturday at the Whitehead Memorial Museum, 1308 S. Main St.
The event is scheduled from 3 p.m. to 11 p.m. This is a ticketed event. Kids ages 6 years and under and adults 65 and older will get in free. Everyone else will need to pay a $5 entry fee.
Mancha is no stranger to the Whitehead. Not only did he work there, he has also hosted several ghost tours of the museum grounds and buildings. He said it’s the perfect place to host this event because of the Whitehead’s presence as a tourist attraction and his prior experiences with the facility.
“There’s something that keeps bringing me back to this place,” Mancha said. “So many people travel to and visit the Whitehead. It’s a cool place for young and old investigators. It brings out the inner child in all of us.”
“In all of the ghost tours we’ve done there we haven’t experienced anything hostile. We’re not there to enrage or disturb the paranormal. It is still a place of business, after all,” Mancha added. “Everything we’ve seen or heard in the past there has been documented. Our goal is to try to find physical evidence of the people who have passed like Judge Roy Bean and the Perry’s. We’ve done tours with as many as 40 people taking part. This time, hopefully, we can use a reel-to-reel as well as our other tools to find what we’re looking for.”
Mancha said other tools in his paranormal arsenal include equipment to detect cool spot temperatures, balls with lights designed to detect motion, haunted dolls and other items which are good for triggering effects. “The audience will get to handle those items and learn how to use them,” Mancha said.
Aside from the ghost tours, Mancha said Paranormal Fest will feature onsite tattoos from Divine Energy, live music from Yugen and Oculus of Profinations, a replica of the famous Ecto 1 ambulance from the Ghostbusters franchise, and more. There are plans to have special guests as well who could provide more information on the paranormal as well as an open panel for people who want to share their personal experiences with the paranormal.
Monies collected will go to the upcoming Del Rio Renaissance Faire.
Vendors will also be on site. Mancha said that vendors who sign up for the Del Rio Comic Con in September will also be able to set up as vendors for free at Paranormal Fest. Potential vendors for comic con can sign up at Haven’s Toys & Collectibles, 213 South Main St.
“We’re going to be using old technology with new tech, like the KS Spirit Box, for our investigations at this event,” Mancha said. “Our focus will be on the barn, the replica of the Jersey Lilly, the second floor to the Perry Store and the war room. This event will truly be dedicated to the history and mystery of the Whitehead and the paranormal.”
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