'Haunted Walk' scheduled at WRV on Friday night

The annual "Haunted Walk" sponsored by the White River Valley High School Spanish Club will be open Friday from 7-10 p.m. The admission price of $1 includes a student guide through the woods on the northwest edge of the high school property in Switz City.

Be prepared to meet costumed creatures along the path and see a few ghouls hiding behind trees.

Club Sponsor and Spanish teacher Mary Puntney says the project coincides with a class culture study of a holiday called "Day of the Dead" which is celebrated on Nov. 2.

It's celebrated in Mexico, in the Mexican immigrant community in the U.S. and in many other Spanish-speaking countries.

"This is a very important day in this culture and we always try to observe these holidays in our class," said Puntney. "The Haunted Walk started out as a Day of the Dead Walk, but since it comes so close to Halloween, we decided to have it a few days early."

In Mexico, the celebration occurs on Nov. 1 which is All Saints' Day and on Nov. 2 which is All Souls' Day.

Though the name of the holiday may sound morbid, it is actually a joyful celebration and the mood is much brighter than that of Halloween. It's a time to celebrate and honor the lives of those who are deceased.

The "Day of the Dead" also celebrates the continuation of life and a belief that death is not the end, but rather the beginning of a new stage in life or to put it another way, death is a soul passing into another life.

Deceased children and infants are usually honored on Nov. 1 and deceased adults are honored on Nov. 2.

Many "Day of the Dead" celebrations include masks and costumes and some of the elements included in Halloween celebrations, like skulls or skeletons.

"Every year the students come up with some great costumes and although our Haunted Walk through the woods involves some scary stuff, in class this week we're talking about the real meaning of the Day of the Dead in the Spanish culture," said Puntney.

The public is invited and all of the proceeds from the Walk are used to help pay for Spanish Club field trips.