[IGHS] Newsletter, October 24, 2005 Pahrump, Nevada

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Mission Statement:

The Ghostweb is the official Web Site of the International Ghost Hunters Society. Membership in the IGHS is always FREE. The IGHS is an international society dedicated and committed to the research and study of ghostly phenomena recorded through EVP, digital, film and video photography. The IGHS is a society of ghost believers, ghost hunters, and ghost researchers with over 15,000 members in 87 countries worldwide.

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International Ghost Hunters Society Newsletter

October 24, 2004 from Pahrump, Nevada

Dr. Dave’s Notes:

If you haven't checked out our web site at ghostweb.com for a time, you may have missed our Halloween Special on our Home Study Courses. The special pricing is our way of celebrating this time of year. Check out our specials at http://www.ghostweb.com/mainhsc1.html.

We did a two-hour radio program with David John Oates in Australia where we played our recordings of ghost voices and their reverses. We had fun and were able to teach his Australian listeners a lot about life after death. One of his listeners wrote him during the program who still believed that poltergeists are malevolent spirits. We learned a long time ago that poltergeists are simply what the German name implies, noisy ghosts. We lived with poltergeists for ten years and learned first hand about these noisy ghosts. The sounds of footsteps, muffled voices, the knocking on wood, and the other assortment of spooky noises coming from the other side.

Thanks to Hollywood's screenwriters, the public's concept of poltergeists changed from noisy spirits, to spirits that were evil and demonic. Screenwriters wrote about the religious evils that battles for men's souls, at least to Western man. Today the imagery that comes to mind when we say the word “Poltergeist” stems from the Hollywood film by the same name. Just as the film was fictitious, the demons were also a figment of the screenwriter's imagination. We have seen no scientific evidence that demons exist, except in the minds of demonologists who profess to rid demons for a fee.

In reality, the term poltergeist is a general description, much in the same way that ghost hunters misuse the term we coined as “orb” as representing the shape of an anomaly and who now use the our term to mean anything paranormal. This illegal stretch of the imagination, confirmed by visiting most non-IGHS ghost hunters web sites and viewing the airborne dust particles posted as ghost orbs, ignores common sense and basic photography principles by those who pointed a digital camera into the sky and depressed the shutter button.

What did we share on David John Oates radio program? We shared what we have found to be valid understandings about life on the other side of the grave. Sharon and I shared the truths that we have discovered from our many years of conducting investigations into life beyond the grave. Death will come to everyone, sooner or later, but how we deal with our passing over to the other side will yield a considerable change in the outcome of that passing.

Some of our Newsletter readers will object and say that we are getting off the subject of ghosts and onto some religious fields. However, this is not true. The study of ghosts transcends both the realm of the living and the dead. If we are to understand the spirits of the dead, we must understand the living that caused the spirits to remain earthbound. Ghosts are the essence of who we were in life, our emotions, our intelligence, and our personality according to our life experiences. Our life experiences shaped us into the type of spirit we will be when we cross beyond the grave. If we do not understand this process, we cannot understand the reasons ghosts are earth bound.

Western religion that teaches us that we die, we leave our burdens behind us and end up in the arms of Jesus. However, this fairy tale is not true. We do take our burdens with us to the other side; there are no proverbial arms of Jesus to lift those burdens in death. We have found from recording thousands of EVP recordings that we carry those burdens with us to the other side and those burdens acts as anchors to hold us to this earth plane, preventing us from moving forward in our evolution of growth.

The Afterlife is not a dark and dreary place, but is more like the film with Robin Williams in “What Dreams May Come.” The Afterlife is a mirror of this life, but within it we create our reality. Our burdens influence how we see and respond on the other side. The emotional burdens act as anchors to hold us in place. We are free to remove those shackles any time we want, but we have to discard the burdens before we are free. This is a very difficult task for spirits on the other side to accomplish.

Psychological and emotional issues are not easy to discard, else we would have done so in life. It is even harder to discard them when we pass beyond the grave. Sometimes we have covered up those issues, buried them deep in our conscious mind. Issues such as bitterness, anger, resentment, frustrations, and painful moments in our lives that we wish to ignore and keep buried. All of these issues are negative forces that weight upon us and prevent us from moving into a more positive environment.

