Student Activities Board hosts haunted house in Olmsted

Drake University’s Student Activities Board called upon “all ghouls, goblins and creatures of the night” for a Halloween event of singing, games, food, social gathering and a haunted house through the underground tunnels of Olmsted. The event took place Tuesday, Oct. 26 from 7 p.m. to 10 p.m.

“I went to the event because I heard there were a lot of activities going on and I really wanted to try some,” sophomore Thersea Sheridan said. “My friends and I also wanted to try the haunted tunnels because we had noticed that entrance before and never knew where it led. We also wanted to try some of the food they had set up.”

Sheridan said her experience at the event was “very positive.”

“The food was really good and the desserts were so delicious,” Sheridan said. “I tried the mechanical bull and got the high score as of that point in the night. We also watched Fermata the Blue perform for a bit and that was very impressive.”

The eventful night contrasted the lack of Halloween activities last year due to mandatory social distancing to prevent the spread of COVID-19.

“I loved seeing everyone out and about trying activities,” Sheridan said. “I felt like it was much more involved than last year, so it was great to see the very wide variety of activities offered.”

As for the haunted tunnels, Sheridan said they were “just the right amount of scary.”

“Enough to get my heart going, but not overwhelmingly so,” Sheridan said. “I get scared easily, so that was appreciated.”

But, not everyone was impressed.

“I didn’t like the length of it, but also I understand that [the event organizers] could not have made it any longer due to other circumstances,” sophomore Jack Grotenhuis said. 

Grotenhuis said that if he could change it, he would add more rooms to the tunnels and add more jump scares. But, the event was not a failure to him either.

“I liked the clowns,” Grotenhuis said. “Clowns are the best part in a haunted house because a lot of people are afraid of them and make them scream. Additionally, I liked the detailing that [the event organizers] put into it.”

Sophomore Katie Das was one of those clowns in the haunted tunnels of Olmsted and said that being a scarer was a “blast.”

“I decided to be a scarer because my friends were going to do it too and I thought it would be fun for us to do it together,” Das said. “I was a clown in the haunted house, and I chose it because my two friends that I was doing the haunted house with were both clowns.”

Even though Das said she had fun, she would change things if she had the chance.

“If I could go back I would probably not scream so much because my voice is a little bit gone today but overall it was super fun,” Das said.

Sheridan, Grotenhuis and Das all said they would go to or participate in the event again if it happens next year.

“I would describe it as unique and fun,” Grotenhuis said. “It’s not too often that you would be able to attend a haunted house at Drake, so I thought it was really cool that we put one together.”