April 14, 2021

Winnipeg
-3° C, Overcast

Full Forecast

Contact Us Subscribe Manage Subscription Chat with us
Log in Create Free Account Help Chat with us
    • Contact Us
    • Advertising Contact
    • Submit a News Tip
    • Subscribe to Newsletters

    • Finding your
      information

    • My Account
    • Manage my Subscription
    • Change Password

    • Grid View
    • List View
    • Compact View
    • Text Size
    • Translate

    • Log Out
    • Log in
    • Create Free Account
    • Help

    • Grid View
    • List View
    • Compact View
    • Text Size
    • Translate
  • Coronavirus Coverage
  • Replica E-Edition
    • About the E-Edition
    • Winnipeg Free Press
    • The Herald
    • The Headliner
    • The Lance
    • The Metro
    • The Sou'Wester
    • The Times
  • Above the Fold
  • Front page
  • Arts & Life
    • All Arts & Life
    • The Arts
    • Autos
    • Books
    • Book Club
    • Cannabis
    • Celebrities
    • Diversions
    • Puzzles
    • Environment
    • Events
    • Faith
    • Food & Drink
    • Your Health
    • Life & Style
    • Movies
    • Music
    • Science & Technology
    • TV
    • Travel
  • Business
    • All Business
    • Agriculture
    • Personal Finance
  • Canada
  • Local
  • Opinion
    • All Opinion
    • Analysis
    • Columnists
    • Editorials
    • Editorial Cartoons
    • Letters to the Editor
    • Send a Letter to the Editor
  • Sports
    • All Sports
    • Amateur
    • Auto Racing
    • Blue Bombers
    • Curling
    • Football
    • Goldeyes
    • Golf
    • High School
    • Hockey
    • Horse Racing
    • Winnipeg Jets
    • Manitoba Moose
    • WHL
    • MLB
    • NBA
    • Olympics
    • Soccer
  • World
  • The StarNEW
  • About Us
    • About Us
    • Advertising
    • Contact Us
    • Carrier Positions & Retailer Requests
    • FP Newspapers Inc.
    • History
    • Internships
    • Job Opportunities
    • News Café
    • Privacy Policy
    • Retail Locations
    • Staff Biographies
    • Terms and Conditions
  • Archives
  • Canstar Community News
    • All Canstar Community News
    • The Headliner
    • The Herald
    • The Lance
    • The Metro
    • The Sou'wester
    • The Times
    • Sports
    • Events
    • Contact Us
    • E-Editions
  • Classifieds
  • Contests
  • Coupons
    • All Coupons
    • Staples Copy & Print Coupons
    • Ripley's Aquariums Coupons
    • The Bay Coupons
    • Staples Canada Coupons
    • Altitude Sports Coupons
    • Nike Coupons
    • Tuango Coupons
    • Ebay Canada Coupons
    • Sport Chek Coupons
    • Roots Coupons
  • Sponsored
    • Publications
    • Sponsored Articles
  • Flyers
  • Homes
    • Property Listings
    • Featured News
    • Renovation and design
    • New homes
    • Resale homes
  • Newsletters
  • Obituaries
  • Puzzles
  • Photostore
  • More

©2021 FP Newspaper Inc.

Close
  • Quick Links

    • Coronavirus Coverage
    • Above the Fold
    • Home
    • Local
    • Canada
    • World
    • Classifieds
    • Special Coverage
    • Flyers
    • Newsletters
    • Obituaries
    • Photostore
    • Archives
    • Contests
    • Publications
    • Sponsored Content
    • Privacy Policy

    Ways to support us

    • Pay it Forward program
    • Subscribe
    • Day Pass
    • Read Now Pay later
  • Replica E-Edition

    • About the E-Edition
    • Winnipeg Free Press
    • The Herald
    • The Headliner
    • The Lance
    • The Metro
    • The Sou'Wester
    • The Times

    Business

    • All Business
    • Agriculture
    • Personal Finance
  • Arts & Life

    • All Arts & Life
    • The Arts
    • Autos
    • Books
    • Cannabis
    • Celebrities
    • Diversions
    • Puzzles
    • Environment
    • Events
    • Faith
    • Food & Drink
    • Your Health
    • Life & Style
    • Movies
    • Music
    • Science & Technology
    • TV
    • Travel
  • Sports