Perhaps someone has hurt us or given us insult and we bury this painful experience deep within us and try to forget that it ever happened. It festers and remains alive and well. When we pass beyond the grave, we leave behind our physical body, but take with us our emotions, our intelligence and our personality. Our emotions can be positive or negative, the positive emotions lift us toward a higher vibrational rate, but the negative emotions act as weights to hold us back. The living cannot remove the burdens carried by the dead because this is an individual process and in that process of removing burdens we grown spiritually.

Just as we must heal on this side when injured, so too must our spirits heal before we can move onward. Now is the time in this life to do the healing, we must learn to forgive, heal, and forget, moving onward with our lives without the burdens we allowed ourselves to carry needlessly. We live in times when even our Presidential candidates resort to mud slinging and to character assassination as a normal way of conducting their campaigns. We turn on the television and radio and hear this negativity all the time. We sink lower into the toxic waste that negativity has spurned. We must consciously reject this negativity, we must find our own pathway that leads to beauty and harmony, and we must rise out of the waste and negativity if we are to find happiness. Our life does not revolve around negativity, so we must find the strength to say,”No more!”

How do we know this? We have listened, analyzed thousands of EVP recordings, and have found that spirits on the other side find it most difficult to let go of their burdens. Sharon and I are ghost researchers, but we are also students of life and death. We look beyond the surface and see what is causing the situation to occur. Death is simply another chapter in our book of existence. It is not the end of life, but a comma and not a period in our journey.

Happy trails.

Sharon’s Notes:

It was a dark and stormy night and Sandra had snuggled under the warm blankets. Not really sleepy, she decided to scan through a new manuscript she would be editing. She wasn't prepared for what was about to happen, as the thunder rolled deep across the night sky. Thinking it was just another manuscript, she started to thumb through the pages but before she knew it she was hooked and couldn't put the manuscript down.

When Sandra finished reading, she slept with the light on the rest of the night. When she contacted the authors the next day, she said she would recommend people not read the book alone at night. The manuscript she was reading was American's Hauntings, Volume One: Haunted America Speaks, now available through the publisher. The story I just told you is true, but it is not included in the book.

There are several things that make Haunted America Speaks unique. The stories are from the real case files of investigations conducted by Dave and Sharon. We have committed ourselves to this work full-time as we travel the highways of America. Each story is new; the majority of the haunted sites are new as well. Each story has electronic voice phenomena (EVP) recorded at each site. The publisher has made these voices from beyond the grave available to the reader through a specially assigned website for the readers’ convenience. As you read each story, you can hear the messages left by the spirit or spirits on digital format during the actual investigation.

In the little Amish town of Quarryville, Pennsylvania, the air is fresh and clean and folks are friendly. The Amish buggies travel up and down the roads where life is easy as it was fifty years ago. But just outside of town, deep in the woods, as smoke gently rises from the old wood stove at the Weaver house; something stirs in the darkness and Leah, the black Lab wakes from her sound sleep on the rug and quickly darts down the stairs.

Davey Weaver sleepily steps out onto the second story deck of his home and looks out over the vast yard surrounded by acres of timberland. He spots a column of light forming at the edge of the woods and knows the ghost of Weaver's Woods is coming to pay a call. Who is the ghost of Weaver's Woods or is there more than one? Why do they remain there and how is it that Davey lives so comfortably with them?

Not far from Weaver's Woods, we discovered an old cemetery. While walking through, reading the names and dates just before dark, I came across the headstone of a young woman, Mary Snodgrass who died at twenty-six years of age. The headstone was one among many that had broken and fallen to the ground. I could barely make out the name because of the mud and leaves, yet something had drawn me to this spot. What was it that caught my attention and attracted me to put the headstone right? While Dave and Davey worked to upright the marker, I turned on my recorder. Though Mary had died a very long time ago, the spirits around us were talking as though it were yesterday. What was it they had to say about Mary? It seemed the emotions surrounding Mary were still fresh in their minds and they weren't holding back. They spoke about Mary like we weren't even there but the recorder picked up every word.

Not too far from Quarryville, Pennsylvania is a little town called Locust Grove. It is here that the historic Haldeman Mansion sits on a knoll overlooking the Susquehanna River. In its day, the Federal-style mansion was home to John Haldeman and family. Though destined to be torn down, some very caring people strove to save the mansion and restore it as a historic site. What they didn't realize at the time was that they family would be staying with the house too.

