Burrage Mansion Masquerade Had a Spooky Twist

Friday night, Oct. 24, was the 3rd annual Mansion Masquerade held at the famous Haunted Burrage Mansion in Redlands. Every year the event, hosted by Boys and Girls Club and the Montecito Memorial Park and Mortuary, is open to all community members. All funds raised go directly to the Boys and Girls Club. “The money raised at Mansion Masquerade helps us maintain the nationally recognized programming we have in place as well as work to initiate new programs and activities for the kids to help them reach their goals of being successful students and young citizens in our community,” said P.T. McEwen, CEO of Boys and Girls Clubs of Greater Redlands-Riverside. Everyone was encouraged to dress up in their best Halloween costumes. Various local restaurants donated food and catered to the party, including Buffalo Wild Wings and Jose’s Mexican Restaurant. There was also a traditional bar, and a table filled with candy, of course. At 8 p.m., the tour of the Mansion started, it including a brief film of former groundskeeper Leonard Smith sharing haunting stories of paranormal activity he experienced while working at the mansion. After the short film, everyone in the tour was asked to choose one door to walk through. Form this point on it was as if attendees were in a haunted maze while they waited for people to jump out at them. By the end of the tour, everyone was able to walk underneath the mansion which lead to the exact place where the groundskeeper worked and experienced the paranormal activity. One tour-goer said, “He [Leonard Smith] is right, it gets really cold right here... as if this is where the spirits are.” Before starting the tour, Kimberly Stauffer, development director at Boys and Girls Club, said to tour-goers, “There may or may not be clowns,” as she closed the door laughing. A very tall man covered in black cloth from head-to-toe, resembling the Grim Reaper, joined the group on the tour. Attendees were able to feel the uneasiness as he quietly followed and walked around the room staring at everyone. This year had a spooky twist as opposed to the previous years. “We weren’t allowed to scare people on the tour last year, but we are this time,” Stauffer shared.