A Touching Hospital Story: Santa grants a final wish to Terminally Ill Boy

Sam Venable. Cred. Knoxville News

This story appeared earlier this month about a special engineer who has played Santa in Tennessee.
He was called to the side of a dying little boy and this story will touch your heart. This is what spirits want is to be like.

Sam Venable: Santa grants a final wish 

Eric Schmitt-Matzen looks every bit the part of Santa Claus.
His 6-foot frame carries 310 pounds, leaving “just enough of a lap for the kids to sit on,” he says with a gentle Kringley chuckle right out of Central Casting.
No fake facial fuzz for this guy. Schmitt-Matzen’s snowy beard is the real thing, albeit regularly bleached to maintain its whiteness. His shag is so spectacular, in fact, it won first place in the “natural full beard, styled moustache” division of a 2016 national contest sponsored by the Just For Men hair products company.

There’s more.

ABOUT SANTA SAM
He’s professionally trained. Custom-tailored in red. Was born on Dec. 6 (that’s Saint Nicholas Day, of course; are you surprised?) Works approximately 80 gigs annually. Wife Sharon plays an authentic Mrs. Claus. His cellphone, with a “Jingle Bells” ringtone, continually counts down the days until Christmas. Even his civilian attire always includes Santa suspenders.
The whole shtick is designed to spread joy and have fun.
Which it does – except for the role he played several weeks ago at a local hospital.

GETTING THE CALL 
“I cried all the way home,” Schmitt-Matzen told me. “I was crying so hard, I had a tough time seeing good enough to drive.
“My wife and I were scheduled to visit our grandchildren in Nashville the next day, but I told her to go by herself. I was a basket case for three days. It took me a week or two to stop thinking about it all the time. Actually, I thought I might crack up and never be able to play the part again.”
This is what happens when a terminally ill child dies in Santa’s arms.
“I’d just gotten home from work that day,” recalled Schmitt-Matzen, 60, a mechanical engineer and president of Packing Seals & Engineering in Jacksboro.
“The telephone rang. It was a nurse I know who works at the hospital. She said there was a very sick 5-year-old boy who wanted to see Santa Claus.

AT THE HOSPITAL 
“I told her, ‘OK, just let me change into my outfit.’ She said, ‘There isn’t time for that. Your Santa suspenders are good enough. Come right now.’ ”
Schmitt-Matzen got to the hospital in 15 minutes. He met the lad’s mother and several family members.
“She’d bought a toy from (the TV show) PAW Patrol and wanted me to give it to him,” he said, voice growing husky. “I sized up the situation and told everyone, ‘If you think you’re going to lose it, please leave the room. If I see you crying, I’ll break down and can’t do my job.’ ”
Nobody entered with him. They watched, sobbing, from a hallway window in the Intensive Care Unit.
I’m now going to relay what happened next, just as Schmitt-Matzen spoke to me. Space does not allow inclusion of the numerous pauses he took while struggling to maintain composure:

MEETING THE BOY
“When I walked in, he was laying there, so weak it looked like he was ready to fall asleep. I sat down on his bed and asked, ‘Say, what’s this I hear about you’re gonna miss Christmas? There’s no way you can miss Christmas! Why, you’re my Number One elf!
“He looked up and said, ‘I am?’
“I said, ‘Sure!’
“I gave him the present. He was so weak he could barely open the wrapping paper. When he saw what was inside, he flashed a big smile and laid his head back down.
‘“They say I’m gonna die,’ he told me. ‘How can I tell when I get to where I’m going?’
“I said, ‘Can you do me a big favor?’
“He said, ‘Sure!’
“When you get there, you tell ’em you’re Santa’s Number One elf, and I know they’ll let you in.
“He said, ‘They will?’
“I said, ‘Sure!’
“He kinda sat up and gave me a big hug and asked one more question: ‘Santa, can you help me?’
“I wrapped my arms around him. Before I could say anything, he died right there. I let him stay, just kept hugging and holding on to him.
“Everyone outside the room realized what happened. His mother ran in. She was screaming, ‘No, no, not yet!’ I handed her son back and left as fast as I could.
“I spent four years in the Army with the 75th Rangers, and I’ve seen my share of (stuff). But I ran by the nurses’ station bawling my head off. I know nurses and doctors see things like that every day, but I don’t know how they can take it.’”
In despair, Schmitt-Matzen was ready to hang up his suit. “I’m just not cut out for this,” he reasoned.
But he mustered the strength to work one more show.
“When I saw all those children laughing, it brought me back into the fold. It made me realize the role I have to play.
“For them and for me.”
Sam Venable’s column appears in the Features section Sunday and Tuesday. Contact him at sam.venable@outlook.com.
Story: http://www.knoxnews.com/ 
VIDEO INTERVIEW: https://youtu.be/CPLqRBC9A1w  

Video#1 Energy and the Paranormal

In this first video of a new series author/medium/paranormal investigator Rob Gutro discusses how energy is the foundation of the afterlife and gives a brief overview of the difference between a ghost and a spirit. His paranormal books on human and pet ghosts and spirits can be found on amazon.com. 





