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Encounters Archive:

2006 Encounters:
Bobby Ray's Conference - South of Jonesboro, Arkansas

The Man in the Attic - Circleville, Ohio

The Sad Voice - Taormina, Italy

Ghost Hunting Dorks - Ft. Inn, South Carolina

Shall We Gather at the Fence? - Milton, Florida Ghost picture

Sharing Our Home With Spirits - Seattle Area, Washington

Nighttime Visitor - Amravati, Maharashtra, India

Someone Sat on the Bed - AuGres, Michigan

Handprints on the Wall - Nashville, Tennessee

Yellow Butterflies - Huntington, West Virginia

Building Owner's Last Visit - Long Beach, California

Stage Coach Tavern Shadow - Chepachet, Rhode Island
Ghost video ghost picture


Haunted Campsite - Mowery, Arizona

The Man - Bay City, Michigan

Ghosts of Gympie Library - Gympie, Queensland, Australia

Haunted Sleepover - York, Pennsylvania

Shadows and Cold Spots - Essex, Ontario, Canada

Bald Man at My Brother's Crib - Spooner, Wisconsin

Footsteps From the Red Room - Warwick, Rhode Island

Darting Shadows and My Haunted Home - Berri, South Australia

Spirits Followed Me Home From Carnton - Nashville, Tennessee

Downs Road Ghosts - Bethany, Connecticut

Kay's Goodbye - Sacramento, California

The Woman on the Bed - Melrose, Minnesota

Cemetery Apparition Video and EVP - Bardstown, Kentucky
Ghost video EVP


The Shadow Man - Richfield, Minnesota

The Flowered Lady - Stanford, Kentucky

Ghosts in Times of Trouble - Lancashire, England

A Sign on the Res - Crown Point, New Mexico

Get Out, Abe - Southern Wisconsin

Dead Man's Pass - Gawler, South Australia

Gayle's Thank-You - New York/California

Trying to Ignore the Haunting - Trumbull, Connecticut

The EVP That Follows Me - Oceano, California

Working the Permanent Shift - Tucson, Arizona

Gypsy Wild's Home - Huntingdon, Pennsylvania

Ghosts Like Me - Oregon

The Dangerous Medicine Bag - Keswick, Ontario, Canada

More Spirits on the Land - Milton, Florida Ghost picture

Ghostly Cafe Help - Connecticut

Great Grandpa's Return - Mill Spring, Missouri

The Deadly Car Accident that Haunted My Brother's House - Hamilton, Illinois

A Thud in the Bedroom - Chester, South Carolina

Being Watched in the Sanitarium - Cherokee, Iowa

Grandma's Swinging Chair - Kalamazoo, Michigan

My Shaking Bed - Escanaba, Michigan

The Haunted Department Store - Sydney, New South Wales, Australia

The Orb at Little Round Top - Gettysburg, Pennsylvania Ghost picture

Old Woman on Route 10 - near El Paso, Texas

Finding Lost Family - Chicago, Illinois

The Haunting Returns - Middletown/Carlisle, Ohio

Our Haunted House - Waterbury, Connecticut

The Ghost of a Prankster Sailor - London, England

Ghostly Car - Palisade, Nebraska

Golf Course Joker - Ruidoso, New Mexico

Payton's Kiss - Denver, Colorado

The Spinning Ferris Wheel - Albany, New York

Visit From Mom's Patient - Little Rock, Arkansas

The Old Woman in the Hotel - Somewhere in the North Rockies

Grandma's Outline? - Boise, Idaho

Attack at Rolling Hills - Bethany, New York

Pinching Premonition - Auckland, New Zealand

Mammaw and Pappaw's Visit - Toledo, Ohio

Ghostly Gray Cat - Jim Thorpe, Pennsylvania

Demonic Presence in the Bedroom - Kyger Creek, Ohio

A Sign of the Cross - Long Beach, California Ghost picture

The Ghost of Flying Hawk - Albany, New York

Footsteps at Nashua Fresh Air Camp - Greenfield, New Hampshire

White Streamy Woman - Winterberg, Germany

The Man With the Tall Black Hat - Fall River, Massachusetts

Grandmother's House - Garden Grove, California

Woman in White at the Whaley House - San Diego, California

Spectral Attack While Sleeping - Durban, South Africa

Help Me, Help Me, Help Me - Fayette, Missouri

A Blessing and a Curse - Windsor, Virginia

