Hazleton Paranormal Society
Spiritual calling
Written by Amanda Christman for The Standard Speaker

Ask Andy and his wife for a ghost story, they can offer hundreds.

A little girl once raced past him while he washed dishes in the kitchen. He
mistakenly thought she was one of his children, he says. On another occasion,
his wife was in the second-floor bathroom when the lights turned red and
began flickering. Sometimes he hears footsteps and voices, but they don’t
belong to his family.


Andy lived in the Hazleton area home for a little more than a year before he
experienced anything “unexplainable.”

But the phenomena doesn't bother him.

“They were here before we were,” he says.

Intrigued with paranormal television shows and theories, Andy tried some
methods himself. Armed with a digital recorder, he asked questions out loud,
hoping to capture a spirit’s voice. He said he heard a little girl say “help me.”

Still, Andy wanted to know more, so he called the Hazleton Paranormal
Society.


Ghost trackers

On a recent mid-October evening, dark clouds rolled over the bright light of
the moon as Hazleton Paranormal Society founders Rich Neely and Steve
Seaman discussed the group’s beginnings.

Members Jeremy Belles and Dave Minnick Jr. joined them to form a foursome
anticipating its latest ghost-hunting investigation at Andy’s home that evening.

The nonprofit group began in 2006 after Neely gained inspiration from
watching “Ghost Hunters” on the SciFi channel. The show highlights The
Atlantic Paranormal Society, or TAPS, investigations. Like TAPS founders
Jason Hawes and Grant Wilson, who are plumbing colleagues, Neely and
Seaman also work together.

The Hazleton Paranormal Society has held between 12 and 15 investigations
in the Hazleton area and out of state in its quest to understand the
unexplainable. The group started with three members and has grown to 11.

Unlike other types of hunts, ghost hunting is different because there is no
proven science behind it, Neely said.

Neely found out how to investigate for paranormal activity via the Internet,
television, documentaries and books. He applies different theories on ghost
hunting during his investigations, such as detecting electromagnetic energy
or unexplained voices on audio tape, which some believe can indicate that a
spirit is amongst them.

“And we’re still learning as we go,” Neely said.

“That’s half the fun — learning new things,” Seaman added.

Aside from intrigue, Neely, Minnick and Seaman said there wasn’t one instance
that drew them into ghost hunting. Minnick said he has a “craving of
knowledge” and a fascination for what cannot be explained.

When Belles was 6, he watched his bedroom door swing open without
assistance, he said.

The group not only studies unexplained activity but sometimes becomes part of
it.

While investigating at Fort Mifflin in Philadelphia, Neely said he fell asleep
while a camera was recording. The equipment recorded the sound of footsteps
drawing closer to him, but when Neely moved during his sleep, the footsteps
abruptly stopped.

Neely and Seaman said they usually get excited when something strange
happens — and rarely get scared.

Belles looked at the two, then straight ahead and let out a laugh. “Well I
don’t know about that,” he said.

Belles said one incident in Gettysburg had him so spooked that he chain-
smoked for 30 minutes. Belles said he had a feeling something was standing
behind him, and when he turned around no one was there.

As the time for the haunting investigation drew closer, the foursome piled
into a pickup truck and drove off to Andy’s home.

“Let’s do it,” Belles said as he opened the truck door, where the ghost-
hunting equipment was stashed.

Welcome

When the group arrived at Andy’s home, they were met by Dr. Ken Kindya, a
psychologist whose purpose is to evaluate those requesting the society’s
services. Kindya also helps people deal with stress associated with suspected
paranormal activity.

Neely briefed Andy and his family on the investigation schedule and discussed
the history of their home. It was built by a coal company in 1893 and until 2001
was owned by three families, one of which lived in the home for 50 years.

Minnick began hauling in the equipment and shortly after Seaman and Belles
began setting up. A command post — four VCRs and a television — were placed
in a second-floor playroom.

“This is the hectic part,” Minnick said as he hooked the equipment together.

Wires from the small, stationary, infrared cameras on the first floor were
connected to the equipment on the second floor with even more wires.

The technical crew, under the direction of Seaman, have their work down to a
science.

“It’s not all glamorous,” Seaman said as he unraveled a thin black cord.

Seaman looked at a television in the command post and used a walkie-talkie to
ask Belles to move some cameras around to capture just the right view.

Belles asked Seaman, “Which one do you want me to do first?”

“Kitchen. 10-4,” Seaman responded.

The view on the television shook as Belles moved the small camera around.
“Alright, to your right a little. OK, now can you move that down,” Seaman said
over the walkie-talkie.

By 9 p.m., the equipment was up and running and the crew was ready to sit and
wait for something to happen.

“You ready to go dark?” Neely asked Seaman.

With an affirmative nod, the two entered the living room, sending Belles and
Minnick upstairs to watch for evidence from there.

Andy, Neely and Seaman sat in the darkened living room as Neely and Seaman
asked questions, hoping to get an answer from a ghost on video or on a digital
recorder. A K-II meter, which can indicate the presence of electromagnetic
activity through five lights, was nearby. It is believed a spirit has enough
energy to set the device off, Seaman said.

In a soft tone, Neely asked if anyone was in the room to approach the K-II
meter and make its lights flash.

No response.

He asked a second and third time, and still no flashing lights.

Then, a flash. Excitement stirred through the group, but Neely and Seaman
weren’t totally convinced. Seaman radioed the command center with his
walkie-talkie and the light flashed again. It wasn’t a ghost, just
interference. Neely said the group tries to debunk reports of hauntings or
unexplained activity through reasonable solutions.

During setup, Seaman moved the K-II meter around the room to make sure it
was far enough away from an electrical source so the group could get an
accurate reading.

Disappointed, the men continued into the night.

The data

Neely and Seaman spent five hours over several days evaluating the five
hours of footage they shot at Andy’s home. Neely said the review typically
takes about a week. Sometimes they’ll spend hours watching footage without a
finding.

But after the late-night investigation of Andy’s home, they found something
unusual in the video footage – an infrared camera they set up in the living
room appeared to move on its own.

The camera, which was set on a tripod, captured the living room and part of
the kitchen. Andy was sitting on the couch as the camera frame started to
jiggle without assistance from anyone in the room.

Then, there was the noise of something falling. Neely attributed the noise to
the lens cap from the camera hitting a tripod leg but said he couldn’t find any
explanation for the camera’s movement.

He and Seaman reviewed the tape again Sunday afternoon. Neely leaned back
in a chair, away from the video, after watching the footage.

“Definitely a good piece of evidence,” he said.