As we waited outside of the mansion on the front porch for the lady bringing the key to let us in, we heard a banging sound coming from inside the tightly sealed mansion. But no one was inside the place and no one else was outside except Dave, Davey Weaver and I. As Dave and I sat on the front porch, the odd noises continued periodically. What we got on our recorders was more than we imagined. From all indications, the Haldeman’s still lived in the empty house and life seemed to be going on as normal!

While traveling the east coast, we spent quite a lot of time in Gettysburg, Pennsylvania. Though Gettysburg is reputed to be the most haunted battlefield on American soil, ghost hunters are flocking to the area to get in on the action. The IGHS was the first society to hold Ghost Conferences in Gettysburg, starting in 1998. Read about some of the history at different sites of battle and experiences during our many investigations on the battlefields. What were the messages we recorded from the soldiers who still fight for freedom there? Why do they continue fighting the battle after almost 150 years? What is the Blue Cross and why is it trouble?

If you live on the west coast, the odds are probably good that you have never heard of the tragic flood in Johnstown, Pennsylvania in 1889. We had not heard about it until we met with the members of the American Paranormal Research Society. They shared the historical value of Johnstown with us and Johnstown as it is today. It is a remarkable story of tragedy and the wealth behind the destructive flood waters that left 2,200 people dead. Are they still there trying to let the living know what happened to them?

On a hill above Johnstown stand 777 blank granite headstones of the unidentified dead from that flood. It is a town that has the ideal conditions for restless spirits and that is exactly what we found. Learn about the flood and the conditions that were ideal for the dam to give way. Venture with us to the Stone Bridge where events that are even more tragic took place. They say that area is very haunted. View the pictures and the maps included with the story and listen to the voices of those who died and almost feel as though you are standing right there.

Leaving Pennsylvania, we traveled to the beautiful state of West Virginia. West Virginia is not only gorgeous; it is also a state of many mysteries. Travel with us in, The Long Journey Home, through a maze of winding mountain roads no wider than a footpath at times, and obscure cemeteries. Laugh with us about the green spots and the series of events that led us to a cemetery in the middle of a cow pasture. Read about the kindness of a crippled man who vanished without a trace. Was he real?

Have you heard the story about the ghost who helped to solve her own murder? It happened in West Virginia and the story is true. It was the first documented case of a ghost that revealed her killer and sent the murderer to prison, though the case had been officially closed. The state has erected historical markers as to where this amazing case took place in 1897. You can travel along as we follow this story to its sad end, at the gravesite of Hester Shue.

Traveling westward, we have a story in the book as told to us by an IGHS member in Chicago, Illinois. Henry Pena received a strange email one evening that was a desperate call for help. The woman writing was terribly distressed, swearing Lucifer was living in her home. This is truly a story no one will want to miss as Henry and his brother Mike go to the house where Lucifer lived. Read the story of their investigation from the beginning to the end and the results they got while in the woman's house. Though Henry was certain they had gotten nothing on their recorders, after the men had returned home and settled in for the night, the phone rang and Henry answered. It was Mike and he asked Henry if he'd listened to his tapes yet. Henry had not but Mike encouraged him to do so right away. You won't want to miss this one and it's an investigation Mike and Henry will never forget. It was such a good story when they told us about it, we felt it worthy of being a part of the book.

Dave and I spend a lot of time exploring the great southwest. We find ourselves roaming various ruins and the spiritual center of Chaco Canyon. We share our experiences at Chaco and northward at a site called the Aztec Ruins. Listen to the voices of those who once walked these lands as you learn the value of the Indian way of life and the importance of the kiva. We will take you inside of a restored Great Kiva, the center of the pueblo and share our experiences inside.

Wickenburg, Arizona is home to the Vulture Mine and the once booming mining town of Vulture City. It is true western history at its best. Our experiences there were amazing and it seemed pretty clear the old miners are still putting in time in the glory holes to bring out that precious gold. If you enjoy reading about old ghost towns, no only will you like this one, you may find yourself arranging to go there yourself one day and walk in the dusty footsteps of those hard working miners.

These are just some of the stories in our latest book, the first in a series of Full Spectrum books for Windstorm Creative Publishing. Each book contains photos and maps of areas related to the stories. Combined with the availability of EVP, you will feel like you are right there with Dave, Sharon, and BooBoo, each step of the way. Also included are tips how to record for you own EVP when visiting haunted sites. Windstorm is the leader in innovative publishing and the first to include actual voices of the dead for you to hear.

