Part 2: My Interview of Randy Russell, Author "The Ghost Will See You Now"

This is part 2 of 3 of my Q&A with Randy Russell, author of the book: "The Ghost Will See You Now: Haunted

Hospitals of  the South. "This part of the interview focuses on Randy's personal ghostly interactions and some stories in the book that I found particularly "haunting."
 I recommend picking up a copy of his book. It will really give you a different feel for walking into a hospital...


PART 2:  Q&A WITH RANDY RUSSELL

Q: It seems that a good number of the hauntings were associated with the Civil War and I don't think that many people realize (as you cited) that private homes were opened up as hospitals and may contain ghosts of soldiers. Are you also a Civil War history buff?

I am not a history buff of the war, per se.  However, it’s extremely difficult, if not impossible, when you live in the South to be interested in any aspect of history and avoid coming to at least a minimal understanding of the effect on people and places of the War Between the States.  Private homes used as hospitals were widespread as the last years of the war moved from town to town and county to county.  Churches and colleges saw similar use.    

 Q: Do you belong to a ghost investigation team?

I do not. I am friends with a few paranormal investigators and talk with many.  But I am not a gizmo guy.  I think the only tool necessary to document a ghost encounter is the human heart.

Q: Have you personally had any encounters with ghosts? If so, when was your first encounter?

Great question, Rob.  Yes, I have had many encounters with ghosts.  You know, I think it may be impossible not to. I’ll probably have many more.  I think ghosts are pushing and pulling at us from the beginning so it is terrifically difficult to determine a first encounter.  I’m sure my first communication and/or interaction with the dead occurred when I was very young and I gave it little or no heed.  As with most children, a ghost simply isn’t out the ordinary. It’s someone to talk with when we’re alone.  That is, until adults talk us out it altogether.

All that said, my own first memorable paranormal experiences were aural. I would wake up in the middle of the night to someone calling my name.    

Author Randy Russell

Q: As a medium I encountered a ghost in the Washington Adventist Hospital on an elevator when I went to visit a friend in 2010 and I crossed her over into the light. Did any of these hospital ghosts cross over that you know of? 

I’m sure they do cross over and many have already.  If nothing else, they fade from weariness, I would suspect.  A haunting really isn’t likely to last forever.  Face it, most famous ghosts haven’t been seen by anyone for years, decades even.  In fact, I would suggest that the ghost a person is most likely to encounter is the ghost of someone they know or of someone who knew them. 

 Q: The story of Rachel's encounter with the ghost doctor from the Sentara Virginia Beach General Hospital was particularly interesting. Did you interview Rachel or her boyfriend/nurse?  Did the boyfriend believe her encounter? Was that recent?

The haunting was very recent. Rachel is a made-up name for that reason. I also created the dialogue as a part of developing the reported happenstance as a story. The ghost encounter, in this case, belonged to Rachel (instead of the boyfriend).  It is intriguing to me that not all people in the vicinity of a haunting experience it in the same way.  I would say Rachel’s boyfriend may well come to terms with her encounter as a ghost experience, just not right away.  Rachel understood this as it was happening, of course.

 Q: Another story that really stuck with me was that of Beth, the girl who was struck by a car driven by an actor, and who died watching the actor's performance at the Orpheum Theatre in Memphis, Tennessee. Did the actor's family not want to be recognized?   Why do you think Beth decided to "haunt" the theatre instead of her home? 

Rob, I could go on and on about this dandy little ghost of a girl in Memphis.  Beth is kind of the opposite of trend in that she is in fact seen over and over again through the years.  It seems as if the theatre was the most thrilling thing she’d ever seen in her short life.  Why leave?  I mean, as long as they keep changing the show… she’s content to watch from her seat in the balcony.

NEXT: PART 3: Reactions of Hospital Workers and Hauntings in Rebuilt Structures.


