March 16, 2018 • Seaside Signal • seasidesignal.com • 7A
GHOSTS FOR KIDS
Toys at the ghost conference have life of their own
By Brenna Visser
Seaside Signal
As a kid, there was always
one in every toy chest.
A ventriloquist doll whose
eyes shift on their own a little
more than they should. An an-
tique baby doll that just looks
like she’s seen too much. A
stuffed animal that ends up in
the corner of your room where
you know you didn’t put it.
Why is that? Are they haunt-
ed, and what are ways to tell?
Delving into the phenomenon
of haunted toys is one way the
seventh-annual Oregon Ghost
Conference is encouraging
more kids to participate in the
paranormal. About 1,000 peo-
ple are expected to attend the
conference Friday, March 23,
to Sunday, March 25, at the
Seaside Convention Center,
which features dozens of class-
es related to the paranormal,
ghost walks and spooky ghost
investigations.
While the conference has al-
ways been open to families, this
year organizer Rocky Smith de-
cided to include a Kids Paranor-
mal Zone, where kids can make
spooky crafts, learn about ghost
hunting equipment, taking pic-
tures with the Portland Ghost-
busters or, if they dare, attend a
haunted toy show-and-tell.
“What we wanted to do is
make this an event for all ages
and all different types of people,
whether they were into the para-
normal or just historical side or
even just skeptical about ghost
stories,” Smith said. “I think
DANNY MILLER/EO MEDIA GROUP
David Snower, 2017 Oregon Ghost Conference attendee, tells
a ghost story illuminated by a campfire during the confer-
ence’s Ghost Stories Bonfire event.
having an opportunity for kids
to be involved is important.”
Often all things haunted are
culturally reserved for “when
you’re older,” Smith said, rele-
gating paranormal experiences
as something “too scary” for
kids.
“It’s the complete opposite.
The adults may feel that way,
but the kids don’t,” Smith said.
“Adults have more of a fear, but
kids have more of an open mind.
Most of those people with para-
normal experiences have them
as kids. Kids were open about
what they are seeing.”
Haunted toys
Ross Allison, a longtime
ghost hunter in the Pacific
Northwest, will be leading the
discussion about haunted toys
during the kid’s portion of the
conference based on the book
“Haunted Toys,” which Allison
and his co-writer David Weath-
erly, published last year.
“I had a mother that loved
ghost stories, and I grew up lis-
tening to them and became very
curious. Do these things really
happen?”
His curiosity ballooned into
a 25-year-long career interna-
tionally investigating paranor-
mal activity, collecting ghost
stories, researching cemeter-
ies, and giving ghost-hunting
lectures. He now co-owns
Spooked in Seattle Ghost Tours,
and when can spare a moment,
teaches “Ghostology 101— Be-
coming a Ghost Hunter” at the
University of Washington.
Throughout his career, Al-
lison began to notice many
stories he would hear — par-
ticularly from children — were
not being documented. Aside
from Chucky and Annabelle,
stories of toys coming to life,
both from places of innocence
and malice, were not being rec-
ognized.
“What I found in this field
is that these (ghost hunting)
groups start out of the hype
from these TV shows. They
have interesting experiences,
but then they don’t have the
proper experience and they die
out,” Allison said. “All these
stories and experiences are get-
ting lost because groups fold. I
wanted to get these stories writ-
ten down.”
‘The Boogie Man’
So Allison scoured para-
normal message boards and
Facebook groups and tracked
down kids from all over the
world who shared games and
experiences they had with their
haunted toys.
Most haunted toys share
some common traits: reanima-
tion, strange sounds and suspi-
cious origins — think antique
store or your grandma’s base-
ment.
Some experiences children
reported were pretty dark. Like,
conjuring evil spirits by play-
ing hide-and-seek with a doll
kind of dark. But in Allison’s
time, he finds most experiences
people have are relatively pos-
itive. One of his favorites is a
story from a mother, who lost
her daughter in a car accident.
The stuffed lamb she had in her
hand mysteriously showed up
Helping animals is their mission
Volunteers
always sought
at thrift shop,
sanctuary
By Eve Marx
For Seaside Signal
Jean Nordmark has been
involved with the Spay and
Neuter Thrift Shop in Seaside
for 20 plus years. The shop is
a consignment business with
all proceeds going towards
vouchers for veterinary fees
for spay and neuter for any
dog or cat in Clatsop County.
