Spooky Lecture: Paranormal investigators share their eerie findings
Local author and entertainment columnist Mary Tatarian attended a recent Southwest Florida Romance Writers meeting where actual paranormal investigators spoke. Here is her feature
Next time you hear that creepy creak in the floor or sudden slow drip of the faucet in the middle of the night, who you gonna call? Why, the Southwest Florida Paranormal Investigators.
But the SWFPI do not arrive in a suped-up hearse like “Ghostbusters.” They are a group of professionals from many different occupations: a scientist, a nurse, a computer programmer even an attorney who are dedicated to the study and investigation of all things paranormal. They are based out of Naples and have handled cases all over the state of Florida.
The team recently spoke at a meeting of the Southwest Florida Romance Writers where executive manager Morgan A. Beall and equipment specialist John Holtschaw explained their unique service and the different types of equipment used.
Four friends started the group in 1998 to investigate all things paranormal paranormal being defined as basic items that cannot be explained by science. They could include a haunting, UFO sightings, the force field around a vortex, and even the sighting of an unusual species, like Big Foot.
Morgan said that 95 percent of the calls cannot be explained. He also said that even though what they do is not accepted as a branch of science, as a scientist, he and the team investigate using scientific methods and equipment. John, a 3D animator, uses his skills to map out a specific building for the placement of their equipment.
A haunting video
The team brought a video of “The Haunting of The Clewiston Inn,” showing how they started by using electronic voice detection (EVP) to pick up what sounded like a child calling “Mommy.”
The crew then interviewed the staff, all of whom were unaware of their findings, but corroborated the data by telling the investigators about their individual visual experiences.
The team further explained that how they perform their job is not like how the TV investigators work a case. SWFPI investigations take a long time. They said the TV shows are more entertainment than factual.
If you would like to learn more about the SWFPI or contact them about an investigation, visit their web site, SWFPIonline.com. To learn more about The Southwest Florida Romance Writers or attend a meeting, visit SWFRW.org.