VIDEO: https://youtu.be/YS_hheTuUZw

Website: http://ghostsandspiritsinsights.blogspot.com
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/RobGutroAuthorMedium/ 
Twitter; www.twitter.com/Ghostmediumbook

Belmont Manor Decorated for Holidays/"Paranormal Casebook Talk" (and future talks)

The ballroom

 On Dec 13, I gave a talk: "A Paranormal Casebook of Maryland" - at the Belmont Manor,  Elkridge, Maryland and it was all decked out for the holidays.  If you haven't been there, it's a beautiful place to visit, and the Inspired Ghost Tracking Group has a lot of talks coming up!
WHAT YOU'LL FIND - There are Saturday afternoon English tea events held every other weekend from January through March. There are also paranormal lectures given by me (Rob) and other members of  the Inspired Ghost Tracking team. It hosts wedding receptions, rehearsals dinners, business meetings, holiday parties, anniversary parties, retirement parties, quinceaneras, bat/bar mitzvahs, retreats and bridal showers.

Rob and Tyler

OUR TALK- On Dec. 13, during the talk, I  was joined by Margaret and Greg, and we discussed several of their most unusual Maryland investigations such as the Case of the Dismembered Ghost, the “Alleyway” ghost, and others. People learned why ghosts stay behind and how the IGT team works with them to bring them solutions and peace. 
- Great Parks and Rec folks we work with -Tyler opens the manor and manages the events for the group. Tyler and everyone else who works there is knowledgeable, friendly  and helpful.

TO REGISTER FOR TALKS and GHOST TOURS (fee involved for the mansion): https://www.howardcountymd.gov/Departments/Recreation-and-Parks

LOCATION: 6555 Belmont Woods Rd, Elkridge, MD 21075, Phone: (410) 313-0200

ABOUT THE MANOR- Belmont was built in 1738, home to Caleb and Priscilla

Dorsey of Elkridge. The Manor House was passed through generations of Dorseys, Hansons and Bruce families.  The Howard County Recreation and Parks purchased the property in 2012. The Manor was restored and sits on 68 acres of rolling hills which includes The Cottage House, The Carriage House, The Caretaker's house,  a barn, an aqua garden, trails, a cemetery and extensive gardens. The property is also home to The Howard County Conservancy. 

TO LEARN ABOUT THE EVENTS FOR THE "GHOSTS OF BELMONT" - visit: https://www.facebook.com/inspiredghosttrackingbelmontghosts/?fref=ts

 

What is Rob Gutro's "Ghosts and Spirits" Book About?

Ghosts and Spirits 2016 has purple border

Whenever I give talks people ask me the difference between the books I've written. So, here's the answer about my first book (which I just updated and revised in 2016). Available in paperback and E-book on Amazon.com. 

QUESTION: What is Your "Ghosts and Spirits" Book About?

ANSWER: This is my first book that sets the foundation of defining the difference between Earth-bound ghosts and spirits (not Earth-bound). (It was updated in 2016) As a scientist I believe that energy is the foundation for the afterlife and explore that in these pages, but provide personal stories of encounters with both Earthbound entities and those who have crossed over in the 1st Section of the book. You'll read about how to protect yourself, and cross ghosts over. 
  In section 2 you'll read some of my moving and personal experiences (that you can also experience). My father passed as I was writing this book and provided an amazing number of signs during the week of his services that are included in one amazing chapter. The signs he provided are similar to those others provide when they pass.
  In section 3, you'll visit many haunted locations where I confirmed the ghosts I sensed actually lived there!  You'll see photos of faces of ghosts that haunt the Bird Cage Theatre in Arizona and a home in Savannah, Georgia where a very nasty civil war era general lived and accidentally killed his young daughter.
  This is a great way to develop a foundational understanding of the paranormal and what happens after our physical bodies pass. 

4 Books to get you "In the Spirit" of the holidays

Looking to get in the real "spirit" of the holidays?
Check out Rob Gutro's 4 books on how spirits and ghosts, people and pets communicate with us from the afterlife. All available in paperback and E-book on Amazon.com:
Ghosts and Spirits
Lessons Learned from Talking to the Dead: Answer Guide to the Paranormal
Pets and the Afterlife
Pets and the Afterlife 2

Author Revises "Answer Guide to the Paranormal" Book

Big Announcement in time for the "Spirit" of the holidays!  
I've updated, revised and added 6 new chapters to my 2nd book "Lessons Learned from Talking to the Dead." 
- Available on Amazon.com and CreateSpace.com. 

RELEASE: 16-03   

Author Revises "Answer Guide to the Paranormal" Book  

WASHINGTON -- Author and paranormal investigator Rob Gutro has updated, revised and added 6 new chapters to his second book "Lessons Learned from Talking to the Dead: An Answer Guide to the Paranormal."  The book sports a new cover that contains the haunting face of a female ghost encountered during an investigation.