"The Ghost Will See You Now: Haunted Hospitals of the South"
BOOK SUMMARY: Organized as a state-by-state guide to known Southern hospital hauntings, The Ghost Will See You Now includes 40-plus ghost stories and lists of sightings at more than 160 haunted locations. In addition to the numerous hospital sightings, ghosts also haunt medical-care facilities as diverse as TB sanitariums, spas, dental clinics, treatment centers at historic forts, nursing homes, hospice centers, ambulances, hospital train cars, and an early-19th-century pharmacy in New Orleans.  To Buy the Book on AMAZON: http://www.amazon.com/The-Ghost-Will-See-You/dp/0895876310 

*Randy has authored several other fascinating books I've also read:

Ghost Dogs of the South,  The Granny Curse and Other Ghosts and Legends from East Tennessee and  Ghost Cats of the South!

*Midnight Deadline FOR Tax Deduction* HELP RESCUE DOGS AND CATS

 REMINDER
*Midnight Deadline FOR Tax Deduction* Many Dog and cat rescues NEED donations, and Make one TONIGHT to include them in your taxes.
Donate to 1) DC Area Weimaraner Rescue at www.dcweimclub.org/rescue
2) Coast to Coast Dachshund Rescue at www.c2cdr.org
3) Sophia's Grace Foundation Dachshund rescue: http://www.sophiasgracefoundation.org/
4) Weimaraner Rescue of the North http://weimaranerrescue.weebly.com/
5) Dachshund Rescue of North America http://www.drna.org/
6) North Shore Animal League America http://www.animalleague.org
7) Tickled Pink Weimaraner Rescue http://www.weimaranerrescue.org/
and MORE!
- There are so many dog in foster care with medical bills that need help. Thank you for your support!

Happy New Year: A Busy 2014 and Events in 2015

Happy New Year! I hope that 2014 was a good year for you and 2015 is just as good if not better. 

   I had the busiest summer ever giving talks, making appearances and promoting my new book "Pets and the Afterlife."   I've given talks and appeared at Pet Expos in Richmond, VA; Frederick, MD; and Winchester, MA. I've given talks about haunted cases with the Inspired Ghost Tracking Team, and opened for Medium Barb Mallon's Halloween event.  I interviewed on many paranormal radio programs and Boston's WBZ-Newsradio! 
   I also took part in Pensacola, Florida's ParaCon and went to upstate New York for a dog rescue fundraiser for "Adirondack Save-a-Stray."
    In 2015, I'm making appearances at Pet Expos in Washington, DC, New York City and the Boston area. I'm also giving talks to a kennel club, at a library and other places.
   Here's  info about my book:  PETS AND THE AFTERLIFE by Rob Gutro: The loss of a pet is like the loss of a child to pet owners. The love we share with our pets never dies, and in a new book called "Pets and the Afterlife" by Rob Gutro, the author provides proof that our pets do communicate with us from the other side.    Available in paperback and E-book, on Amazon.com and other outlets at: To order paperback of Kindle- click here  

 Remember to appreciate the simple things in life, from a good cup of coffee to a sunny day, to light traffic. It will really make a difference. For those grieving over the loss of a loved one in 2014 (whether person or pet), know that they will be with you from time to time to watch over you and help you make some decisions. People and pets in spirit do not want us to be sad, they want us to be happy, and appreciate our lives. They want us to live life to the fullest so we have no regrets when it is our time. So, make 2015 a wonderful year.

- Rob

My Interview of Randy Russell Author of "The Ghost Will See You Now: Haunted Hospitals of the South"

I had the good fortune to recently read Randy Russell's new book: "The Ghost Will See You Now: Haunted Hospitals of

the South" and had a chance to do a one-on-one question and answer session about his book. This is part 1 of 3 of the Q&A with Randy.  
 I recommend picking up a copy of his book. It will really give you a different feel for walking into a hospital...

