{"id":247917,"date":"2014-10-24T00:00:00","date_gmt":"2014-10-24T07:00:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/sdnews.com\/the-ghost-whisperers\/"},"modified":"2014-10-24T00:00:00","modified_gmt":"2014-10-24T07:00:00","slug":"the-ghost-whisperers","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/test.sdnews.com\/es\/the-ghost-whisperers\/","title":{"rendered":"The ghost whisperers"},"content":{"rendered":"

Local paranormal investigation team always at the ready<\/strong><\/p>\n

Morgan M. Hurley | Editor colaborador<\/p>\n

It\u2019s October, a month that \u2014\u00a0for most of us \u2014 is analogous to things that go bump in the night. After all, everywhere we look we see new television shows, movie releases, store promotions, house decorations, costume shops popping up out of nowhere, all centered around the more spooky aspects of Halloween. We become hypersensitive to all those unusual noises or movements we see out of the corner of our eye, especially in the dark, and they heighten our fears more than usual this time of year.<\/p>\n

But what if you suspected that your house or business was inhabited by spirits, unwanted or not? What if you happened to sense an unearthly presence or two, or heard voices in the night that you could not explain?<\/p>\n

Who you gonna call?<\/p>\n

\"presidio_vmweb\"<\/a>
The Presidio in Mission Valley is thought to be haunted. (Photo by Jeremy Ogul; graphics by Vince Meehan)<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

Here in America\u2019s Finest City, many call the San Diego Paranormal Research Society (SDPRS). Founded five years ago by Nicole Strickland, the SDPRS team visits homes, businesses and a historic sites \u2014\u00a0free of charge \u2014 to try to find a logical answer to unexplained events.<\/p>\n

Consisting of a group of \u201clike-minded\u201d volunteer paranormal investigators, \u201cintuitives\u201d and consultants of various genres, Strickland said her team takes their work very seriously; they are not your typical commercial \u201cghost chaser\u201d that turns up the scare-factor for profit.<\/p>\n

SDPRS is the real deal, though Strickland considers herself a \u201cstudent of the paranormal\u201d and is very aware of the limitations of her field.<\/p>\n

\u201cPeople go around tossing out the word \u2018experts\u2019 or \u2018paranormal experts.\u2019 I am a strong proponent against that. How can anyone be an expert in something that hasn\u2019t been proven?\u201d<\/p>\n

Strickland, who describes her interest in the paranormal as an \u201cinnate fascination,\u201d dates her curiosity back to the age of two, but it wasn\u2019t until after what she described as a \u201cvery profound, life-changing experience\u201d with the spirit of her late grandmother in 2000 that she decided her true calling was actively researching paranormal activity. After working with several other teams to sharpen her skills and experience, she launched SDPRS in 2009.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe\u2019re not out to prove the existence of ghosts,\u201d she said. \u201cI can\u2019t sit there and say I\u2019ve had these experiences and that, 100 percent, \u2018Yes, I was communicating with a ghost.\u2019 No, we can\u2019t do that. All we do is we try to find logical, natural explanations for what we\u2019re finding, and if we can\u2019t find an explanation for it, then what we\u2019re left with is \u2018Well, this is something we can\u2019t explain.\u2019\u201d<\/p>\n

Paranormal research is a technical and complex combination of various fields of study, including historical, archeological, genealogical and even weather and environment. It also has schools of thought that deal strictly with the scientific, though Strickland emphasizes that it is more \u201cpseudo-science\u201d than exact science.<\/p>\n

Science-only Research teams use cameras, video cameras, environmental meters and other specialized equipment designed specifically for the paranormal. Other teams, like Strickland\u2019s, rely on many of those devices \u2014 using such tools as infrared cameras, dowsing rods and audio recorders \u2014 but their experiments also blend the scientific with the spiritual, metaphysical and intuitive side.<\/p>\n

And unlike many of today\u2019s TV shows, Strickland said a real paranormal investigation generally lasts between four to six hours; anything longer would be physically and mentally depleting for the research team.<\/p>\n

In the last several years, SDPRS has done a number of paranormal investigations of public and historical locations in San Diego and beyond and is currently focusing on several properties in Julian. Locally, SDPRS has spent time in active research at the Cosmopolitan Hotel in Old Town, the Junipero Serra Museum in Presidio Park off of Taylor Street in Mission Valley, the Berkeley steam ferry along the Embarcadero, the William Heath Davis House Downtown, and the Buena Vista Adobe in Vista, among others.<\/p>\n

As one of the only teams to conduct research inside the Serra Museum, Strickland said she is fairly sure that they have come in contact with Father Serra himself during their investigations and have also uncovered \u201cresidual\u201d Native American energy in the area. Though she hasn\u2019t been able to do any formal research at the Mission de Alcala, she has visited the grounds several times and has felt the same energy there as well.<\/p>\n

