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By Melanie Fitzgerald and Christy Becker
Melanie and Christy are the Co-Chairs of Skeletown, the 47th annual Haunted House. They are both in their 4th year with the Guild.
It’s that bewitching time of year again here at the museum—time for the 47th annual Haunted House! But what you might not know is that to get to this point, a group of 
very dedicated women have been working since this time LAST year to prepare. In fact, we’ve already started to have meetings to plan for NEXT year’s Haunted House! You also may not know that the annual Haunted House is organized, run and staffed by The Children’s Museum Guild, a volunteer organization comprised of 100 women. Each year, active Guild members donate 12,000 hours working on the Haunted House and contribute approximately $450,000 directly to the Museum to fund many of its wonderful programs and exhibits.
Over the past 47 years we’ve had some very creative and fun themes...Camp Creepy, Monster 
Manor, Ghostly Grand Hotel, Eerie Express, and Tomb of Doom! So after all that time you might wonder how we continue to come up with new and different themes? Each year, the Haunted House Co-Chairs get the honor of selecting the theme! Christy and I wanted to incorporate the community into the Haunted House this year, so we decided to do an urban/city theme and ask for participation from organizations and companies who represent the feel of our community. We are transforming some of Indianapolis’ best known landmarks into some of the city’s spookiest destinations for Skeletown! The Indianapolis Colts, Indianapolis Motor Speedway, Indiana State Fairgrounds, and the Indianapolis Museum of Art...plus many more....will all be represented within Skeletown! Stay tuned for a contest on the museum Facebook page to guess the rest of the destinations!
Skeletown runs Oct. 16–31. Tickets are now on sale and can be purchased at Marsh Supermarkets and AAA locations. If your little one frightens easily, check out the IPL’s Lights-On Hours. If your children dare to be scared, then stop by during Frightening Hours. Enjoy more Halloween fun at the museum during special activities for the season, including several Feast with the Witches, a Family Late-Night Adventure and Scout Late-Night Adventures.