"The Ghost Will See You Now: Haunted Hospitals of the South"
BOOK SUMMARY: Organized as a state-by-state guide to known Southern hospital hauntings, The Ghost Will See You Now includes 40-plus ghost stories and lists of sightings at more than 160 haunted locations. In addition to the numerous hospital sightings, ghosts also haunt medical-care facilities as diverse as TB sanitariums, spas, dental clinics, treatment centers at historic forts, nursing homes, hospice centers, ambulances, hospital train cars, and an early-19th-century pharmacy in New Orleans.  To Buy the Book on AMAZON: http://www.amazon.com/The-Ghost-Will-See-You/dp/0895876310 

*Randy has authored several other fascinating books I've also read:

Ghost Dogs of the South,  The Granny Curse and Other Ghosts and Legends from East Tennessee and  Ghost Cats of the South!

 Q: You cited your employ in a hospital as an influence to write the book. Did you ever directly deal with the deceased there?

Randy:  Not really, if you mean interacting with the dead.  I think the stronger influence was in working among the dying, rather than those already deceased. Certain areas of the Medical Center were definitely clouded with a heavy sense of foreboding.      Q: What perception of physical death and ghost investigations give you about the afterlife? Oddly enough, I find a stronger sense of an afterlife among the living than I do from any perception of physical death.  Yes, physical death is real.  Yes, it will happen to each one of us. If there is an afterlife beyond the bounds of this earthly realm, that’s cool.  I’m all for it. But what I know of the afterlife is found in the experiences of the living.  My research takes place among the living, collecting in detail the true experience (senses, feelings and understandings) of a living person who encounters a ghost… or who in any number of ways interacts with and/or communicates with a dead person. My own experiences with ghosts are limited to a few. Q: Why do you think so many stayed behind in hospitals instead of "haunting" their homes and places familiar to them? Many ghosts haunt the location of their deaths.  These are ghosts in general who have lost contact with their loved ones and their homes.  Trauma and fear, confusion and pain, isolation and helplessness all contribute to a less than ideal moment of passing from living to dead.  The transition is, to put it simply, an unhappy one.  This would tends to create a ghost, and perhaps a ghost of some discontent.  But I think you make a good point, Rob.  I’m sure many people who have died in a hospital (or on their way to a hospital) are likely to haunt other locations of their lives.  Some ghosts travel.  Some ghosts don’t. Some of the ghosts in THE GHOST WILL SEE YOU NOW are the nurses and doctors who worked in a particular haunted hospital.   Q: Do you think that the majority of the hospital haunts you wrote about were residual (i.e. like an emotional thumbprint of events that keep running over and over) or intelligent (where the ghosts could communicate and interact with the living)? Let me say that I’m not convinced that an emotional thumbprint runs over and over on its own.  I simply do not believe a ghost falls in the woods when no one is there to see or hear it. When people, the right people perhaps, are present, I do think some ghosts fall in the same place and in the same way without attempting further, if any, communication with the living.  My personal belief is that a ghost activity of any sort only occurs in the presence of the living. That said, the living don’t have to understand (or appreciate) a ghostly activity at all. The audience of a ghost performance may not even notice. Still, it is my belief the audience is a requirement for the performance to occur. A true ghost experience, as I define it for my work, takes place between the living and the dead.  Solely and, well, souly.  NEXT IN PART 2: RANDY'S GHOST HISTORY, AND REALLY MEMORABLE STORIES

Four Examples of our loved one's spirits around on holidays, birthdays, anniversaries

Spirits visit on Birthdays, Anniversaries and Holidays so be aware of what's happening around you. They can influence things to happen, like having a mom bring her newborn to a hospital when the baby is running a fever, only to discover the baby had an infection that needed treatment.
  They can leave you signs like their favorite song playing on the radio, or a coin with the year of their birth,death, or some other life event. Flowers, a phone call with no one on the other end. There are a whole host of things they can do.

