Despite a slight deviation from the timeline, owing to the prolonged nature of this consultation case, I felt it was essential to include it here. On the first day of April 2004, I was presented with a case from McDonough, GA involving a household in need. Initially, I was hesitant to accept the case, but their persistence swayed me. To give you a clearer understanding of the importance of meticulously vetting your clients before embarking on any investigation, I'll share our exact conversation verbatim.
“My wife and I have been being haunted now for the past five years we are now going into poltergeist activity even in daylight hours. I was in or local newspaper last year. The article has made all the way to a paranormal web site in Canada. We have had two investigative paranormal team come out and both caught activity and evp's. Now what we want to find out is why and how come so much. We have learned that the mobile home park has been a cemetery twice over. We have graves in our lot.”
At this juncture, I found myself grappling with the authenticity of the submission, yet I decided to proceed. Delving into the historical segment of the submission, here's what the author had penned:
“It has been a cemetery twice over. I wrote to the original owner in Fla. of our graves and activity. The next month she sold the complex to a land developer. I became disabled 11months after we moved in. there are six seriously ill chidren in the complex and doctors can not find out why.neighbors have now been coming to me with their activity in their homes. we have used ……. paranormal research to do the lst one. then it was north ……. hunter society. ……. paranormal reasearch team refuses to come back. ……. hunt team refses to come out. The activity is on going never stops. the ther thing is I'm on disability pa so would not be able to pay anything but you would bewelcome for the reasearch.”
To ensure the individual's privacy and prevent any potential tracing back to their identity or location, I've deliberately omitted the names of the organizations involved. Thus, my response was:
“Hello, My name is Jonathan Williams and I am Operations Director of SoulTrackers Paranormal Investigations. I would like to first thank you for filing a sightings report with us and confiding in us and our experience. Could you please take the time to fill out this questionnaire so that our investigators can research your activity further and direct us down the right path so we can help you out in understanding what is going on? Thanks again and good luck with your situation and do not worry, we will help you and guide you any way we can.”
Suddenly, my inbox becomes a flurry of activity as he begins to inundate me with a deluge of images and reports. These intriguing documents are sourced from various investigative organizations, one of which includes:
“we are wanting to find out the source and why we are getting so much, report at bottom of page.. we live 45 minutes away from atlanta aiport. do you guys charge for investigations i'm on disability pay.”
He had bombarded me with a dozen messages, prompting me to craft a response:
“Hey …..,Thanks for all the information, and I hope you are bearing this activity the best you can. As for my organization, right now I’m overseas in Japan and my hands are tied until July on coming to see you. I would love to fly down to Atlanta for a few days and do some research on your property. I have an investigation team in Alabama, but they are not trained for this type of activity. The best I can tell you right now is to put salt water around your home openings (doors, windows, etc..) before you go to bed, and if you pass through that opening, throw some sprinkles down again. Find some rosemary incense and burn them in the house as well. Plus, while you fall asleep, envision a light around the house protecting you from all the bad. I know you’re in a very hostile area, the "Iraq" of the paranormal, lol. Take care of yourself and we will help you out as much as possible. I will send out a nationwide bulletin for all my investigators to help out and contribute ideas on how we can cohabitate you and these spirits. Also try and talk to them, like ordinary everyday people, let them know you can’t leave, and you’re sorry, but you can’t help them as well with their situation. Plus let them know about your problems and ask them not to do anything to you. That might calm things down a little. Also, pray to St. Michael, and use our prayer we use whenever we have an investigation. Let me know if some of these work and let your fellow neighbors in on the same precautions I mentioned. Keep me informed of your situation and I will be back in the states in July, I will either call you or come down to your location. Until then, keep email contact with me. Take care and good luck.”
