'Mine of the Dead' haunted house springs to life Halloween night PARVANEH PESSIAN ppessian@durhamregion.com BROOKLIN -- As the sights and sounds of horror creep into local neighbourhoods in the weeks leading up to Halloween, Mike and Leanne Grell are keeping their tricks under wraps. For the past two months, the couple has been working hard behind closed doors at their Brooklin home to whip up a new batch of scares for visitors. "It's always a surprise," says Mr. Grell of the haunted house that's been taking over his front yard and garage for the past seven years. "We like to do the unveiling on that day when the door finally goes up and the neighbourhood sees what's been going on." The popular attraction draws hundreds of people, including children and adults, every year. "We have a lot of people who bring their kids but when the kids refuse to go in, they'll leave them with me at the front and go through on their own," says Ms. Grell, with a laugh. "Many times, the parents will leave and come back with more adults ... we had carloads of people coming in here last year." Every year, the theme of the Haunt changes to keep things fresh for the public. Last year, the theme involved an asylum while the year before featured a butcher shop and spiders. "I like to make it a bit of a challenge for myself so when I'm building it, I'm always thinking about the next year," says Mr. Grell, adding that this year's theme will be Mine of the Dead. "It's going to be completely different from any of the stuff they've seen before." Last year also marked the first time the couple added a food-drive component to their Haunt, encouraging each daring visitor to bring at least one non-perishable food item. They managed to collect a total of 450 pounds of food, which was donated to Simcoe Hall Settlement House in Oshawa. "We really want to focus on the food drive for Simcoe Hall because there are so many people that are going without (food) as we head into the holiday season," says Ms. Grell. "Christmas is right around the corner from Halloween so this year, we are aiming to double the amount of food we got last time." The fun begins at 6:30 p.m. on Wednesday, Oct. 31 at 62 Rockland Cres., Brooklin. Reporter Parvaneh Pessian covers the town of Whitby for Metroland Media Group's Durham Region Division Brooklin Citizen Tim Whittaker - Publisher Joanne Burghardt - Editor-in-Chief Mike Johnston - Managing Editor Fred Eismont - Director of Advertising Eddie Kolodziejcak - Classifi ed Advertising Manager Abe Fakhourie - Distribution Manager Lillian Hook - Office Manager Janice O'Neil, Cheryl Haines - Composing Managers PH 905-579-4400 CLASSIFIEDS 905-576-9335 GENERAL FAX 905-576-9335 NEWS FAX 905-579-1809 865 Farewell St., Oshawa ON L1H 7L5 Member: Ontario Press Council, OCNA, CCNA, SNA. All content copyright A Metroland Media Group Ltd. Publication Brooklin couple gives neighbours the spooks METROLAND FILE PHOTO BROOKLIN -- Jordan Seymour took part in a haunted house set up by Mike and Leanne Grell for Halloween last year based around an asylum theme. METROLAND FILE PHOTO BROOKLIN -- Mike and Leanne Grell of Brooklin have been transforming their home into a haunted house on Halloween for the past seven years, including a spooky asylum last year. This year's creation will be unveiled Oct. 31.