Sweet Caroline getting good care

A BABY NEEDING HELP- This Christmas, our friend Katrina's daughter newborn daughter Caroline was hospitalized.
   Katrina took her infant daughter to the doctor to investigate a high temperature. It seems that she was influenced to go to that degree from the spirit of her grandma- and be extra-cautious. That cautiousness turned out to be necessary. 
   Caroline went into the hospital on Dec. 22 with a temperature and doctors discovered she had  a bacterial infection in her blood and needs antibiotics, so they kept her in the hospital over Christmas.
  I told my friend Carol (Katrina's mom, Caroline's grandma) - "At least the doctors found something important enough to ensure she's getting the care she needs. In fact, it's because your mom's spirit helped them find it. Your mom is right there with her."

A BIRTHDAY APPEARANCE - Last month, on Tom's birthday, I told him that his late friend Ed would be around. Well, he found a penny and it was dated 1996, the year that Ed passed away. That was a confirmation from Ed that he was indeed around, just as your late relatives (people and pets) are around during birthdays, anniversaries and holidays.

TWO SCENTS IN HOLIDAY GREETINGS- Our friend Beth said on Hanukkah, "I just smelled my dad....weird! He's been gone for 4 years. It was real, (the smell) did not know to cook a favorite meal. We cooked what would have been his favorite breakfast!"

Beth's friend Tammy also got a visit from her mother-in-law. Tammy said "That happened to us yesterday. We were making her homemade peanut butter cookies there she was. It was Richard's momma's perfume. . Weird feeling. "

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You can find more information about the signs spirits can give in my book "Lessons Learned from Talking to the Dead":    SUMMARY: Follow Rob on a treasure-hunt-style journey in Virginia as he and others try to explain what appear to be random and obscure words, signs and symbols from a spirit, that all wind up being intensely personal to the spirit.Explore the science behind how they communicate. Learn how to receive their messages, where they appear, and important messages in how to live your life. Rob takes you into cemeteries, battlefields, and historic places. You’ll see what happens to victims of suicide and murders, and how infants and animals pass messages to the living. Featuring: Inspired Ghost Tracking and mediums Barb Mallon, Troy Cline and Ruth Larkin. 

A Happy Holiday Story - In Spirit!

    Whichever holiday you're celebrating this season, just know that your loved ones in spirit (people or pets) are likely around you. Whether in the smell of a baked pie that brings back a memory of your grandmother, or certain ornament that you take out that reminds you of a brother or sister you're missing, or a song that reminds you of your parents. When you see, smell or hear it, they're likely there with you.
   I was listening to one of my favorite Christmas music CDs, and heard Dolly Parton and Kenny Rogers singing "(I'll be Home) With Bells On" and it reminded me of the one year I wrote up the lyrics to the song and sang it with my mom and dad (who have since passed). After my brothers and their significant others departed for the day, I took a tape player (yes, tape in 1996) and put it on the living room table once the dessert dishes were cleared. I handed them the sheet of lyrics and played the tape. We all "attempted" to sing it - and although it wasn't a stellar on-key performance, it was fun and memorable.
   This month, when the song came on, I could hear my parents singing in the background and I felt they joined me in the car. Spirits are around us, especially on the holidays.
   As an extra, I'm sharing the video of the song here.
Merry Christmas, Happy Hanukkah, Happy New Year, Happy Ramadan- whatever you're celebrating - celebrate life and spirit!
VIDEO: http://youtu.be/Wmx-fci6OyU\

Santa Brought Our Foster Dog Mack to a Forever Home !

   This blog isn't ghost or spirit related, but because we work with dachshund and weimaraner rescues and foster- this is a great story for the holidays. (and it's relevant because I wrote Pets and the Afterlife)

On Saturday, Dec. 20, Santa brought our little 11 year old black and tan, mini-dachshund foster dog named Mack, to his forever home. We had been fostering little Mack for about 2 months through Coast-to-Coast Dachshund Rescue.
     His new parents adopted him yesterday after we did a home visit, checked references and brought Mack to their home. They have two other dachshunds who are both younger and very well cared for.
     We've grown fond of the little guy, as we do with our foster dogs, but it's more important that the go to a good home so we can continue helping save more little guys and girls.
    On Dec. 7, we took Mack to get his picture with Santa and tell Santa what he'd like for Christmas. We're thankful that Santa was able to come through. We're very excited that Mack got what he asked Santa for this year- a forever home!
  For more information about other adoptable dogs from Coast-to-Coast Dachshund rescue, visit: www.c2cdr.org.  

