Halloween swept through Chenay Bay, St. Croix this weekend, filling the air with bloodcurdling screams, maniacal laughter and ominous drums during the second “Paul-o-ween Halloween Spectacular” at Bungalows on the Bay.
Organizer Paul Blair said the weekend-long fright fest was also a fundraiser for the Moffitt Cancer Center in Tampa, Florida. Blair said he was inspired to support the center after surviving pancreatic cancer last year.
“I’ve always done fundraisers. I’ve always done big events to try to bring the community together. I think the island’s been so good to me in so many ways. While I was sick, so many people reached out to me on a daily basis — I really feel like it helped me heal,” he said. “And I think when the island gives you something, you have to give back.”
The main event was a multiroom haunted house filled with jaw-dropping sets and Oscar-worthy performances by volunteers inspired by horror staples like The Exorcist and — scariest of all, for some — the V.I. Water and Power Authority.
“There are so many people involved, so many volunteers, so many sponsors. It would take me minutes to go through all that,” Blair said. “But it started with an idea and a concept years ago, and we kind of just built on it.”
Mimsel Riley, who said she’s worked with Blair on haunted houses before, and Puerto Rico-based production designer Marc Greville took this year’s haunted house to a new level. Greville said being original is key to designing a scary experience.
“I think the more stuff you can do yourself — and the less you buy from the big stores,” he said. “Because everybody’s seen that stuff. Get creative. Do your own fun thing.”
For Riley, it’s all in the details.
“It’s the tiny little, silly details that pull it together,” she said.
