of people — including those with special needs .
“ Because we work with individuals with disabilities , we are very careful about the design and layout of the haunted house ,” said George . “ From the lighting to sound effects , to the physical layout , we want to make sure that it is as safe as possible .
“ I want to be clear , we do not design this haunted house for children or limit our ideas to accommodate everyone . We want to scare people and do it well ,” he added . “ But at the haunted house , we do provide an option for groups to tell us ‘ easy scare ’ or ‘ no scare ’. When they do this , we radio to all of our actors and make sure that we step out and allow certain groups to just walk through . We have even given personalized tours through the house for certain folks to make sure they have a good time .”
George noted that the haunted house began as part of our monthly ‘ ABA Days ’ for our clients . “ We had a Halloween festival and did a one room haunted house in our basement ,” he said . “ Our clients loved it so much that we decided to add on one more room and open it to the public on Halloween , which was the next day . We had such a great response from the community that it has become an ABA tradition and has gotten bigger and more elaborate each year .”
Best of all , the whole goal is to scare up money for a good cause . ABA runs a non-profit charity called ABA GIVES , which provides clothing , furniture and household items to those in need . All the money taken in from entry to the haunted house goes directly to ABA GIVES , noted George , and helps pay for their rent and electricity so they can function .
This year , the haunted house will be open the Friday and Saturday before Halloween ( Oct 21 and 22 ) and the Friday , Saturday , Sunday , and Monday of Halloween weekend ( Oct 28 , 29 , 30 , and 31 ), open from 7 p . m . -11 p . m . each of those nights . Cost is $ 10 for adults , and $ 5 for children 8 and under . All children must be accompanied by an adult .
There is definitely an art to creating a perfectly petrifying haunted house , and even if he doesn ’ t like visiting them on his own , George said he enjoys the
Chris George is the mastermind behind ABA and its annual haunted house creations . Photo by Christopher Harris
September 2022 SEKY - Life in Southeast Kentucky • 33