He responded with:
“Thanks mr.williams , we have tried the salt and rosemary and even a priest twice in one month. these are some verey unselted spirits and are very hard to deal with. we did learn through my five years of that it had been a cemertey twice over. I had wrote the original owner of the complex and told her of ou raves appearing on our lot and the activity that we had been having , she then the next month sold the complex to a land developer. this tells me she knew all along what it had been before. 11 months after we moved in I became disabled and learned that there were six very seriously ill children in the complex and doctors could not find out why. now my wife is becoming disabled this year. I truly believe its all tied in and something seriously wrong here. I've tried to get the enviromental department out here but they won't fool with it. our E M F readings have been 199.8 on the gauss meter I have. neighbors have come to me with their activity in their homes. look very forward t meeting you I want to find out the source of al this . my phone # is 000-000-0000. I have offered the other researchers to come back but I believe the spirits are keeping them away. i hope you guys have very high tech equipment as you wil need them here. Looking very forwad to meeting You I will keep you updated with our activity .Thanks.”
At this juncture, my worry for the man was escalating. Barely 24 to 48 hours had passed, and my inbox was already overflowing with his emails! Without a moment's delay, I broadcasted an urgent message to all my offices, seeking assistance. Here's what the urgent communique entailed:
“Right now ……. is in high spirits, but he is really agitated about the ongoing events that are happening to him. He is located in McDonough, GA. He currently has a mobile home located on a cemetery. The mobile home was planted in the cemetery. The planners and contractors pulled another "Poltergeist" and built the homes on a burial ground. He needs guidance as well as help in cohabitation with this situation. He has several spirits currently around his residence as well as neighbors complaining of the same problems. Here is the contact information for him, if anyone emails him, I WANT A FULL COPY CC TO ME.... If anyone calls him, I want to know what progress you made in the conversations. This is a consultation case. If anyone can visit him, I want the full investigation report like protocol. Here is his information, he currently has WebTV.”
A few of my investigators responded, but none were local to the area. He even went the extra mile, sending me a vintage photograph of a cemetery and a snapshot of the park, which were strikingly identical. It was utterly compelling! Then, on April 12, he reached out once more with another email:
“Hi mr. Johnathan , this was a group out of ………. ga. came yesterday and spent only a our here and this is what they got. Physic of the group said we were on top of indian burial ground and a lot of civil war tragedy was here . hpe this report conviences you that we are on a very hotspot of activity here. hope you are well take care happy easter”
The authenticity of his situation struck me deeply, stirring empathy within me for him and his family. Despite being miles away in Japan, I felt a profound sense of helplessness, unable to provide any tangible assistance. The situation took a turn for the worse on April 19th, when I was greeted by a distressing email:
“Hi Johnathan, I was attacked again yesterday at 330 p.m. ……'s sister and mom and dad were here when this took place in or living room. some ghost pnched me in the eye so hard it made my right eye bleed. The same eye taht hey gave me a blackeye on monday. the wifes folks were in shock when this happened. I have yet anoter group arriving the 24th . I will let you know what they find. I did find the name Lester Baxter that the psychic gave me . He lived in 1734 -1850. do you supposse not only graves we are living on but do you think it possible we could be living in a paranormal vortex? Look for your repl . hope you are safe and well .”
I responded the most professional I could:
“I’m very sorry to hear about your attacks. There are good possibilities though you are on a vortex. Those are the questions that are asked every day, why are cemeteries placed in their unique locations? Keep me informed of this new group coming in and their findings. I will see what I can do in my end. Thanks for the updates and I will try and help in any ways I can. I would try and record around the house with an audio recorder and ask questions. Play back the audio and see what you get. Try and find out why there is so much anger there. And let the spirits know it’s not your fault that the trailer is there. Hopefully we can work at cohabitation in the trailer park. Good luck and keep in touch.”
The plot thickens considerably on April 25th when my inbox starts filling up with these intriguing emails:
“hi mr. Johnathan, wanted to let you know my wife Holly is now disabled due to this location . Also can ghosts and dark forces cause you to have a lot of missing time? ……. and i both Have missed a day at a time or half day. and as I said we don't drink or do drugs or smoke. Peter James seems to feel we are in a major vortex also. as soon as they get their show ready he wants to do a investigation here also. I have been in touch with peter ever since we moved here. please lt me know about the missing time. will be glad when you can arrive here also.”
