UPines opens annual haunted house to public

Toby Wilkerson, UPines marketing director, measures one of the walkways in the UPines hauted house on Friday. Photo by Kamren Thompson

University Pines Apartments staff describes their haunted house’s greatest challenge as a unique thrill where participants must crawl on their hands and knees through a pitch black cave.

“With the passing of each year, the cave seems to consume the fear of its victims and use that fear to morph its recesses into an immense chamber (of) paralyzing despair,” Toby Wilkerson, UPines marketing director, said. “Once they face the cave, their fear truly comes out.”

The UPines staff is opening their annual haunted house to the general public for the first time since it was established four years ago.

The UPines haunted house is scheduled to be open from 8 p.m. to 11 p.m. Wednesday and Thursday. The price of admission is $2 or three nonperishable canned goods, all of which are to be donated to charity.

“We want people to come not just for raising food, but for the fun of it,” resident adviser Anthony Bernardelli said.

Every year residents of U Pines decorate the clubhouse, and volunteers, disguised as monsters and other ghouls, surprise thrill seekers during the three-to-five-minute walk through the haunted house.

Wilkerson practices for the UPines haunted house opening night, which set for Wednesday. Photo by Kamren Thompson

Wilkerson said those who are nervous about entering should not go through.

“If you are nervous about being scared before entering, don’t,” Wilkerson said. “If you don’t want to go, then don’t. Do it for the entertainment, not for the peer pressure.”

To work in the haunted house, UPines staff requests residents come with their own costumes and props.

Wilkerson said the haunted house “goes for the emotions instead of gory detail” with more dramatic scenes.

“It’s not so much things jumping out (that scare me), but the images they leave,” sophomore Joshua Watson said.

Along with UPines, there are three other major terror homes surrounding Tyler, including “13 Nightmares Haunted House,” sponsored by the Noonday Volunteer Fire Department and Tyler Jaycees, Tyler Metro Church’s “Hell House” and “Terror Nights Haunted House.” Each offers patrons a chance to confront their fears.

“How they show fear depends on the person,” Ryan Laepple, Terror Nights co-owner, said. “Everyone has a different way to translate their fear. Some hide it under laughter, and some hide behind the biggest person they can find.”