More than a ‘Little’ Spooktacular

Written By MARNI WALSH

The opening night of Little's Haunted House in Fiddle Park was more than a ‘little' spooktacular -  it was a ‘lotta' spectacular. What a great event this family and their friends and volunteers created for the kids and community of Shelburne. 

If you are reading this article before 10 pm on October 31st, you still have a chance to visit this excellent celebration of Halloween. The Little's have ‘conjured' an atmosphere that is brimming with theatricality and fun, and have ‘executed' it to an impressively professional degree. Considering that admission is free, (with a donation to the Shelburne Shepherd's Cupboard Food Bank encouraged,) there is no reason ‘be afraid' to attend.

The Little's Haunted House has continued to grow and improve year after year since it first began in the Fiddle Park in 2015. Each year, there is a new arrangement of spooky venues to visit as you travel through a dark and dramatic maze to reach various haunted destinations. Jeremy Little says, “It all changes every year,” but new attractions for 2019 included, “The Boiler Room,” “The Doctor's Office,” and the very scary, completely re-modelled “Zombie Room.” The excellent sets are highlighted by enthusiastic volunteers who are very dedicated to “playing” their haunted, horrible, and often hilarious roles to the nines and tens.

Earlier this month, Carola Little told the Free Press, “Putting this kind of effort forward, insane amounts of paperwork, applications and red tape, hours upon hours of setting up, sewing, creating, painting and even cooking to feed all the volunteers.... all of this is only worth it to us if the community comes out.” If the early evening hours of October 26th was any indication, the community answered the call and came out in hairy hordes, werewolf packs and devilish droves. 

In fact, attendance on opening day alone, was  a record breaking 1237 ghoulish guests. Carola Little told the Free Press that cash funds collected for the Shelburne food bank on October 26th totalled $700  - with the big night still to come October 31st. In terms of food donations, Carola Little says, “it looked great, but we don't weigh it until after the event finishes, so we won't know the total pounds until then.”

The Little family is thrilled that “Shelburne has really embraced the event,” and are looking forward to Halloween night when they will have 55 volunteers coming out to make sure the Haunt is a “fun and exciting spot!” 

“Three of our volunteers are from Germany,” says Carola Little, “where they don't celebrate Halloween like we do, so they are getting first hand experience with us and doing a fantastic job.”  

The Little's Haunted House second full scare night of 2019 will take place this Thursday, October 31st from 6 pm - 10 pm  at Fiddle Park just south of No Frills in Shelburne.  For more information visit: www.facebook.com/Littlehauntedhouse.