Historical research of a property and its former occupants is an important part of paranormal investigations because often the paranormal research uncovers clues that history can help solve.<\/p>\n

Gabe Selak, public programs manager with the San Diego History Center (SDHC) in Balboa Park, joined Strickland\u2019s team a little over a year ago, serving as a historical consultant.<\/p>\n

Selak\u2019s interest was first piqued last year when Strickland approached the SDHC about doing a private investigation of the Serra Museum, one of the properties under SDHC\u2019s tutelage.<\/p>\n

While such private events do not involve the public and only consist of the research team, Selak worked directly with SDPRS to plan, research and execute that investigation.<\/p>\n

\u201cBased on my understanding of the site I was able to tell them a little about the people who lived there, and that led to questions that they were able to ask during the time we were doing the research,\u201d he said, adding that the name Manuel came up during the investigation and they were able to find historical documentation that identified soldiers associated with the Presidio who were named Manuel.<\/p>\n

\u201c[I helped] them understand who and what activities happened at that site, and that can lead, as it did in the other instance, to questions asking for specific people\u2019s names or whether there are any children, and [based on my research] we know how many there actually were.\u201d<\/p>\n

Not long after the private investigation was completed, the SDHC asked SDPRC to return to the museum for another investigation last fall, this one public, and they used it as a fundraiser for the history center. The results of that investigation and the private one were \u201ceye-opening\u201d for Selak, who previously had only heard stories regarding the Serra Museum, such as sightings of soldiers up on the hillside, in his 10 years with SDHC.<\/p>\n

\u201cAll places that are haunted have paranormal activity, but not all places that have paranormal activity are haunted,\u201d Strickland said.<\/p>\n

In addition to historical sites, SDPRS gets many requests for home visits. Odd experiences at private residences make everyday life challenging for the occupants, Strickland said, and many just want assurances that they aren\u2019t crazy. Hence, not all of these requests turn into actual investigations.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe have a very extensive client interview process to get the specifics of the case. A lot of the time it is just educating [the residents] on what it could be. Sometimes it is plumbing or electricity problems or foundation issues with their home and that is all it is,\u201d she said, adding that each case is different and some clients actually know the spirit and wish to coexist with them.<\/p>\n

Unlike the \u201cGhost Busters,\u201d however, Strickland said the SDPRS team\u2019s focus is merely to investigate claims of ghosts and hauntings. They don\u2019t try to harass or diminish the spirits they encounter.<\/p>\n

\u201cSometimes clients will say, \u2018I just want it out \u2014 I want it out of my house,\u2019\u201d she said. \u201cThat is not our specialty, but we have people that we can refer out to that can possibly come and do spirit rescue or apply different techniques such as blessings, the use of crystals or different types of incense to clear out the area.\u201d<\/p>\n

Though SDPRS is open to new members who think they may be sensitive to the paranormal, Strickland has a set of bylaws on the website that clearly distinguishes her team from those who she considers \u201cthrill seekers.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cWe are a very serious team,\u201d she said. \u201cWe take pride in our work and we really strive to help and educate our clients. We\u2019re not experts, we don\u2019t claim to be, and we\u2019re always learning as we go.<\/p>\n

\u201cIf people are just out to copy the guys on some of the TV shows and provoke the spirits, this is not the team for them,\u201d she said.<\/p>\n

Follow SDPRS through their Facebook page at Facebook.com\/SDPRS or find out more about them by visiting their website, sandiegoparanormalresearch.com.<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

\u2014Reach Morgan M. Hurley at <\/em>morgan@sdcnn.com<\/em><\/a>.<\/em><\/p>\n

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Local paranormal investigation team always at the ready Morgan M. Hurley | Contributing Editor It\u2019s October, a month that \u2014\u00a0for most of us \u2014 is analogous to things that go bump in the night. After all, everywhere we look we see new television shows, movie releases, store promotions, house decorations, costume shops popping up out […]<\/p>","protected":false},"author":726,"featured_media":247918,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_seopress_robots_primary_cat":"11555","_seopress_titles_title":"The ghost whisperers","_seopress_titles_desc":"","_seopress_robots_index":"","jnews-multi-image_gallery":[],"jnews_single_post":[],"jnews_primary_category":[],"jnews_social_meta":[],"jnews_override_counter":[],"footnotes":""},"categories":[11547,11551,11555],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-247917","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-features","category-news","category-uptown-news"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/test.sdnews.com\/es\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/247917","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/test.sdnews.com\/es\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/test.sdnews.com\/es\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/test.sdnews.com\/es\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/726"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/test.sdnews.com\/es\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=247917"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/test.sdnews.com\/es\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/247917\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/test.sdnews.com\/es\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/247918"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/test.sdnews.com\/es\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=247917"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/test.sdnews.com\/es\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=247917"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/test.sdnews.com\/es\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=247917"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}