Brad Steiger, investigator and author of over 150 books on paranormal related subjects wrote the Forward to the book and you won't want to miss what he has to say. “Expect some shivers, for there are some genuinely spooky encounters described here,” says Steiger.

Travel with us as we follow a ghostly trail of intrigue around this great land. Sit back, relax, and get ready for a new, innovative experience in true ghost stories. Just remember, you may not want to read these stories after darkness falls and the shadows fill the corners of your room!

Our book is available through our Publisher at http://www.windstormcreative.com/windstorm/21038.htm. All orders placed through the Publisher receive a 20% discount off of the book retail price. The book will hit the bookstores in January 2005.

Happy Haunting.

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Southwest Ghost Conference in 2005:

We have scheduled our Southwest Ghost Conference for March 25-27 in Albuquerque, New Mexico. More information can be found at http://www.ghostweb.com/swc.html regarding this conference. Book early, as we will again have limited seating available to us. We are planning on a meet and greet on Friday night, sessions and hands on investigations on Saturday and for those staying Sunday, we will have a list of haunted sites they can investigate in the Santa Fe and Albuquerque area.

Ghost Charm Jewelry:

Sharon has created six different designs for her sterling silver ghost charm necklaces, with either carnelian and turquoise or carnelian and hematine stones. The sterling silver ghost charm measures about an inch in length. She also has created some beautiful jewelry by wire wrapping stunning carnelian nuggets that we found in the desert near Deming, New Mexico. The carnelian nuggets were tumbled for five weeks to bring out their natural beauty. She also has earrings with carnelian and combinations of either turquoise or hematine. Get your orders in today by going to http://photos1.ghostweb.com/carn2.html.

Digital Ghost Photography Handbook:

Are you confused about orbs? What are dust orbs and how do they relate to real ghost orbs? Read our 20 page thermal bound book or download the PDF book and discover how digital photography is the wave of the future. We have been using digital since 1994 and we share with the reader, which are the best digital cameras on the market today. We also share what to look for when purchasing a digital camera and provide some protocols to avoid falling into the dust orb trap. Check it out at http://www.ghostweb.com/booklet2.html.

How to Record and Analyze Ghost Voices:

We have shared the hidden techniques that enable us to be tremendously successful in recording the voices of the dead. If you need a step by step booklet to help you achieve the same success as we enjoy, including which software to use to analyze the EVP recordings or what cables to use to hook up the recorder to the computer, search no further, check out the booklet at http://www.ghostweb.com/booklet.html. We ship via Priority Mail through the Post Office or download it as a PDF that can be printed out on your end.

CD Version Home Study Courses Halloween Special:

We are having our Halloween Special with special discounts on all Home Study Courses. This is the premier certification program for ghost researchers and paranormal investigators, written by professional full time ghost researchers, Drs. Dave & Sharon. Part 1 deals with ghosts and the psychology of earth bound spirits, and Part 2 deals with working with people who are haunted by loved ones. We teach the scientific approach specializing in ghost photography and etheric voice phenomenon with 28 years of combined experience in this field. Read the recent testimonial. More information is available at our Halloween Special discount site at http://www.ghostweb.com/mainhsc1.html

Password Memberships:

We offer a special membership in our Ghostweb Ghost Galleries. Due to the size of these ghost galleries, we have to limit the number of people because of the bandwidth consumed by downloading the photos, spirit voices, and ghost videos in this area. If you want to view the largest collection of ghost photos, EVPs, and videos, check out our membership program at http://www.ghostweb.com/pass.html.

Life Time IGHS Member Certificate:

Instead of renewing every year, IGHS members can now purchase a Life Time Membership for $60 or a Life Time Membership and Life Time Clip ID Badge for $75. This is available through PayPal and through our online Secure Order Form at http://www.ghostweb.com/memcert.html.

IGHS ID Badges for Investigations:

We have received many requests for some kind of Identification Badge to wear while conducting field investigations. We have created a laminated ID Badge with a metal clip that snaps onto your shirt or other piece of clothing. It says that you are a Registered Ghost Hunter/Paranormal Investigator in good standing with the International Ghost Hunters Society and it has our signatures and web address. Order the ID Badge at http://www.ghostweb.com/id_badge.html.

IGHS Membership Certificates:

The IGHS offers a beautiful Membership Certificate. The membership certificate is valid for one year Check it out at http://www.ghostweb.com/memcert.html for more information.

Kind regards,

Dave, Sharon & BooBoo

International Ghost Hunters Society