By Diana Poist
Published on November 7, 2007
Sometimes, in the wee hours of the morning when PJC night security guard Mike Nelson arrives to make his rounds, a little girl is peering out the window. Other times he finds the professor keeping watch over a deserted hallway. After nine years Nelson is well acquainted with these two and the other permanent residents of Building 8. They are the Ashmore ghosts.
“I see something about twice a week,” Nelson said.
On Wednesday, Oct. 31, Nelson and the ghosts were star attractions when about two dozen PJC students and staff set up camp in Building 8. Amid the laughter and conversation it was difficult to tell which students had come for the pizza and fun, and which were there on a serious mission. In either case they all came with a single goal: to see a ghost.
Under the watchful eye of adjunct professor Mike Coleman and house manager Chris Ford, students set up a movie screen and started an endless round of horror films brought for the occasion. According to Coleman there were “enough to last until next Tuesday.”
With near-perfect timing, Nelson arrived shortly before midnight. A tall soft-spoken man with a shy smile, he came to share his experiences with the gathered ghost-watchers and take everybody on a tour of the most haunted areas of the building.
The hallway and stairways are the most active areas, according to Nelson. Indicating the entrance to the building’s main hall Nelson tells the students of the time he came upon the figure of man standing by the wall.
“I thought it was Mike Coleman playing a joke on me. It looked just like him,” Nelson said. “He just looked at me then faded away.”
Nelson is what paranormal experts refer to as an empath, or sensitive. He sees ghosts and is sensitive to their presence. Asked if there are others in his family who share his gift Nelson said, “I have an aunt, and my daughter and my dog.”
Pointing to a window in the lobby, Nelson indicated the spot where the little girl stands, head cupped in hands, peering out the window.
“She always gives me a sad feeling,” Nelson said. “Like she’s waiting for someone or has been left behind.” He notes that the pane in the window frequently fogs over. “It is the only one on the wall that does that,” he said, as a sweep of his arm indicated the glass-windowed wall of the auditorium.
After taking the squealing, giggling group on a trip into the basement storage area for a tale of lights going out and apparitions on the stairways, Nelson prepared to continue on his nightly rounds.
“They won’t see anything tonight,” he said. “They’re making too much noise.”
But, Nelson knows that, on some other night, when the confusion has died down and the building is once again deserted, the Ashmore ghosts will walk the stairs and hallways, slam the doors, and keep him company as he does his nightly rounds.
Author’s note: I want to thank all the students, faculty and staff who spent four hours with me on Oct. 31, sharing their stories and experiences. Several of you commented upon my tape recorder as I recorded conversations. Unfortunately, when I played the tape back to begin work on this article, the only sound was the hiss of the tape. A malfunctioning machine? Probably. But, you never know. D.P.