As home to some of this city乌鸦传媒檚 political pioneers, the Bennett house may have more than a few skeletons in its closets.

But its ghosts are what Andrew Bennett is most interested in.

When he was in his early 20s, Andrew lived there with his grandmother while attending Okanagan College. While he came away from that time with an education in business, he also gathered a few spooky stories.

Brookside Manor, located off of Ethel Street, was owned by Andrew乌鸦传媒檚 grandfather the former B.C. premier W.A.C. Bennett. It was built in 1914 by Francis R.E. DeHart, the then-mayor of Kelowna, and it became known as the DeHart house. F.R.E. DeHart died in 1935 and his son Francis, who was born in 1897, sold it to W.A.C. Bennett.

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The house is still standing, but Andrew said he last saw the place around 12 years ago.

乌鸦传媒淚t乌鸦传媒檚 been fixed up quite a bit, they used to have what we called memory lane in the basement as it had my grandfather乌鸦传媒檚 memorabilia. (It乌鸦传媒檚) a three storey building really, and has an attic too,乌鸦传媒� he said.

The spooky tale starts in March 1982. Bennett乌鸦传媒檚 grandmother left to see her sister in New Westminister and the family housekeeper, Aunt Winnie, warned him his home in Westbank after she left.

乌鸦传媒淚 said 乌鸦传媒榦h, I乌鸦传媒檓 not afraid by any ghosts,乌鸦传媒櫸谘淮�媒� Andrew said. 乌鸦传媒淭hat night I looked at my college textbook, laid down on the couch and when I woke up it was 1 a.m.乌鸦传媒�

He went upstairs to his room on the third floor. Then he heard a sound coming from the staircase.

乌鸦传媒淚 could hear this heavy breathing, shuffling on the carpeted stairway and rustling on the handle of the bannister like an old man going up the steps, going up very slowly and I could hear it coming all the way up and there (was) a door to the bedroom, right next to the stairway, and there (was) silence for a good minute, before a loud knock at the door,乌鸦传媒� he said.

乌鸦传媒淥h my goodness, I just about jumped out of my skin, my hair went straight up.乌鸦传媒�

He left the light on all night and got up at sunrise.

Andrew said Aunt Winnie also saw a ghost in her bedroom, who she thought was one of the DeHart sons who had been killed in the Second World War.

But he isn乌鸦传媒檛 sure of who the ghost belonged to on the staircase. 乌鸦传媒淭hat乌鸦传媒檚 a mystery because my grandfather didn乌鸦传媒檛 use the stairs,乌鸦传媒� he said.

The visit from the ghost on the stairs wasn乌鸦传媒檛 the only experience Andrew had while staying in the house.

He once saw a creepy figure in his grandfather乌鸦传媒檚 old bedroom, which he described as 乌鸦传媒渁 lion-like being with huge ears and hands by its side.乌鸦传媒�

乌鸦传媒淚 wouldn乌鸦传媒檛 say it was my imagination,乌鸦传媒� he said.

Andrew also saw an outline of what he thought to be his grandfather after he died, sitting in his old rocking chair. And while he was praying one night, he said something knocked and twisted hangers in a closet.

乌鸦传媒淢y dad (RJ) was one of the first ones to notice. He saw the man in the grey suit, which started the DeHart ghost stories as a young boy,乌鸦传媒� he said. 乌鸦传媒淭hey thought it was possibly Mr. DeHart.乌鸦传媒�

Andrew didn乌鸦传媒檛 stay by himself in the old house after his first weird encounter and believes there are lingering spirits on the property. But whose spirits they belong to remains the biggest mystery. The house is still owned by the Bennett family, but part of the property was developed into the Bennett Estate townhomes.

Michael Rowland is the ghost guy in the Okanagan and owns Healing Haunted Houses, an organization that purges homes of spooky happenings.

乌鸦传媒淕hosts are essentially the spirit or energy or essence of the person who passed away,乌鸦传媒� he said. 乌鸦传媒淢ost of the time they cross over, as the term is, to where they乌鸦传媒檙e supposed to be, wherever that is depending on your belief system, and the reason they don乌鸦传媒檛 is primarily they are attached to loved ones, children, spouses, that sort of thing.乌鸦传媒�

乌鸦传媒淭here are other cases where they don乌鸦传媒檛 feel worthy to cross over, and feel like they乌鸦传媒檙e going to be judged乌鸦传媒� or if they乌鸦传媒檝e done something they feel is unforgivable, they stay behind,乌鸦传媒� Rowland said.

He said ghosts will attach to houses or people and can change the atmosphere of the thing they attach to.

乌鸦传媒淚t seems that earthbound spirits, like attracts like. If it乌鸦传媒檚 a loving household, the earthbound spirit desires that, it may attach to that,乌鸦传媒� Rowland said. 乌鸦传媒淭hey tend to collect together and I乌鸦传媒檓 not sure exactly why that is.乌鸦传媒�

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A haunted house will also have unexplained happenings, that can乌鸦传媒檛 be attributed to things like a creaky floor, or a running refrigerator, he said.

乌鸦传媒淗ouses have all kinds of their owns noises, from settling and floors creaking, but usually, if the house is haunted unusual things will happen like lights and TVs will turn themselves on and off,乌鸦传媒� Rowland said.

乌鸦传媒淪ome people will have a knock at the door乌鸦传媒� some people can feel a sense of anger or anxiety in their house and when they leave they don乌鸦传媒檛 have that feeling.乌鸦传媒�

But it乌鸦传媒檚 not like Hollywood, ghosts can乌鸦传媒檛 hurt people, but they can affect the health and wellness of the hosts, he said.

Although there necessarily more ghosts out and about around Halloween, Rowland thinks people are more attuned to them around this time.

carli.berry@kelownacapnews.com
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