“We recently received a large
donation from a private donor
and we’re putting that to work
right away,” Nordmark said.
“We’re working to increase
the dollar amount we pay to
the vets.”
The Spay and Neuter Thrift
Shop works with veterinarians
in Astoria, Warrenton and Sea-
side. “We’ve been in our space
for over 20 years,” Nordmark
said. “Everyone who works
in the shop is a volunteer. We
R.J. MARX/SEASIDE SIGNAL
Seaside Spay and Neuter Thrift Shop is always busy with
bargain-hunters, and proceeds go to a good cause.
accept donations of clothing,
small household goods, home
décor. We give donors a re-
ceipt for their taxes.”
“We’re always looking for
more volunteers,” Nordmark
said. The Spay and Neuter Thrift
Shop is located at 600 Broad-
way in Seaside; 503-738-7040.
The shop is open 10 a.m. to 4
p.m. and is closed Wednesdays.
Angels for Sara
Angels for Sara is looking
for a new home for their sanc-
tuary. They are a 501(c)3 non-
profit that fosters, prepares for
adoption, and in some cases
provides a loving, perma-
nent home to abandoned se-
nior dogs. The organization’s
newsletter, Senior Paws,
recently described Bunny,
age kids to be curious, he said.
“I find the common thing
is children are more open to
the paranormal. When a child
becomes frightened of some-
thing they don’t understand, it
becomes ‘the boogie man un-
der your bed.’ No parent wants
to see kid frightened, so the
first thing they tell them there
is no such thing as the boogie
man. That’s what begins our
conditioning,” he said. “There
are things happening in this
world we can’t explain, but
they are happening out there.
It’s not fair to close off the
child’s thought process when
it comes to spirit and ghosts.”
on her porch after she died, she
said, with her daughter’s spirit.
“We’re taught through the
media spirits are out to harm
us, to get us. This is where
there’s lots of misconceptions.
TV shows focus on scaring
their audiences,” Allison said.
“I’ve been investigating for
years, and it’s extremely rare
to come across a negative
case. But people are so ter-
rified because they think it’s
got to be evil. Maybe it’s just
a child ghost that just wants to
play.”
Allison’s goal during the
kid’s portion of the event is not
to scare, but educate and encour-
a 13-year-old, 6-pound ball
of white fluff who became
homeless when her owner
had to go to a nursing home.
A recent newsletter thanked
Hammond Kennels in Ham-
mond for their help grooming
and nail trimming their sanc-
tuary dogs, as well as Chandra
Daniels, a dog trainer at Petco
in Warrenton who gives reiki
healing to many of the sanctu-
ary’s dogs.
“We are at the point we are
turning away senior dogs be-
cause of our present zoning,”
said Jacque Pressly, Angels for
Sara’s director. “We’re looking
for at least one or two acres,
preferably a ranch style home.
We’d like two to three bed-
rooms, two baths, and out in the
country where the dogs won’t
bother neighbors or be on a
busy road.”
Angels for Sara is looking
for something to rent or lease
with an option to buy.
Email them at angels-
forsara@gmail.com. Read more
about them on their website an-
gelsforsarasanctuary.com or on
their Facebook page.
TIRES/WHEELS
D EL ’S O .K .
D EL ’S O .K .
is changing its name to
Same great service
YOUR #1 SOURCE FOR TIRES
CUSTOM WHEELS • AUTOMOTIVE SERVICES
Hours:
Mon-Fri 8-6
Sat- 8-4
503-325-2861
35359 Business Hwy 101
For emergencies
503-325-0233
Astoria, OR
(miles crossing)
FLOORING
McMinnville's
Manufactured Home
S U P E R S T O R E
Where it’s a HOME
SHOW every day!
10 New Homes on Display with
100’s of other plans to choose from
Come visit us today to discuss your project!
