Lambda Chi to kick off Halloween philanthropy

Today marks the opening of Lambda Chi Alpha’s Halloween philanthropy “Nightmare on Third Street.” The event begins at 8 p.m. and will run through Saturday night.

For the event, the fraternity has turned its house into a haunted house.

“It’s a lot of things to go through,” said Chris Dunigan, sophomore and Lambda Chi philanthropy chairman.

He said the haunted house goes through all the hallways and eight to nine rooms in the house.

Sophomore Howard Slone, public relations chairman for the fraternity, said he thinks the haunted house is scary.

“I didn’t go through it last year,” he said. “I hope I don’t have to go through it this year.”
Senior and Lambda Chi President Aaron Falber also said the haunted house frightened him.

”Some people exited crying last year,” he said.

Dunigan helped with the construction both years.

“Parts of it scared me last year, and I built it,” Dunigan said.

Lambda Chi has started the event up again this past Halloween.

“It used to be a big thing back in the day,” Slone said.  

The heyday for the haunted house was in the 1990s and early 2000s, Slone said.
“People from all over Bloomington would come,” he said.

Planning has been going on since early September, and last year the group spent $6,000 on the event, donating $2,000 raised to the charity Habitat for Humanity in Bloomington. Dunigan said the fraternity donates all of the money left after covering expenses for the event.

The radio station B97 will be at the opening, as well as local restaurants with free food, such as Chipotle and several sandwich shops. Tickets are available at the door for $7.

Slone said about 1,000 people went through the house last year, and the fraternity hopes to double that number this weekend.