By Jessica Dillon
Operation Spiritseekers Paranormal Team (OSPT), a local group based in the Martinsville-Henry County area, has been investigating haunted locations across the East Coast while sharing their experiences with the community. The team, made up of partners Rachel Kirchner and Mickey Lefner, both truck drivers, will also host a Masquerade Ball at the Spencer-Penn Center.
Kirchner founded the team in 2011, and Lefner joined a few years later after witnessing unexplained phenomena firsthand. Together with their team, they investigate homes, businesses, and historic sites — sometimes at no cost — and occasionally visit well-known haunted locations.
Among their investigations, OSPT visited the Gaelic Smokehouse, a barbecue restaurant previously featured on the TV show “My Ghost Story.” Kirchner recalled a recording capturing the voice of a former employee, “Betty,” from the building’s days as a pharmacy. When the recording was played for a local historian who had worked there, she recognized the voice as her long-time friend. “She dropped the headphones and had a tear in her eye,” Kirchner said. “I didn’t know what to do. I was scared. And she goes, ‘That’s my best friend, Betty.”
Kirchner credits her interest in the supernatural to childhood experiences, including seeing an apparition of her grandfather. After asking her mom who the man was and later seeing her near her grandmother, she eventually identified him in a photo.
Kirchner also said that she was inspired to seek out mysteries like in the “Nancy Drew” series of books.
Lefner, originally a skeptic, became convinced after his own unexplained encounters at a haunted location.
Kirchner explained that the team has investigated a museum in Danville and private residences around the area. “We’ve done the museum down there a few times. We actually hosted a live event down there a couple of years back on Halloween. Nothing really bad or anything. It was pretty much like the women, the mansion, and stuff.
“We don’t use Ouija boards or anything like that,” Kirchner said. “People call us to help them understand what’s going on in their homes. Some places we visit on our own for research. And then some of the places I see on TV. Of course, we pay to go to those.”
The couple said this is like a hobby to them, much like others may go fishing.
“It’s an adrenaline rush,” said Lefner. “You’ve got residual and non-residual, and it’s like the residual, the stuff you know is kind of set on the loop, and it’s just playing out. The last thing that they did is just playing, like on repeat.”
“And they may not know you’re there. They don’t see you, they don’t interact with you. And then, you’ve got the others that do see you,” said Kirchner
OSPT emphasizes that paranormal investigations are unpredictable. Lefner explained, “Sometimes it’s like playing roulette. You might experience a lot in the first two hours, or nothing at all. It takes energy” for spirits to manipulate or interact with the team’s devices, so results vary.
The pair has visited some famous locations where there was no activity. If there is no activity, “we will never say” there was. “We’re not going to fake it,” said Kirchner. “When we’re done, we get one big circle of evidence” to help determine the level and scope.
The team has also helped families experiencing real distress. In one case, children reported seeing a face in a wall connected to a past murder in a rental home.
When “we stepped out of the car, the whole place just gave you a vibe. We were walking past a well, and there was a goat head on the way, and we’re like, where did that come from? And then, when you walk to the porch,” there was a pentagram. “We were like, where did this come from,” Kirchner said.
“We went to the actual family of the guy who was in prison,” convicted of murder. “It was a drug deal gone bad, and he murdered her,” she said. “He threw her in the trunk of his car and drove it over on the other road.” Eventually, the authorities recovered the remains in the trunk of a car.
After OSPT conducted a careful investigation, documenting unusual audio and visual phenomena, the group was able to find and return a family heirloom located under a floorboard to help bring closure.
OSPT streams some of its investigations live on Facebook and posts videos on YouTube, offering the public a chance to follow along.
The group is also up for a challenge.
“If somebody wanted to go with us to see if they found out anything, heard anything, or saw anything, contact us,” said Kirchner.
