Hi-Line Living: The Jaycees haunted house

Every year, around Halloween, the Havre Jaycees awaken the shuttered Hotel Oakland above the Eagles Club and send chills down the spines of those who walk through its doors, ascend its broad but aged staircase and, of course, pay the $5 admission fee.

Those who bring a canned good or other nonperishable food for Havre Food Bank can get in for $4 because all this fright is for a good cause. Proceeds go to both the Havre Food Bank and the Jaycees' Koats for Kids project

But before the artificial spider webs are unfurled and fake hacked-limbs are strewn about, the hotel's gutted walls, maze of dimly lit hallways, rusty door latches and musty air are already the stuff haunted houses are made of.

"Even the ones that are here, won't usually come up here by themselves," said Sean Hellems of the Havre Jaycees, who is managing the haunted house this year.

One can hear the screams and ghoulish laughter emanating from 18 rooms of horror, along with the recorded sounds of wolves howling and wind blowing.

Though he doesn't know when the Jaycees began this scare-inducing ritual, Hellems said that he has been involved with the haunted house project for at least seven years.

"We try to change it up enough and keep it up enough and keep it fresh, so it's not getting stale," he said.

How far in advance of opening day those volunteers start preparing for the parades of thrill seekers to punish the scared rickety floors while venturing into its bowels depends on how much organizers want to change the displays.

Two years ago, for example, they started in September in order to remove walls and construct doorways to extend their horror into new parts of the hotel.

This year, the work that needed to be done was minimal, so volunteers waited until the first part of October to begin dressing skeletal walls in black plastic and erecting drop windows. It was opened up to visitors on Oct. 23.

Changes this year include the relocation of the jail to another room, and the transformation of one small area into a twisted version of a child's room. Other parts feature flickering strobe lights and fake severed heads.

Much of the scares provided, though, aren't from gimmicks or devices but are the direct result of the 25 or so people who each night work to provide a fresh dose of fright.

"Mostly, we depend on the people," said Hellems.

Not only the Jaycees, but members of the Havre High School band and an assortment of others don a variety of costumes and makeup to add to the realism. They improvise with twisted laughs and scary lines, imitate horror movies or simply lunge out from the shadows at visitors.

Each night, the Haunted Hotel Oakland opens its doors to guests at 7 p.m. and, depending on the size of the crowds, closes at 10 p.m.