Hi folks.

I would like to introduce Monique Morales, who will be helping me organize Bay Area Ghost Hunters. Without her encouragement, I doubt I would have taken on this challenge. She won't be able to attend our Murphys ghost walk, but we are currently in the process of putting together a general meetup in the San Jose area. I am also monitoring the e-mail list to ensure all messages are on topic and not spam, so she'll probably be helping out with that too. She may also be organizing meetups when I can't. In addition, she hosts the San Francisco Bay Area Live Music Meetup Group, so if you're into music as well, please check that out.

Please note I removed the dues requirement for BAGH. I understand that has been deterrent for some folks, but there are some expenses required to maintain this listing at MeetUp.com. From time to time, I may charge fees for some events to cover expenses or ensure attendance. I may even ask for donations. At this point, I have credit cards to pay off and really can't afford the additional bill, so I hope some of you who are willing and able will find this group worth helping out from time to time. The Murphys ghost walk has a fee, but none of that money is going to BAGH. It's a fundraiser for California Haunts.

I realize many of the people who signed up for this group would like to do some serious paranormal investigations. I would also like to thank the experienced people who volunteered their services to show us the ropes. I hope we'll be taking advantage of your offers in the not-too-distant future.

However, one of our long-time members has given me a little background on this group, since I have yet to participate in any of its events myself. The impression that I took is that there was a conflict in expectations and some members splintered off BAGH to form another group that required a tough screening process to be accepted into to their fold. I don't know if it was a matter of personality clashes or some folks taking the paranormal investigations more seriously than others. I intend to fully support the hard core investigators of the group and would even be willing to help out on some investigations, but I must remind folks that the highlights they see on Ghost Hunters or Most Haunted are just that. Frequently, it can be quite boring sitting around in the dark at the sites waiting for something to happen (and not always successfully) and then having to watch and listen to every minute of the tapes generated to find anything. And I'm talking about hours and hours of sitting around. If you don't have the patience to do that, please don't volunteer for a serious investigations.

However, this group doesn't have to be about just investigations. There's is nothing wrong with setting up other types of related outings, such as ghost tours like the one we're planning at Murphys and meeting up at haunted locations. Considering we have 229 members at the time I write this, I'm sure there must be enough diversity here to do a variety of activities as well as maintain a core of serious investigators.

Apparently, another past problem with BAGH is that people were agreeing to come to meetups and then not showing up. It seems with 229 members, we should be able to see some people show up. Monique and I are both taking on this challenge for a few months to see how it goes. If the results are disappointing, we will reconsider the time we're putting into this.

Adrienne Foster
BAGH Organizer