    • All Sports
    • Amateur
    • Auto Racing
    • Blue Bombers
    • Curling
    • Football
    • Goldeyes
    • Golf
    • High School
    • Hockey
    • Horse Racing
    • Winnipeg Jets
    • Manitoba Moose
    • WHL
    • MLB
    • NBA
    • Olympics
    • Soccer
  • Opinion

    • All Opinion
    • Analysis
    • Columnists
    • Editorials
    • Editorial Cartoons
    • Letters to the Editor
    • Send a Letter to the Editor

    Media

    • All Media
    • Photo Galleries
    • Videos

    Homes

    • Property Listings
    • Featured News
    • Renovation and design
    • New homes
    • Resale homes
  • Canstar Community News

    • All Canstar Community News
    • The Headliner
    • The Herald
    • The Lance
    • The Metro
    • The Sou'wester
    • The Times
    • Sports
    • Events
    • Contact Us
    • E-Editions
  • Coupons

    • All Coupons
    • Staples Copy & Print Coupons
    • Ripley's Aquariums Coupons
    • The Bay Coupons
    • Staples Canada Coupons
    • Altitude Sports Coupons
    • Nike Coupons
    • Tuango Coupons
    • Ebay Canada Coupons
    • Sport Chek Coupons
    • Roots Coupons
  • About Us

    • About Us
    • Advertising
    • Contact Us
    • Carrier Positions & Retailer Requests
    • FP Newspapers Inc.
    • History
    • Internships
    • Job Opportunities
    • News Café
    • Privacy Policy
    • Retail Locations
    • Staff Biographies
    • Terms and Conditions
Winnipeg Free Press
Articles Read
Your Balance +tax
Day Pass Till
Day Pass
    • Contact Us
    • Advertising Contact
    • Report an Error
    • Send a Letter to the Editor
    • Staff Biographies
    • Submit a News Tip
    • Subscribe to Newsletters

    • Finding your
      information

    • Log in
    • Create Account
    • Help
    • Chat with us

    • Grid View
    • List View
    • Compact View
    • Text Size
    • Translate
    • My Account
    • Manage My Subscription
    • Change Password
    • Chat with us

    • Grid View
    • List View
    • Compact View
    • Text Size
    • Translate

    • Log Out
Log in Create Account Contact Us
Contact Us Manage Subscription
  • Sections
  • Local
  • Arts & Life
    • All Arts & Life
    • The Arts
    • Autos
    • Books
    • Diversions
    • Environment
    • Faith
    • Food & Drink
    • Health
    • Movies
    • Music
    • TV
    • Travel
  • Business
  • Sports
    • All Sports
    • Amateur
    • Blue Bombers
    • Curling
    • Football
    • Goldeyes
    • High School
    • Hockey
    • Winnipeg Jets
    • Manitoba Moose
    • WHL
    • MLB
    • NBA
    • Soccer
  • Opinion
    • All Opinion
    • Analysis
    • Columnists
    • Editorials
    • Editorial Cartoons
    • Letters to the Editor
    • Send a Letter to the Editor
  • E-Edition
  • Homes
  • Classifieds
    • All Classifieds
    • Announcements
    • Automotive
    • Careers
    • Garage Sales
    • Merchandise
    • Pets
    • Real Estate
    • Rentals
    • Services
  • Sponsored
    • Publications
    • Sponsored Articles
  • Coupons
    • All Coupons
    • Staples Copy & Print
    • Ripley's Aquariums
    • The Bay
    • Staples Canada
    • Altitude Sports
    • Nike
    • Tuango
    • Ebay Canada
    • Sport Chek
    • Roots
  • Obituaries
  • Subscribe
Local

Advertisement

Advertise With Us

The spirits move them... again and again

Paranormal investigators probe ghosts, haunted locations in Western Canada

By: Ashley Prest
Posted: 1:00 AM CDT Monday, Sep. 15, 2014

  • Tweet
  • Share
  • Print
  • Email
  • Save to Read Later
Paranormal investigators Jeff Richards and Priscilla Wolf, from the paranormal documentary series, The Other Side, are seen Sunday at Winnipeg Paracon 2014 at the Marlborough Hotel.

JOHN WOODS / WINNIPEG FREE PRESS

Paranormal investigators Jeff Richards and Priscilla Wolf, from the paranormal documentary series, The Other Side, are seen Sunday at Winnipeg Paracon 2014 at the Marlborough Hotel.

When Jeff Richards was just five years old and staying over at his grandparents' home, he woke up in the middle of night to see his grandfather standing at the foot of his bed.