Then I respond with:
“I’m very sorry to hear about your disabilities. You are correct on the time shifting and loss. I have been through many investigations were you look at the clock and it’s like "Where did the time go?" There could very well be a major vortex in your area. Cemeteries are known to be built right on a centered vortex of energy. They might have placed your trailer on top of it. I am hoping we can meet up very soon this year, I will try and schedule leave for a week and visit, do a few investigations, as well as find out some ways of cohabitation for you and these spirits. I am again very sorry to hear about your ordeals, but keep me updated, and I will try and answer all your questions.”
No sooner had I sent the email, than a response pinged back to me:
“Hi Mr. Williams, I don't know if we told you we did have psychic come in from ……… ga . she did say that we have more than 20 spirits in the home, many animal spirits and several darkforces? Since i talked to last slimmed had appeared in our dinning room floor two feet wide and four feet long. The psychic did say we are beyond a house cleansing she recomened we move . our finances will not allow that . it takes $10,000.00 to move this home.we will be glad when we can meet with you . by the way were is your office located out of? Do you have a time frame of when you might be arriving here? Hope you have a blessed day.”
I responded with:
“I am sorry again to hear about your situations, but hang in there, things will turn around for the good. My office is located right now in Northern Japan, but, in a few months, I will be located in Cheyenne, WY. I am in the Air Force as a cop, so I am stationed where I am needed. I only have a year and a half left in the service then I am moving with my wife and soon to be child to PA in Gettysburg. Again, I’m very sorry and I am going to help you as much as I possibly can. Just hang in there. I should be able to visit in the fall or winter of this year, no time frame, sorry.”
And then, he came back with yet another unexpected twist!
“hi johnathan , this makes me like you all together more. i was a military cop in the army. out of 190th mp unit in atlanta.. when i was dicharged i went straight into bank security survived three holdups lost a weapon in one of them. so see? you'll be helping a fellow officer. my rank out of bank securiy was LT. when I get my sister in law to help me i'll get her to make you a copy of these evp's we have. they said on tv the other day the best way to catch a ghost is with EnfaRed Camera. at our place all you have to do is be here. I'm going to send you a copy of the cemetery were i found it through the geanology society.”
I responded with:
That’s great to hear you were in the MP Unit, I worked with a bunch of Maryland army guys while I was in Pakistan last year. That was a great time... (Sense the sarcasm...) They were a great group of guys; it was just the location stunk. But anyway, I already received the picture a while back, thanks for that, and I will be looking forward to the EVP's as well. Well, Infrared does show a little better than standard cameras, but it’s all in the photographer that makes the picture. Some people are used to getting orbs in pictures, while others can get apparitions in pictures. Well, thanks for the email and talk to you later.”
On the 28th of April, he graced my inbox with an update:
“Hi johnnathan, last night was a wild one. they started off with their moaning and wooing. Then as i was in the dinning room the light over the kitchen sink started flickering. Then i asked the spirit to show me a sign if was my mother then i heard a loud wind as if the light bulb was being blown out like a candle. Then as we started to go to bed a whole bunch of silver orbs were in the hallway. Then I heard a gunshot in our bedroom . then it sounded like a male spirit made off sound as if he were hit inthe stomache by a bullet. Then poor miss holly was cleaning ectoplasma out of the main bathtub. to top all this off we found fingerprints in the mirror over our sinks they weren't ………'s nor mine. will be extra glad when you are able to come here. all the investigators we have had so far refuse to come back for further investigations. Holly said there was a oder after the gunshot but she couldn't remeber what it was. hope you are well and o.k the activity here has us wore to a frazzle. have a geat day”
I was utterly astounded, at a loss for how to respond. He was inundating me with a wealth of information, and we were steadily establishing a connection. As the sun rose the following day, my inbox pinged with yet another email from him:
“hi Johnathan , we went to run errands in town today . on the way home we saw what appeared to be spirits going into one of the old type homes in mcdonough. ….. and i both saw them at the same time. then when we got home , the backdoor was wide open we don't use that door. we could have lost our kitty on that. then when I was outside i happened to notice fresh blood stains by the back door. want your feedback on this. Our kitty has been couring down all day also been extra jumpy. hope all is well with you.”