Calling Mom Back from Rest - Cary, Kentucky

Shadows at Camp Cedar Crest - Orange, Connecticut

The Family Returns from Virginia - Salem, Virginia Ghost picture

The Ghost of Gibbs Bridge - Sylvania, Ohio

The Woman in the Wardrobe - Castleford, West Yorkshire, England

Shot By a Ghost - Chicago, Illinois

Mom's Visit and Presence - California

The Dollhouse Grave - Medina, Tennessee Ghost picture

The Slamming Door - Eugene, Oregon

Voices in the House - Ontario, Canada

Maddie in the Mirror - Fort Scott, Kansas

Something Grabbed My leg - Scott Depot, West Virginia

Grandpa's Flag - Kissimmee, Florida

Strange Happenings at the Jefferson Hotel - Jefferson, Texas

An Evil House - Elmira, New York

The Giggling Girl - South Gate, Kentucky

Sensing a Presence - Las Cruces, New Mexico

More Spirits on the Land - Milton, Florida Ghost picture

The Black Form at the Foot of My Bed - Mobile, Alabama

The Smell of the Devil? - Mission, Texas

The Hopping Couch - Trumbull, Connecticut

Portrait of a Funny Old Man - Hull, England

Little Dancing Girl - Baltimore, Maryland

The Haunted Mansion - Reading, Pennsylvania

Haunted Newport News - Newport News, Virginia

Tormented in Our Apartment - Brooklyn, New York

The White Dove and Heavenly Voice - Toms River, New Jersey

Lights Flashes in the Night - Pigeon Forge, Tennessee

The Ghostly Mom is Still Here - Everett, Washington

A Young Man's Spirit - Hudson, Michigan

Trying to Get Our Attention - England

The Moving Knocks - Rochester, New York

Hearing My Name Three Times - Walnut Creek, California

The Ghostly Skeleton - Coast Range, northern Oregon

Teaspoon and Grandpap - Bentleyville, Pennsylvania

Me and Great Uncle Mike - Los Angeles, California

Spirit Guides Around the Moon - Gretna, Louisiana Ghost picture

A Hand in the Dark - Southeastern Ohio

Spectral Gardener - Mississippi

Angry 1800s Portrait - Monnerville, West Virginia

I Floated Down the Stairs Too - Oxford, England

The Boy Under the Patio - Ridge, Maryland

Claw Marks on the Stairs - St. Catharines, Ontario, Canada

Voices in the Night - Sydney, NSW, Australia

Graveyard Shift at Hollywood Cemetery - Richmond, Virginia

Dark Shadows in My Burnt Out Apartment - Indianapolis, Indiana

The Man at Birdcage Theatre - Tombstone, Arizona Ghost picture

A House Too Good to Be True - Pueblo, Colorado

Three Strange Knocks - South Boston, Virginia

Great Grandmother's Mirror - Jackson, Mississippi

Our Red Balloon - Maiden Rock, Wisconsin

Grandfather's Image - Delhi, New York

Creature Beyond - Milton, Florida Ghost picture

Childhood Friends - Brisbane, Queensland, Australia

The Floating Mass - Las Vegas, Nevada

Voices on New York Street - Long Beach, California

Catwoman's Bridge - Lancaster, South Carolina

Anya's Tom - Connecticut Ghost picture

Strange Events in Our Old House - Princeton, West Virginia

World Trade Center Ghosts and Events from 9/11 - New York, New York

Mom's Torment - White Rock, British Columbia, Canada

The Woman in the Basement Apartment - North Portland, Oregon

The Slave Family - Yazoo City, Mississippi

Strange Happenings at the Cheyenne Canon Inn - Colorado Springs, Colorado

My 3 Year-Old Sees His Grandpa - Boston, Massachusetts



December 29, 2006

Bobby Ray's Conference

Rate this encounter:
Votes:392 Rating: Rating = 6.92 Ratings Breakdown
[Name Withheld Upon Request], South of Jonesboro, Arkansas, Fall of 1986

I have never told anyone what happened that autumn night. I have hesitated to tell my story, because I didn’t want to be lumped with those “crazies” who believe in ghosts, or UFO’s, or werewolves. Perhaps the time has come to tell my story, and by doing so, maybe someone will come forward who can help me understand it.

