Near the entrance of a loud mess hall packed with volunteers, covered in artificial blood and gore, is a handwritten poster.
“We do it for the greater good. If you’re out here, you’re one of us,” the poster reads, “and we’re not a cult.”
SCARE for a CURE, a local non-profit organization, puts on a yearly story-driven haunted house, which runs until Oct. 25 this year. Having raised over $500,000 for the Breast Cancer Resource Center since 2007, co-founder and director Jarrett Crippen helped cultivate a supportive community by embracing what makes their volunteers unique.
“All we can do is expose ourselves to them,” Crippen said. “We have to show them our vulnerable side, (and) that we show them our passion. And sometimes they think we’re nerdy, geeky people, and they are not wrong, and that’s okay.”
This sense of community was also what made Crippen partner with the Breast Cancer Resource Center. While many charities he called only gave an address for a check, he was shocked to hear the center’s enthusiasm to support the production.
“I was stuck because I didn’t know what else to say. I hadn’t gotten this far,” Crippen said. “Hugs were shared immediately … and the Breast Cancer Resource Center has just become a major part of my life.”
Now, volunteers come out every year to support each other’s big events. Raimi Fenrich, a development specialist from the resource center, said that beyond the money, this community has also helped their cause.
“It’s just really nice to have those connections and see how the organizations can help each other,” Fenrich said.
It hasn’t always been easy, though. SCARE for a CURE changed venues twice, losing large amounts of its leadership team during the downtime. Having almost shut down for good, it wasn’t until “the 11th hour” that Crippen said they found their new home, fittingly named Ghost Town.
“I never forget that I used to have to save quarters for gas … that we never had air conditioning … that every year we had to build everything up, and every year, we had to tear every single thing back down,” Crippen said. “Seeing the growth that we’ve gone through over the last 17 years, it’s amazing to me.”
Crippen said SCARE for a CURE’s growth comes from its roughly 80% volunteer return rate. Besides sharing stories of firing gore cannons, building flesh monsters or designing long-lost languages, newcomers return because they feel productive and appreciated.
Alys Thompson, SCARE for a CURE art director and secretary, saw this in action while leading a group of UT students from the Texas Wranglers one year.
“One of them pointed over to one of our brand new buildings, and he said, ‘I helped build that,’” Thompson said. “And he was so proud that he got to do something that he could see the results of.”
Crippen and Susan Pratt, president of SCARE for a CURE, fully purchased the land in 2024, setting up permanent infrastructure, including an air-conditioned mess hall donated by Pratt’s late mother. With their roots now firmly set, Crippen said his favorite moments are walking the property by himself and reflecting.
“We’ve helped a lot of people, and we’ve given a lot of money. We’ve made a lot of memories, (and) we’ve made a lot of friends,” Crippen said.