I refrained from replying to his messages, as I was at a loss for words. I was unable to assist him, and it seemed an insurmountable task for him to rectify the situation on his own. In an attempt to find a solution, I dispatched a comprehensive email to our group, seeking their collective insight. Unfortunately, this effort yielded no results. I was merely marking time, eagerly awaiting the day I could step in and lend a hand to him and his wife. Throughout May, we exchanged brief emails sporadically, a strategy designed to distract him from the ongoing predicament. Then, unexpectedly, he dropped a bombshell on May 30th:
“Hi Johnathan, I was going to the store this afternoon around 1p.m. my neighbor was outside yelling at me that there was a 10 year old girl in a long white dress that was behind me waving. the dress had the old type square collar on it and she had long black hair. he said she faded out very shortly afterwards. as usual they have been throwing items around the house. I'm having my sister in law bring her digital camera down will try to get new shots tomorrow. hope you are well and o.k. hope to hear from you son have a great memorial day”
And then, on the 8th of June, he sends me this absolute showstopper:
“Hi Johnathan, we were evitated again 3.a.m.. they pickeked the whole bed up and lifted it up half way then threw us hard back down. Then we had a two hour major power spike in the daytime. Everyone is telling us these are not earthbound spirits. You never said if you charged for coming to do investigations. As I’m on disability pay and the wife still out of work. I also got some more photos the last two days. Hope you are well and o.k.. what do you I we do?”
This situation is truly igniting my passion and determination to assist this individual. Several months have passed, and the activity has only escalated since our last conversation. Then, on June 18th, I receive an email from him:
“Hi Johnathan, the freezer made a thump and someone moaned from the inside the reading was 178.8 on the machine. There is also something spitting on our mirror in our bathroom were I have a rosary hanging, how are you doing have not herd from you in a while.”
Currently, I'm in the throes of an exciting relocation journey, with all else taking a backseat until I touch down in NJ. On the 25th of June, as I was jetting back from an adventure in Japan, an email notification popped up on my screen: he had reached out to me.
“just to let you know …… was thrown in the bathroom yesterday . they left marks on her arm. And they hotted us out last night. we recieaved news monday that the last group that was here , the physic of the group died monday morning. Be carefull in your travels. your friends , …… & …... p.s. i;m not able to pick ……. up as i have two compmpletly gone disks in my back.”
My heart truly ached for this man! He was in dire need of assistance, and I had already started to carve out a weekend in my schedule to lend a hand. Then, on the 17th of July, an unexpected turn of events occurred:
“Hi johnthan , I need your mailing address so i can send you this picture i took. so you will know what you will be dealing with here. I was amazed.”
I emailed him back to just send me a copy of it via email. He emails me on the 22nd:
“Hi Johnathan, this has just recently hapened to me. The ghosts and spirits here have branded me with a face above my knee on the right leg. it will be here for a long time. you can see the eyes ,nose and mouth. it freaked my neighbor out. anyway , hope to hear from you soon”
Then……he sent me the photo and email on Aug 5th ….
“this was done august 1st 330 p.m by my sister in laws digital camera phot at bottom of page. want your feedback”
I was utterly astounded, at a complete loss for words. Here's how I responded:
“John, First, I would like to apologize for my inability to contact you. I have been away for a while on leave. Now to your past emails, I’m very confused and hope you have a different sense of humor then I do. I have reviewed the pictures you sent and I am not amused. I am taking my own time and patience out of my life and the organization's time to help you in your time of need, but, with these past emails, it looks like you’re making a mockery out of the whole situation. I don't think if you were going through all of these incidents, you would be joking about it. I have decided to write you off as a fraudulent client unless you provide an explanation for the "made up" pictures and stories. At this point, I am also not going to use the energy and man power for the investigation and counselling of your case. If you have any explanations or serious discussions, please email me and I will get back to you as soon as possible.”
He then replies with:
“johnathan , i did not do these photos, my sister in law took them and this is how they came back . I don't appreciate anyone accusing me of something i did not do in the first place. So I'll just wright you off instead. I'll not bother you anymore. thankyou for wasting my time and energy . you don't have a clue or how to deal with this.”
Drawing the curtain on this chapter on August 10th, after four grueling months of dedicated consultation work, I was left with nothing to show for it. The valuable lesson I've gleaned from this experience? Always, without fail, meticulously vet your clients.