Twenty years ago, I was a young school teacher in a rural area some twenty miles from Jonesboro. I was in my second year of teaching English to juniors and seniors and I loved my job. The school year was off to a difficult start -- a popular senior girl, Callie, had disappeared during the first month of school. She was a cheerleader, and had left the football field to walk to her home a couple of blocks from school after the game -- but she never made it. All sorts of tales were circulating, fueled by the fact that her walk would have taken her near a cemetery. Callie had been one of my favorite students -- happy, wholesome, seemingly untroubled girl. When no clues to her whereabouts were found, the prospects looked grim. Her boyfriend, Bobby Ray, was in my third period English class. He was a quiet young man, and the investigation had focused on him, but he had not been charged. I tried to ignore the rumors and remember that I was hired to teach these students English, not play detective.

It was late October, the night of parent-teacher conferences. The conferences were held from 5 to 9 P.M. to accommodate working parents, and I will admit I was uncomfortable thinking of my drive home alone, with Callie’s disappearance still on my mind. My class room was actually a new portable building located between the main building and the field house. This evening, the remoteness of my room made it seem eerie.

It was nearing 9 o’clock, and I had counted the evening a success. Most of the parents had been receptive to the news of their child’s progress -- or lack of progress -- and a large number had shown. I began to put away my paperwork and clear my desk so that I could leave. So intent was I on packing up, that I didn’t realize someone had entered the room until a movement right in front of my desk caught my eye.

“Bobby Ray! You scared me! I didn’t hear you come in!”

Bobby Ray just stood there looking at me with the strangest look on his face. “You don’t have to be afraid of me, ma’am,” he said, with a slow smile. Something about the way he said that made the hair on the back of my neck stand up. Something just didn’t feel right. “I just came to check on my grades. Momma couldn’t be here, she’s feeling kinda sick.”

I can tell you, I was feeling more than a little sick then. My room was isolated, and Bobby Ray’s visit was nothing short of sinister. My brain went into auto-pilot. “All right Bobby Ray, just have a seat here and sign in, please.” I passed the sheet to him and watched him scrawl his name on the line. Then I launched nervously into a rundown of how he was doing in my class, emphasizing areas where he excelled, and encouraging him to work harder in his weaker points. Throughout the meeting, Bobby Ray sat there with a glazed look in his eyes, and never said a word. My heart was pounding, and all I could think about was that Callie had vanished, and the young man seated before me may have been involved.

When I finished, I asked him, “Do you have any questions?” “No ma’am,” he answered, “but thank you.” Bobby Ray got up, and simply walked out of the room never looking back. I was shaking with relief, and feeling so foolish. I had let my imagination run away with me! A good night’s sleep was what I needed, and tomorrow morning I would realize how silly I had been.

I locked the sign in sheet and my gradebook in the filing cabinet, grabbed my purse, peered out the window, and made a dash for the main building.

A solemn atmosphere greeted me. “How did it go tonight?” I asked Brenda, the algebra teacher, and my best buddy, as we were heading to our cars. “I think it went as well as could be expected, considering the accident," she replied. “Accident? What accident?” I haven’t heard anything about one. I’ve been stuck out in my room all evening.”

“Oh, I hadn’t thought about your being out there, or I would have come and told you myself. I’m so sorry to have to tell you this, but one of your students was killed in an accident right after school this afternoon. It was that boy Bobby Ray, the one whose girlfriend disappeared.”

I was so stunned I couldn’t move or speak. “Oh that’s terrible! What happened?”

“Oh, it’s so sad, as soon as school was out this afternoon, he jumped into his truck, headed home, and pulled out in front of another vehicle. You must have heard the sirens and wondered what had happened.”

Suddenly, I remembered I had heard the sirens, but was so caught up in getting my room ready for the conference, I hadn’t thought anymore about it. But there was a mix up, because Bobby Ray hadn’t been killed, he was in my room a few minutes ago, and the accident had been hours ago.

“I hate to hear that, but I think you have the wrong student.” I was so ready for this night to be over. Several of the other staff members were in the parking lot discussing the wreck. I asked the coach if he had heard anything about it. “Yes, it was Bobby Ray,” said Coach Harris. “I went by and talked with him mother before I came back to the school building. She’s taking it really hard, as you might expect.”

I was reeling from shock. “And the accident has just happened a few minutes ago?” I asked. 




2014 Haunted New England Wall Calendar by Jeff Belanger photography by Frank Grace
Check out the 2014 Haunted New England wall calendar by Jeff Belanger and photography by Frank Grace!


Paranormal Conferences and Lectures
Don't miss the following events and lectures:

Jeff Belanger and “The Bridgewater Triangle” at Dedham Community Theatre - April 6, 2014 9:00PM

The Spirits of the Mark Twain House - Hartford, Connecticut - April 12, 2014

Paracon Australia - East Maitland, New South Wales, Australia - May 10-12, 2014