The student activities board at my college frequently manages to schedule some pretty cool events on campus. We’ve had everyone from Dane Cook to John Stewart come to entertain us. Last night John Zaffis, the so called “Godfather of the Paranormal,” came to campus for the second year in a row to give a lecture and, later, take us students on a bit of a ghost hunt. For those of you who don’t know, John Zaffis has been involved in paranormal research for 37 years. The recent release of the horror movie “A Haunting in Connecticut” has probably catapulted Mr. Zaffis a little farther into mainstream consciousness as he was one of the paranormal investigators called in to help Snedeker family (the last name was changed to Campbell in the film.)
For those of you who don’t know the story, the Snedeker family lived a very normal life until their oldest son, Matt, was diagnosed with Hodgkins Lymphoma (a very deadly form of cancer.) They were having to drive from their home a few hours away to Connecticut so Matt could get chemo therapy. The family decided to rent a house closer to the hospital. After they moved in, they discovered that it used to be a funeral home, but they could not afford to move out because they would lose the deposit and security they had already put down. To make a very long story short, all of the children had experiences, but none as bad as Matt. He was tormented for almost 2 years by the demonic presences in the house. Finally, his parents saw no option but to institutionalize him as they were convinced he was mentally ill. The last thing Matt said as his mother Carmen left him at the institution was “Now they’ll come after you.” Soon after, they did. Carmen actually went down into Matt’s bedroom as said “Alright you son of a bitch, if you want to mess with someone you mess with me. Leave my kids alone.” After that, the activity in the house kicked up and the family ended up sleeping together on the floor in the living room for safety. Entities would attack them when they went to the bathroom so thy implemented a buddy system for that, also. John Zaffis and his aunt and uncle Ed and Lorianne Warren entered the home and stayed there for 9 and a half weeks bearing witness to the activity so that the Roman Catholic Church would sponsor an exorcism. Finally, they did and the exorcism was successful. The family still decided not to stay in the home anymore and moved out as soon as they were sure nothing could follow them.
I went to Mr. Zaffis’ presentation last year with no prior knowledge of his experience and clout in the paranormal field and, though he spoke briefly of his encounter with the Snedekers, the main focus of his presentation was on his career and Museum of the Paranormal in Connecticut. This time, though, he came specifically to tell the true story that inspired the movie and the discovery channel documentary on the haunting of the Snedekers’ house.
I went in with high expectations, now knowing who he was and that he was going to be telling us about one of the most intense, negative hauntings of our time. After watching a forty minute documentary on the ordeal of the Snedeker family, Mr. Zaffis took the microphone and announced that not only was the floor open for us to ask him questions, but also that Carmen Snedeker would be answering them, too. The conversation was very open and, despite the horrors she endured at the hands of non-human spirits, Carmen was warm and friendly. Today she, too, is a paranormal investigator.
Though the questions asked ranged from “Did you have pets? If so, how did they react to the haunting?” (The family had a ferret that would hide in the blood pit in the home’s basement until the activity stopped) to “Why do you think Matt was hit the hardest?” (He was very ill and in puberty– two siren calls to spirits) Carmen and John answered every question fully to the best of their ability. The presentation was very informative and interesting. If any of you have the opportunity to see John on his current lecture circuit I recommend it!
For more information on John Zaffis, his Museum, or the true story behind the haunting visit John Zaffis’ website .
Whispers in the Dark 