Story tellers prepare to scare crowds with annual Festival of Ghost Stories

There have been sightings in Read Center. Another has been seen at the Story Inn, just southeast of Bloomington.\nAnd Friday evening, more will arrive at Bryan Park.\nWhether it's legend or not, locals say ghosts exist in Bloomington, but the truth is the stories about them will scare you worse than the ghouls themselves.\nOn Friday, the 27th annual Festival of Ghost Stories at Bryan Park will allow residents to get their scare fix. \nThis free event, which usually brings in crowds between 200-400 people, is co-sponsored by the Bloomington Storytellers' Guild, Monroe County Public Library and Bloomington Parks and Recreation. \nDana Burton, from the Monroe County Public Library and Bloomington Storyteller's Guild, said she organized the event's content. She recruited 12 to 13 professional storytellers from the guild to perform.\n"This is our Halloween gift to the community," Burton said.\nStorytellers come up with their own story, making sure not to repeat one that was done the year before. The stories fall into a wide variety of categories such as urban legends, supernatural tales with plenty of blood and gore, sung ballads, folk tales and real human accounts. The origins of the stories range from local to international. \n"These stories demonstrate the oral traditions of cultures," Burton said. "Some are older than Shakespeare."\nAlthough the Festival of Ghost Stories originally started as an event for kids, the content has matured for an older audience. For children, the suggested audience is fourth grade and older.\n"We stress to families not to bring tiny kids," Burton said. "The stories are just too scary for them."\nLeslie Kaiser of Bloomington Park and Recreations said she takes care of the the event's physical aspects.\n"We set up a mobile stage at the end of the parking lot and a PA system," Kaiser said. "We also set out luminaries, pumpkins and other Halloween decorations."\nHot cider, donated by K & S Country Market, will be passed out to help relieve the chill from the weather -- or the stories. \nGinny Richey, a member of the Bloomington Storyteller's Guild, said she has been telling stories for thirty years, including numerous tales at the Festival of Ghost Stories.\n"There's so much atmosphere in the park, with the moon in the sky and the clouds going by," Richey said.\nThis year, Richey said she decided to do a series of stories about haunted libraries. But that's all she would reveal about her tales for Friday night.\nThe Festival of Ghost Stories starts at 7:30 p.m. and ends at 9:30 p.m. Organizers said to dress warmly and bring a blanket or lawn chair. \nFor directions to Bryan Park call 349-3700. In case of rain, the event will be held at the Monroe County Public Library.