1120 OLD SHERIDAN RD, McMinnville
ACROSS FROM LOWES ON HWY18 & 99
503-435-2300
jandmhomes.com
FLOORING
CCB# 205283
y
ou ou
r r w
ep alk
ut o
at n
io
n
Flooring
Installation
Carpet Cleaning
3470 Hwy 101 Suite 102 • Gearhart, Oregon
503.739.7577 • carpetcornergearhart.com
CONSTRUCTION
Randall Lee’s 0% FINANCING
AVAILABLE
Window Treatments, Fabric, Designer Wallpaper, Visit Our
Counter Tops, All Flooring and Miele Vacuums
Outlet!
2311 N. Roosevelt Dr., Seaside, OR 97138 • 503-738-5729
rlflooring @ yahoo.com • www.RandallLeesFlooring.com
Randall Lee’s Flooring Outlet • 3579 Hwy 101 Gearhart • 503-738-6756
Warehouse pricing • Open to the Public • Hundreds of instock rolls & remnants • In House Binding
SECURITY
Snowy plover nest could be a ‘game-changer’
Plover from Page 1A
officials hoped the western
snowy plover would return to
traditional nesting sites. But
the protections haven’t yield-
ed results, as a nesting site
hasn’t been seen on the Neca-
nicum Spit since 2002.
The restricted area makes
up about 25 percent of the
77-acre beach area between
Gearhart and the Necanicum
River.
While Nehalem Bay State
Park saw the hatching of a
western snowy plover chick
last May for the first time in
30 years, most nesting sites
on the North Coast, includ-
ing Gearhart, haven’t seen
signs of nesting for a “very
long time,” according to
Laurel Hillmann, an ocean
shores specialist with the
Parks and Recreation De-
partment.
As a result, in February,
Hillmann told the City Coun-
cil the area will no longer be
kept as an active bird man-
agement site and seasonal
restrictions will be lifted.
Less-trafficked areas on the
central and southern coast
are more inviting and will
be the focus of future nest-
ing protections, Hillmann
said, and Gearhart’s season-
ally posted signs advising of
503-738-9003
LOCALLY OWNED AND OPERATED
Residential & Commercial: Burglary & Fire Protection, Video
Surveillance, Central Station Monitoring, Remote Arm/Disarm
LICENSED • BONDED • INSURED
Seaside, Oregon • www.CoastalAlarm.net • info@CoastalAlarm.net
CCB# 201010 • Reg.# 977689-99
JOHN GREEN
LANDSCAPING
A western snowy plover
observed in Gearhart in
December.
B oB M c E wan c onstruction , inc .
E xcavation • u ndErground u tiitiEs
r oad w ork • F ill M atErial
s itE P rEParation • r ock
snowy plover habitat would
no longer be posted.
owned and operated by
Watching for nests
The Parks and Recreation
Department will begin mon-
itoring Gearhart later this
month for the continued pres-
ence of plovers and any signs
of nesting behavior. Seasonal
restrictions went into place
Thursday, prohibiting un-
leashed dogs, vehicles and
bicycles in unoccupied plover
areas.
If there is no nesting behav-
ior by July 15, the department
will lift restrictions.
Restrictions would also be
lifted if the Parks and Recre-
ation Department, state De-
partment of Fish and Wildlife
and U.S. Fish and Wildlife
Service conclude that it is in
M ike and C eline M C e wan
503-738-3569
34154 Hwy 26, Seaside, OR
P.O. Box 2845, Gearhart, OR
S erving the p aCifiC n orthweSt S inCe 1956 • CC48302
FLOORING
OREGON PARKS AND RECREATION DEPARTMENT
Map of snowy plover management areas in the 2010 habitat
conservation plan.
the best interest for species re-
covery to manage a different
site, Blackstone said.
Agencies will still protect
individual plover nests that are
discovered, she added.
For now, Blackstone, Green
and wildlife officials will keep
their eyes on the sand.
“A plover could be nesting
and nobody would ever see it,”
Green said. “They are able to
hide their nests in the bare sand
pretty well. It’s possible you
could have plover nesting and
not even know it.”
Laurelwood Compost • Mulch • Planting MacMix
Soil Amendments
YARD DEBRIS DROP-OFF
(no Scotch Broom)
503-717-1454
34154 HIGHWAY 26
SEASIDE, OR
Laurelwood Farm