Radio Lab Podcast: Haunted

Thursday, October 30, 2014

   Radiolab, with Jad Abumrad and Robert Krulwich, is a radio show and podcast weaving stories and science into sound and music-rich documentaries. 
 Radio Lab presented a podcast about a haunted house, that you may enjoy hearing about a house with some paranormal activity....
     ABOUT THE PODCAST  Dennis Conrow was stuck. After a brief stint at college, he’d passed most of his 20’s back home with his parents, sleeping in his childhood room. And just when he finally struck out on his own, fate intervened. He lost both his parents to cancer. So Dennis was left, back in the house, alone. Until one night when a group of paranormal investigators showed up at his door and made him realize what it really means for a house, or a man, to be haunted.

 PODCAST LINK: http://www.radiolab.org/story/haunted/

Q&A: Why do only some pets come through or send signs while other don’t?

Recently I received this great question via email: 

       Q:  Why do only some pets come through or send signs while other don’t? What would you tell someone who is desperately trying to reach their pet on the other side to no avail?

A: Pets, like people, only come through with signs when they have something to tell us. People and pets usually return around the times of birthdays, anniversaries or holidays, too -either theirs or ours. They all give us signs - we just miss them, which is why I wrote the books to educate people on how to see them! 

 

Grief blocks out signs. When we are grieving and desperate to see something, we tend to dismiss things for something more "concrete." Spirits and ghosts use subtle signs because it takes a lot of energy for them to communicate. If people are sick with grief, that's when they should rely on a medium. They should also take comfort in knowing spirits come around from time to time, they're not always with us. 

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Want to learn about how Pets communicate from the other side?
 PETS AND THE AFTERLIFE by Rob Gutro: The loss of a pet is like the loss of a child to pet owners. The love we share with our pets never dies, and in a new book called "Pets and the Afterlife" by Rob Gutro, the author provides proof that our pets do communicate with us from the other side.    Available in paperback and E-book, on Amazon.com and other outlets at: To order paperback of Kindle- click here  

Gift Ideas for the Holidays: Medium Readings and Book Readings!

If you or someone you know lost someone they love recently or many years ago, why not give the gift of Spirit this year? 
  There are 2 Types of "Reading" you can give- one by a professional psychic medium like Ruthie Larkin or Barb Mallon - or one of my books about how ghosts and spirits communicate with the living. 

Medium Ruthie Larkin

  Here are the details on all of them!






1) Give a Gift of a Psychic Reading or a Reiki Healing Session with Medium Ruthie Larkin (the Beantown Medium):  Gift certificates are available for private sessions: http://www.beantownmedium.com/

Medium Barb Mallon

2) Give a Gift of a Psychic Reading with Medium Barb Mallon at  http://www.barbmallon.com/
For Gift Certificates: http://www.barbmallon.com/#!store/ctm6

3) Or any of Rob Gutro's books on Spirits and Ghosts:  http://www.amazon.com - Rob Gutro's Author Page
a) Pets and the Afterlife (2014) - How pets communicate from the other side, and why they're able to see spirits, a dog's ghost investigation, 3 mediums and their spirit dog communications and more
b) Lessons Learned from Talking to the Dead (2012) - Answers to questions you may

Author/medium Rob Gutro

have about how spirits and ghosts communicate; the author's experiences on ghost investigations (with picture proof of a ghost); An amazing treasure-hunt like journey in Mediumship proving messages and more
c) Ghosts and Spirits (2010) - The author's first book. Journey with him as he begins developing his abilities in haunted places, and messages from his dad's spirit and his puppy's spirit and more.