The 7 Lights of Trepidation Haunted House Fundraiser closed its doors at the end of October, raising just over $3,300 for the residents of the county home.
The haunted house opened its doors on Oct. 13 and spooked Clinton County residents and travelers from across the state every Friday and Saturday before closing its doors on Oct. 28 this year. This year’s season was one of the biggest yet for the 7 Lights team with a raised total of $3,318, totaling over $10,000 raised since organizer Jennifer Davis took over the operations in 2019.
The funds raised through the haunted house will benefit the residents of the county home at 1501 Burlington Ave. in Frankfort to help purchase Christmas gifts and throw a Christmas party for the residents.
Every year, the haunted house is built from scratch by volunteers as structures from the previous year are deconstructed after the closing date of the attraction every year. Davis expressed that the rebuilding of the basement every year helps the 7 Lights attraction provide a new experience every year due to the new layout that visitors will experience. This year sported rooms dedicated to horror movie icons, the Land of the Dead, a corn maze and forest, an asylum, a witch hut, spiders, baby dolls and multiple mazes that trapped, scared and entertained visitors of all ages. For those who fear the unknown, “no scare” flashlight tours were offered to ease the fear while still allowing visitors to admire the hard work and dedication of the volunteers.
According to Davis, zipcode tracking was conducted at the ticket booth this year, tallying how many visitors resided outside of the 46041 zipcode. Totals showed that 40 out of 100 people that visited during the three-weekend stretch were from outside of the Clinton County area.
“We have had guests from all over Indiana and just over in Chicago,” Davis wrote. “We are flattered and would like to announce we will be doing some things differently next year with this in mind.”
Davis announced that the team is looking toward participating in training through the Haunted Attractions Association Program next year to ensure that 7 Lights remains as the most safe, responsibile and well-informed attraction possible for the Frankfort community and beyond. The training will commence at St. Louis Transworld over a 4-day weekend, and entrance for the volunteers will cost $100 per person and training will also cost $100. The team is looking to take five volunteers to the
event, and possibilities for the community to support the efforts will be released soon on the Frankfort Indiana 7 Lights of Trepidation Haunted House Facebook page.
“Thank you sponsors for your support and our patrons for letting us laugh with and terrify you during this year’s fall season,” Davis wrote.
The Clinton County Sheriff’s Office dedicated a handful of inmates to the cause, helping the team move decor, walls, construction material and much more from storage into the basement of the county home in early September. The inmates returned on Oct. 29 to help the team tear down the builds and move the materials back into storage until the 2024 season next October.
For more information on how to volunteer next year or donate to the cause, contact Jennifer Davis at 317-675-6075.
