Jeff Scott Cole - Ghostly Encounters: Confessions of a Paranormal Investigator

For my son, Jakob;

Whether its in the here and now or the hereafter,
I will always love you and be with you.

Disclaimer: This memoir is intended for education and entertainment. Although the author and publisher have made every effort to ensure that the information in this book was correct at press time, the author and publisher do not assume and hereby disclaim any liability to any party for any loss, damage, or disruption caused by errors or omissions. Some names and identifying details have been changed to protect the privacy of individuals.

Copyright 2015 by Jeff Scott Cole and Johnathon Robson

All photos provided by authors, unless otherwise noted.

All rights reserved. No part of this book may be reproduced in any manner without the express written consent of the publisher, except in the case of brief excerpts in critical reviews or articles. All inquiries should be addressed to Skyhorse Publishing, 307 West 36th Street, 11th Floor, New York, NY 10018.

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Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data is available on file.

Cover design by Rain Saukas

Cover photo credit: Thinkstock

Print ISBN: 978-1-63220-584-1

Ebook ISBN: 978-1-63450-011-1

Printed in the United States of America

Acknowledgments

T his book would not have been possible without the guidance and support of countless friends and family members, near and far. In particular, I would like to thank my editor Floyd Largent, who has been with me from the mammoths and mastodons of the early Paleo-Indian period, to the ghosts of the twenty-first century; my Literary Agent Carrie Pestritto of Prospect Agency, whose unwavering support, patience and friendship has been both anchor and buoy; and Skyhorse Publishing editor Nicole Frail, who saw the vision and believed in it. I thank my Dad, Herb and Judy, Bryan and Amy, Keith and Brenda, and most certainly the spirit of my dear mother Arlene, who I know keeps a watchful and protective eye on me, particularly when I step into dark creepy places. I thank my mentors and colleagues: Bruce Webb, Ralph Halse, Melissa Couch, and all my friends (faculty and former students) at Madison Local Schools in Ohio.

Additionally, Johnathon would like to thank his wife Sarah and Isaiah for their endless support during countless investigations, evidence review sessions, and the creation of Ghostly Encounters . He would also like to thank his parents Ruth, Max, and his sister Nancy for always being there and for encouraging his voyage into the paranormal field. Finally, we would like to express our deep thank to our C-Bus Paranormal team mates, current and past; Julie and Michael T., Doug BJ S., Christopher O., Andrew A., Mike H., and Ryan B. It has been a hell of a ride and the journey has only begun!

Table of Contents

Authors Note

H i there, and thank you for selecting Ghostly Encounters: Confessions of a Paranormal Investigator . We are grateful and honored to be a part of your library. Before we serve up the entre, allow us to offer appetizers we hope you will find technically and contextually helpful as you read through these pages and interact with this awesome technology.

Our intention was to create an interactive book, in print and digital formats, that will allow you to see and hear the bits and pieces of evidence we have collected from several recent investigations. Although the practical aspects of the investigations are straightforward as presented in the text, the form and nature of the evidence collected remains elusive. Why is one EVP (Electronic Voice Phenomenon) clear as a bell while another is a scarcely audible whisper? To be honest, we havent a clue... and neither does anyone else. Sure, there are tons of ideas, beliefs, theories, and sheer speculation, but nothing that answers this simple question with an equally simple answer.

With this in mind, we strongly recommend you use earbuds or headphones when listening to the attached video files and adjust the volume setting on your device accordingly. Some of the evidence is remarkably clear, requiring nothing more than your devices speaker; other bits are less obvious, especially when heard for the first time, and may require several replays. This is why all the evidence we have captured and included is repeated with subtitles. Though a few bits are a little challenging, trust us, they are there. And speaking of trust, let us consider this crucial subject.

What is trust, anyway? As a noun, trust is reliance on the integrity, strength, ability, surety, etc., of a person or thing; confidence. As a verb, trust is to rely upon or place confidence in someone or something (dictionary.com). Whether its about your car or your friends, trust is about integrity and confidencetraits we both take very seriously. As we delve into the text and the chronology of investigations we have conducted, we hope that our honesty and candor warrant your respect and earn your trust.

Honesty and candor are also prime reasons why this book is subtitled as it is. In the reality TV/para-celebrity atmosphere that seems to have enveloped ghost hunting and paranormal investigating, both truths and troubling falsehoods, misunderstandings, and misinterpretations have emerged in what has truly become a pop culture phenomenon. The negative connotations confound and frustrate all paranormal investigators who take this field seriously... and yes, there are tens of thousands of us. This book is as much dedicated to them as it is to the curious enthusiast. It is remarkable how a few reality showssome good, some badhave influenced public understanding, perceptions, and even beliefs about paranormal phenomena. Certainly one of the best results of these programs is the awareness and intense curiosity they have raised in so many people. On the other hand, some programs have raised both eyebrows and questions in the paranormal investigating community as to the veracity of evidence presented and some of the methods and practices exhibited on television.

This being said, please understand that, besides this book, we are neither trying to sell you anything nor trying to convince you these phenomena are either real or imagined. That is for you to decide, though we think it is reasonable to assume (given the fact that you purchased this book) that you are at least curious about ghosts and spirits, even if you are not an experienced paranormal investigator with your own experiences.

This leads us to the context and voice of this book. Although we have both worked equally and extensively on all aspects of this project, an easily defined division of labor surfaced: Jeff wrote it, and John contributed to the writing and techd it, creating the clips, QR codes, storage for those links, and so on. So... umm... if theres a busted link, its Johns fault! Seriously, this has been an easy collaboration between two people who are, in many ways, complete opposites of each other. More on this later.