Scary Jobs

Haunted Forest hires student to work part time

Above Reynolds works along the trail in the Haunted Forest while dressed in her costume. She was one of many students who worked at the Haunted Forest this year. Photo submitted by Teal Reynolds.
Above Reynolds is set up along the trail in the Haunted Forest while dressed in her costume. She was one of many students who worked at the Haunted Forest this year. Photo submitted by Teal Reynolds.

Almost all teenagers who have had a part time job at one point or another are well aware of the horrors that come along with each paycheck. Enduring argumentative customers, mind numbing tasks, and long hours are common factors for most teen jobs, but this year some Potomac Falls students are discovering that their jobs are a little more frightening than most.

 Once again, as the Haunted Forest opens its gates to the annual flood of Halloween loving, fear junkies, students jump at the chance to make a little extra cash by applying for the temporary jobs that open with it.  As a result, each weekend of the holiday season, a handful of Potomac Falls students find themselves dressing up in tattered clothes stained with dirt and fake blood and reporting for work as the sun begins to set.

 Each student is in charge of picking their own costume, tethered only by the requirement that it must be scary. Senior Teal Reynolds describes her homemade zombie costume as more of a “deranged traveler,” that she created using shredded clothing over a layer of Under Armour to protect her from the chill of the October night. In addition to her clothing, Reynolds also uses a thick layer of eyeliner around her eyes to make them look sunken like a zombie’s.

 While some students like Reynolds only take the minimal time to apply their makeup, others require a little more effort like junior Rachael Greenman, who spends an average of forty five minutes to do her own makeup for her witch-like costume.

 “I have to paint my face white and smudge it so I am pale, apply black or dark eyeshadow around my eyes so I look scary, and then I put fake blood on when I get there,” said Greenman.

 For the event a few students are in charge of running the outside operations, such as taking tickets or directing customers to the path, but the majority have jobs specifically along the trail.

 “My shtick is I sit in a chair and I work with Gabby,” said Reynold. “She is the ring girl and I’m the decoy. I sit on the chair and hit a box with a broomstick. It’s like a flash thing, a really quick pop of light. They all look at me and then she comes out.”

 While some of the jobs along the trail are specific like Reynolds, other’s jobs are simply to try and scare the customers through various points along the path.

 “My first night I made a little girl cry and I felt a little bit bad but then my second night I scared the living daylights out of a woman that was in the bathroom, which was just great,” Greenman said. “She screamed and ran out when she saw me.”

 Junior Joe Gindhart will also be one of several students trying to scare people throughout the trail. Dressed as a clown with a homemade mask, he will be stationed along the path with some other killer clowns, trying to scare anyone who walks by.

 “It’s like being paid to have fun,” said Gindhart.