Haunted Forest a hit in Saline County

People paid $10 a car load to be frightened this past Thursday, Friday and Saturday nights in Harrisburg. And from all indications, they got their money's worth.

Sarah Money works as a nurse with Coleman Tri-County Services and was one of those helping put on the Haunted Forest over the weekend at the Saline County Fairgrounds in Harrisburg and she was excited about the great crowds that turned out for the annual Halloween-themed event.

"One-hundred percent of the money we raise with the Haunted Forest goes to Coleman Tri-County Services," she said. "This is our 24th year for the event. For all the previous years, we held it in Ridgway, and this is the first year that we've held it here in Harrisburg. It appears to be a good move."

With their main office in Harrisburg, Coleman Tri-County Services is a not-for-profit corporation primarily serving residents of Gallatin, Saline and White counties, offering home intervention screenings and services to children below the age of 3. They have three development training facilities with locations in Harrisburg, Shawneetown and Norris City.

Tri-County also offers development training, vocational services and programming, supported-living services and services, and support to adults with disabilities. In addition, they also offer services to senior citizens with visual impairments.

Lisa Knight is a developmental trainer and safety officer with Tri-County who helps organize the event each year.

"We've been a haunted forest since 1993 and we decided to move it to Harrisburg, so we could draw more people and we're finding it was a wise move as we're seeing a record number of people coming out each night."

Knight said that over 100 volunteers pitch in each year to make the event happen.