We need your help! MooseWood Nature Center is a non-profit nature center located at Presque Park in north Marquette. Each Halloween we hold our biggest annual fundraiser, The Haunted Bog Walk. Volunteer groups create scare stations around the Bog Walk, a hiking trail that winds around the bog at the park and individuals, board members, and other volunteers lead groups of students, families and other visitors around the trail to be frightened. This will be the 18th annual event with the theme: To Be Announced.
This year’s event will be held at Presque Isle Park the weekend of Friday and Saturday, October 13-14, from 7:30 pm. – 10:00 pm. Volunteers will need to arrive early to enjoy the pizza provided, to find out their group(s) or individual placement is, and to allow proper time to for set-up before the event. The event coordinator, Jamie Whiting will provide you with the time to arrive.
Please Note: this event is not intended for very young children or the faint of heart.
This fundraiser helps support costs to operate the nature center, food and animal care for our live animal exhibits, and provides public and school programming for the Marquette community and surrounding areas. Many programs take place at the same bog where the Haunted Bog is held.
There are ten to twelve scare stations following a general theme for the year ranging from ghouls, giant spiders and spider webs,15 foot ghosts rising suddenly from the leaves on the ground and chainsaw wielding madmen wandering out of the woods. Single individuals can also take roles along the trail to scare.
What You Can Do:
1-Create a concept for the Haunter Bog and bring your organization out to scare the daylights out of our visitors. Any sized group can participate – larger organizations can create several stations or spread out over a longer stretch of the trail. We will be open two nights so larger groups can split the nights.
2-Create a role for yourself if you wish to scare guests along the trail but do not have a group or organization to work with.
3-Become a line leader to take guests around the trail to be scared. We typically take 12 – 15 guests out at a time holding onto a rope to keep them together and need 10-12 line leaders. Line leaders play an important role of keeping the event moving along, keeping our participants safe, and playing along with the theme of the Bog by dressing in costume. Costumes are not required but are certainly more fun! Line leaders also assist in voting for the best scare stations for the cash prizes.
4-Help with ticket collection, greet and give directions, set-up and take-down, candle lighters, line leaders, scare as part of a group or as an individual, help with refreshments and other details during the night’s activities. We need lots of help!
What You Get:
1- Six cash prizes will be given in two categories – scariest and most creative of up to $100.
2- Food will be served to the volunteers before the night’s activities start and during the event.
3- Fun in participating in a great event scaring the heck out of our Halloween guests!
4- Satisfaction in helping an important part of the community continue to provide educational opportunities and programs for the Marquette Community!
Volunteers interested in taking part in this Halloween event please contact Jamie at jwhiting@nmu.edu.
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