Serving Whitman County since 1877
Serving Whitman County since 1877
The St. Ignatius Haunted Hospital is not quite ready to close. Colfax's Unified Director Valoree Gregory is planning another haunted attraction for the upcoming holidays.
With the success of the Haunted Hospital tours and ghost hunts last month, Gregory has decided to open St. Ignatius to the public for “Nightmare before the Holidays.” She sought the permission of the building owner, Anthony Girges, who granted it.
“I might as well use it as long as I can,” Gregory said.
Gregory said the first Nightmare before the Holidays event will be held next week on Nov. 27.
“We are going to do Black Friday day tours,” she said. “We figure a lot of people will be home for the holidays.”
The Black Friday Historic Tours will be held from 1 p.m. to 6 p.m., and a ghost hunt will follow on Nov. 28 from 6-9 p.m.
Gregory said she has been working with Colfax Mayor G. Todd Vanek and City Administrator Mike Rizzitiello to plan the next St. Ignatius event.
“We already have some ideas,” she said. “The ghost hunts will be kind of the same, but we will have more historical tours of the building itself.”
The Haunted Hospital raised more than $6,500 for Colfax over a 15-day span. Visitors came from as far as New York and Florida for the hunts and tours. Gregory estimates about 90 of the 800-plus attendees were Colfax residents. She hopes to be able to bring more locals into the building this time around.
“I think it will be more local. I have a list of 20 different groups that said they want to come in,” said Gregory. “People keep calling.”
The previous event sold out within eight hours of Gregory posting it to social media, which prompted her to add more nights for the hunts and tours. This time, she said, she plans to stick to the four days.
“It is just fun,” she said. “And it is a great fundraiser for Colfax.”
Rizzitiello also thinks the event will be successful.
“I think we will sell out again,” he said.
Several days and nights have been scheduled for Nightmare before the Holidays in addition to the two tours next weekend.
On Dec. 3, in conjunction with Winterfest, tours will be conducted every hour from 7 to 10 p.m. Participants will be taken to the hospital on a wagon ride from Fonk's Coffee House.
The following night is a special night, which is being dubbed “Spend the night in St. Ignatius.”
“We are staying until we find a ghost!” she said.
One more ghost hunt will follow on Dec. 5, with that hunt being held from 8-11 p.m.
With the exception of the Winterfest night, all participants can meet at the hospital for the hunts and tours.
Tickets for Nightmare before the Holidays will go on sale starting today. Gregory said she will use the same website she used for the Haunted Hospital to sale tickets for $45. All tours and hunts must be purchased prior to the events.
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