Hey there, time traveller!
This article was published 14/9/2014 (2403 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

When Jeff Richards was just five years old and staying over at his grandparents' home, he woke up in the middle of night to see his grandfather standing at the foot of his bed.

He was told the next morning that his grandfather, who was in hospital with an illness, had died in the night and was already gone when Richards saw him. "He gave me a wave, he turned and walked out of the room," Richards, 29, said. "I knew I had seen him as a spirit."

That event stayed with him as he grew up and became the motivation behind Richards' quest to prove the existence of the paranormal, assuage fear of the supernatural and help any spirits he encounters.

Richards, known as an "intuitive" -- sensitive to the paranormal, was among at least a dozen presenters at Winnipeg Paracon 2014 at the historic Marlborough Hotel. The three-day event, which ended Sunday, also included displays and vendors.

Using contact ceremonies, pendulums featuring ancient objects and "automatic," or spirit-guided, writing, Richards said he often sees and hears dead people and has even been physically attacked by angry spirits.

"Through my quest, I've captured some amazing evidence," Richards said.

Richards, researcher/cultural liaison Priscilla Wolf, investigator Bill Connelly and elder/spiritual guide Tom Charles make up a team of paranormal investigators who use both traditional First Nations and scientific methods to investigate reported ghosts and haunted locations in Western Canada. Their investigations and adventures are the subject of the documentary series The Other Side which last fall aired its first season of 13 episodes on APTN (www.aptn.ca/theotherside) and are currently being shown on Vision TV (www.visiontv.ca/shows/the-other-side).

"I'll go into a place and start making notes in my book of all the things that I see and feel, the energies of the space, and Priscilla works to corroborate it historically through her research," said Richards, who is of First Nations descent and continuing to learn about his roots. "We look to corroborate it further with Tom as our elder and Bill using our technical equipment when we actually do make contact... Spirit is always present in aboriginal culture and I rally against fear of the supernatural and paranormal."

Richards and Connelly were stalked by a spirit in season one that followed the team from an investigation at Moose Jaw's Western Development Museum to their next investigation in North Battleford. In Episode 5, which can be seen on the APTN website, the team returned to the museum to confront the spirit which had scratched Richards' neck and repeatedly touched Connelly's arm.

The team was eventually able to extricate themselves from the spirit -- watch the episode to find out how -- and do not speak that spirit's name for their own safety.

"We still get contact with him occasionally. There was some communication that Bill was attempting on our radio program (in Saskatoon) using a device called a spirit box, the spirit is given a voice through this device, and he got very a specific name coming through and it was that guy," Richards said.

Stay informed

The latest updates on the novel coronavirus and COVID-19.

Subscribe to COVID-19 Briefing
Sign Up

The team is filming season two right now, but would not disclose a location, only that the Dakota language is involved.

"This season, I really feel like we have closure on both cases that we've done at the beginning here," Richards said. "Will something follow us from future places? That remains to be seen."

The Marlborough may be one of Winnipeg's spookiest locations after the murder of 16-year-old Grace (Edith) Cook took place in August 1943 in Room 503. After the perpetrator killed her, he returned the new shoes he had bought for her, and which she was wearing when she died. While her killer was found, tried and hanged in July 1944 at Headingley Gaol, many say Edith Cook's ghost haunts the hotel.

It is that story which is behind the book Buckle My Shoe by Selkirk's Maureen Flynn, who also appeared at Winnipeg Paracon. She had with her a pair of shoes similar to those Cook had been wearing when she was murdered.

"I always felt since I learned of Edith and was here that she wanted her shoes back," Flynn said. "I decided to buy her a pair, I brought them here to Paracon and I'm going to leave them with the hotel and I'm hoping they'll get them into the area that was her old room. It's not a functioning room anymore, but I'm hoping they can slip them in there and that would make her happy."

ashley.prest@freepress.mb.ca

Advertisement

Advertise With Us

  • Report Error
  • Submit a Tip
  • Refund

The Winnipeg Free Press invites you to share your opinion on this story in a letter to the editor. A selection of letters to the editor are published daily.

To submit a letter:
• fill out the form on this page, or
• email letters@freepress.mb.ca, or
• mail Letters to the Editor, 1355 Mountain Avenue, Winnipeg, Manitoba, R2X 3B6.

Letters must include the writer’s full name, address, and a daytime phone number. Letters are edited for length and clarity.

Advertisement

Advertise With Us

Top