Nebraska Paranormal Conference held for first time in Lincoln

A small group gathered at the Oasis Inn and Suites near 52nd and Cornhusker Highway to get in touch with their spooky side Sunday.

It was the first ever Nebraska Paranormal Conference – where paranormal investigators, authors and physics were on hand to try and explain those creepy thing you sometimes just can’t explain.

Josh Heard, one of the event’s main speakers, has written several books on paranormal activity.

He says, while many will dismiss the idea as something out of a science fiction novel, there’s more science to it than fiction.

"There’s a lot more to it," Heard said.

"My aspect – or the direction I go – is I like to see where history and any evidence that we may or may not collect can kind of come together and kind of shake hands so to speak, and correlate. I love that.

A long-time skeptic himself, Heard says the death of his uncle prompted him to take a closer look into the afterlife.

"All I can say is, until it happens – you have this kind of ‘Aha!’ moment – where you’re like ‘I can’t explain this away,’" he said.

"And you start digging deeper and that’s where it gets really interesting."

Interesting might be on word to describe the experiences of Jeff Hale and Monica Wilson.

The two are members of the Spirit Encounters Research Team – S.E.R.T. for short.

Like the TV shows, they go into places people think may be haunted – but they don’t like being called ghost hunters because of the negative stigma attached to the name.

"A lot of the shows being aired right now, they’re putting out false information – they’re scripted," Hale said.

Scripts aren’t S.E.R.T.’s style.

Hale says if they don’t find any evidence of the afterlife in a place, they’re not going to make something up just to please an audience.

"We never go in with the thoughts of ‘Oh it’s haunted," Wilson said.

"No, you go in with the thought of ‘Ok, we’re going to find out what’s happening, we’re going to find out why (someone is) feeling this way. There may be too much electricity in the house, they may be paranoid – we’re going to help."

Helping, they say, is their main focus.

At times, the group has counseled people who have lost loved ones, and even sought out professionals if they believe a client has a mental or emotional problem.

But don’t get it twisted – they’re also ready to seek out any spirits that may be nearby.

They’ve got an arsenal of equipment – everything from standard hearing aids and tape recorders to sagebrush and incense – even motion detectors.

So why do people spend hours each week searching for scary stuff?

Cheryl Ann Fletcher, the event’s organizer and professional medium, says it’s to be a voice for those who have passed on.

"We all have a final story to get out. And the reason that we’re ghost hunters is we want to make sure those stories are made for others to hear," Fletcher said.

She also took time to debunk one of the Capitol City’s greatest myths: whether the capital building is haunted.

"Yes, absolutely!" she said.