Santa Maria High School students say school’s auditorium is haunted

You don’t have to look far around the Ethel Pope Auditorium to see why it makes a great setting for a ghost story; the decades old building has many reminders of yesteryear in its architecture and seating.

Now, a new generation of students are shedding light on the story of “Jeanette,” a ghost they say haunts the auditorium. Many of these paranormal experiences involve the basement where Jeanette’s old varsity jacket still remains.

“Some people in my first period class had found it and were looking at it and the minute they pulled it out, the temperature dropped and they decided to put it back,” said Santa Maria High School student Satchel Hogan.

Xenia Rae, a student at Santa Maria High says she has been experiencing encounters with the paranormal since she was four years old. Last week, she took a video in the basement with a blue orb flying out of the room. Rae believes that orb is Jeanette.

“It makes me want to go in there more and see what else is in there,” Rae said.

The drama club leaves a seat in the front row open for her at every show. They like to believe Jeanette is a friendly ghost.

“She’s not the kind that comes after you that Ghost Adventures is going to want to drive out of your house. She’s just here to have a fun time and try and finish what she started,” Hogan said.

Drama Club Advisor Merrie Goldin says that whether or not students and staff believe in this ghost story, she likes being able to facilitate a space where students can be creative enough to decide for themselves.

“Our students need creative outlets and any time they can tell a story or feel like they’re using their imagination, I encourage that and the folk tale is fun to keep going,” Goldin said.

Now if you’d like to see for yourself if this auditorium is haunted or not, the Drama Club is having a performance Thursday at 6:30 p.m.

The Central Coast Paranormal Investigators have the following tips if you think your house is haunted: remove any old items that date back decades or were in homes with bad energy as ghosts can attach themselves to those items. Ghosts feed off fears so the more negative energy a person releases, the more chances for a bad ghost to appear.