After being hidden from the public eye for weeks, an asylum concealed in the bowels of Turner Valley’s Legion will finally open its doors for public tours.
Mastermind of madness Jessie Friesen has transformed the basement of the Turner Valley Legion into Carn-Evil’s Asylum, with assistance from about 20 equally insane volunteers for the Legion of Monsters eighth annual spook house.
The doors creak open nightly Oct. 26-31 from 6 p.m. to 10 p.m.
“Everything that’s in my deepest, darkest fears is in this haunted house,” said Friesen. “There’s a baby in a crib with alien hands coming out of its stomach and a spider jumping out at you. It’s going to be pretty spooky.”
Friesen’s imagination runs wild each time she hatches a new theme, ranging from clowns to creepy dolls, and she expects this year will top the past seven.
“Out of all the horror movies the asylum ones freak me out the most because it’s a little more real,” she said. “Someone sitting in a chair banging their head against the wall is scary.”
Friesen is using wooden pallets to create an outdoor maze that has dead ends with spooky characters and creatures around every corner.
“We revamped the whole basement into an asylum,” she said. “We took down a few walls in other rooms so we have a chance for ‘extreme scare’ to go even further. It’s quite a bit scarier with little doors for people to peak through.”
Friesen said there will be plenty of frightening experiences for people as they tour through the maze, which will begin with a field of screams corn maze and lead into the bowels of the asylum.
“There is more animatronics this year,” she said. “There’s jumping spiders, dummy props and a doctor’s room that looks like a CSI crime scene. It’s a little more interactive.”
Like in past years, the spook factor will depend on the request of the visitors, ranging from low scare for the faint of heart and younger visitors to extreme scariness that often sends people running out of the basement screaming.
Among those contributing to the raw fear is veteran spook house volunteer and member of the Legion Linda Macaulay.
“My husband and I have been doing it for six years and we just love it,” she said. “You get this alter ego when you get in costume. I just love scaring people.”
Macaulay helps set up the house and when it’s time to open the doors she’s right in there with the other volunteers scaring those daring to enter.
“The younger ones, when they are scared out of their wits, you take your mask off and say, ‘We are just people. I’m a grandma,’” she said. “We have a lot of fun with the adults who think they’re brave. Their hair stands up on end. It’s just the element of surprise that gets them the most.”
Macaulay said there is already a buzz in the community about the spook house, particularly among those who see the maze under construction in the Royal Canadian Legion parking lot.
“We see people in the streets who know we are involved in getting it built and they can’t wait,” she said. “They are anxious.”
The spook house had approximately 2,000 visitors during the 10 evenings it was open last year, not including school groups that visited during the day, said Friesen.
The asylum will be open six nights rather than last year’s 10 as it was a strain on volunteers and the visitors were often sparse and scattered, she said.
In front of the Legion, Calgary’s Instrumental Entertainment will host a maze version of its Zombie Survivor Run, where participants run through an obstacle course while eluding zombies on the same days and time as the spook house. Admission is by donation.
On Oct. 29, the Legion will host its annual Family Halloween Costume Party featuring a deejay and lights show with costume prizes, candy and giveaways from 6 p.m. to 9 p.m. The cost is $1.
The cost to enter the Legion of Monsters’ Carn-Evil Asylum is $6 for adults and teens, $3 for children ages 6 to 12 and free for those six-years-old and younger. Popcorn, cotton candy and other carnival food will be sold and the Legion concession will be open.
Proceeds made from the spook house will cover the cost of hosting next year’s event and proceeds from the Zombie Survivor Run will be split between the Turner Valley Gymnastics Club and Can Praxis, a Wounded Warriors program that assists soldiers with post traumatic stress disorder.
To tour the spook house during the day or to donate candy to be handed out during Carn-Evil Asylum contact the Legion at 403-933-4564.
