Paranormal team busy year round; working a 2-3 month waiting list

story by Amanda Carson
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Most people only think about ghosts, apparitions and haunting once a year, and it’s mostly from scary movies, ghoulish costumes and cheap haunted exhibits that pop up every October.

Then there are ghost hunters who come face-to-face with true haunting year round and those who try to help the haunted. In Arkansas this ghost hunter team is known as River Valley Paranormal Research and Investigations (RVPRI).

RVPRI and its team of investigators was founded in 2006 by Adrian Scalf and his wife Tina, after living in a haunted home and experiencing activity for themselves. From that point they wanted to learn more and help others in a similar situation. Above all else RVPRI is there to help others and provide peace of mind, because “most people just want to know they’re not crazy,” Tina Scalf said.

They try to explain the unexplainable and be an aid when others have no one to turn to with their problem. For this reason RVPRI will come and investigate a home or business free of charge. This is not just a hobby; this is a passion the team works as hard as their day jobs, if not more. RVPRI founder, Adrian, is a representative in Arkansas for the International Paranormal Investigators (I.P.I.) and RVPRI is also a member of the TAPS family, from Ghost Hunters on SyFy Channel. RVPRI is a legit ghost hunting business.

During the past 4 years the RVPRI Team has conducted more than 100 investigations, most of which have been homes. It is hard to believe there are many haunted locations around the River Valley. As of now, RVPRI has a 2-3 month waiting listing and is booking investigations into next year.

“There is some debunking in investigations, but mostly it is true paranormal activity,” Adrian explained.

Of the more than 100 investigations, only four turned out to have no evidence of paranormal activity. A typical investigation usually takes two weeks to complete; a night to execute the investigation in the home, a week to review information gathered and a week to compile the findings.

A typical night investigation takes about two hours to setup equipment, two to three hours of investigating and an hour or so for equipment takedown.

Because the investigations are free and the equipment is quite pricey, RVPRI welcomes donations and holds two fundraisers a year.

The most recent fundraiser was an October ghost hunt in the Booneville Sanatorium, possibly one of the most haunted locations in Arkansas. The event was in time for Halloween and proceeds raised were also donated to benefit one of the local Human Services Development Centers.

The other fundraiser is held in the spring, and this past April the event was a Murder Mystery party — the team likes to have a little fun too. RVPRI also holds classes on Paranormal Basics for those wishing to learn more about the profession. Past topics have included: paranormal photography, EMF’s, EVP’s, types of haunting and on Nov. 13 the topic will be the haunting of the Fort Smith History Museum.

Classes are open to the public and $15 at the Fort Smith History Museum, which includes admission to the museum as well. Each class also includes discussion of past case studies relevant to the topic. Even non believers can’t explain away some of the evidence they have found.

Ghost hunting is not as glamorous as it is made out to be in the movies; they do not carry proton packs, live in a firehouse or drive an old-fashioned ambulance, although they do have a spirit or two follow them home occasionally.

Investigation equipment includes DVR and camera systems to capture any activity, an EMF (Electromagnetic Field) meter because spirits often have a high magnetic field presence, audio – EVP (Electronic Voice Phenomena) machine to record any sounds or voices not audibly heard at the time — and temperature gauges since spirits are often a bit cooler.

The RVPRI website has pictures and EVP examples of paranormal activity found during investigations.