"I wrote this as an answer guide to all questions about the paranormal," Rob said. "Every chapter contains experiences that address questions such as what happens to suicide and murder victims and so much more." Readers will experience a "Spirit Treasure Hunt" of messages that prove a spirit was with all the members of his family and prove he didn't commit suicide. They'll meet the ghost of John Wilkes Booth and see photo proof of a ghostly face from a "Double Murder Ghost Investigation."

"Lessons" was originally published in 2012. The 2016 version includes six new chapters and all other chapters enhanced and the book reformatted. New chapters address a Double Murder Ghost Investigation; Angels, Demons and Dark Entities; 3 Ghosts of Christmas Past and John Wilkes Booth's Ghost, Baltimore's Haunted Book Escape, A Band of Spirits; and Spirits all in the Family.

Readers will learn the difference between a ghost and a spirit. Learn lessons spirits want us to know to live better on Earth. Experience cemeteries, battlefields, historic places, spirits of suicide, murder victims, angels and demons, poltergeists, ashes, slow death experiences, how to protect yourself, reincarnation and how infants and animals pass messages to the living. You'll even explore many haunted locations around the U.S. and beyond.

The author is a medium, paranormal investigator, scientist and dog dad. He provides proof that people and pets do communicate with us from the other side, whether as an Earth-bound ghost or spirit. He is a medium with Inspired Ghost Tracking of Md. He sketches out what ghosts look like who are haunting private homes and has received many confirmation from homeowners. He also volunteers with Dachshund and Weimaraner rescues.

Earlier in 2016 he published his fourth book, "Pets and the Afterlife 2," a follow up to Amazon's best-selling "Pets and the Afterlife," where readers will learn how dogs and cats have the intelligence and ability to send signs to the living after they pass. In August, he republished an updated and reformatted version of his first book called "Ghosts and Spirits." The author's four books have all reached best-seller status in Amazon.com's supernatural category.   

Rob maintains a weekly blog, Facebook and Twitter pages, where he writes about paranormal topics, and where people can share their stories or find other resources on the paranormal. All of his books are published by CreateSpace, Inc. and available in paperback and E-book on Amazon.com: http://tinyurl.com/hp92st7.

The author has been featured in the Washington Post, MSNBC, WBZ Newsradio Boston, "Coast to Coast AM" syndicated radio with George Noory, Paranormal TV's "Do You Believe," Paranormal Underground Magazine and U.S., U.K. and Ireland paranormal radio programs and many others. See his website for other appearances and interviews.

For the author's blog and upcoming appearances, visit: 

ghostsandspiritsinsights.blogspot.com/ 

www.facebook.com/ghostsandspirits.insightsfromamedium

www.facebook.com/RobGutroAuthorMedium

twitter.com/GhostMediumBook

Amazon Author Page: amazon.com/author/robgutro

YouTube: https://plus.google.com/collection/ok7wh

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Ghost or Spirit? Learn the difference in my 2 books

Interesting Book: Encounters with the Paranormal 2 by Mike Ricksecker (I have a story in it)

    Recently I finished reading a short and interesting collection of true stories of paranormal encounters called
"Encounters with the Paranormal 2" by Mike Ricksecker (and guest authors).

   Mike asked me to contribute a story in it, so I did. It's called "Pets in Spirit - Communicating with the Living."
   I also have a story in his first volume of "Encounters of the Paranormal" - and my story is called "The Dismembered Ghost Made Whole."

   - Mike is a friend who has written several books. He's also a "Ghostorian" and paranormal investigator. When he was putting this book together he contacted people he knows to see if they would like to submit a story for the collection. The book contains stories from quite a number of people, and ALL of them have had encounters with Earth-bound ghosts. Each story is short and all are fascinating.
   I highly recommend these collections of stories! They are both full of  interesting personal encounters with ghosts.  On Kindle you can find this collection for just $4.99.

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Mikes other books include: Ghosts and Legends of Oklahoma, Ghosts of Maryland, Campfire Tales: Midwest, The Inscription of Evil Times (Ghostorian Case Files Book 1), and Mysteries of the Church of Darkness (Ghostorian Case Files Book 2)and two detective novels: Deadly Heirs (Chase Michael DeBarlo Mystery) (Volume 1), System of the Dead,
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For more information about Mike Ricksecker go to www.hauntedroadmedia.com

The Paranormal: It's all about Energy

Energy is the foundation of the afterlife. In all the talks I give, I explain that the afterlife really has nothing to do with whatever religion you are or are not. It's about Energy.
   As I also explain in my 4 books, every living thing has physical energies running through their bodies. Think of blood pumping, or the little electrical impulses that happen in our brains when we have thoughts.

How are thoughts measured?

By watching one neuron at a time, or by looking at how millions of them are talking to each other… “We’re limited in our ability to record individual human neurons,” says Charles Jennings, director of neurotechnology at the MIT McGovern Institute for Brain Research. He points, however, to one major exception. It is possible during neurosurgery, when the brain is exposed and the patient is awake, to measure the activities of individual nerve cells in the brain

SO WHAT HAPPENS TO OUR ENERGY?   - The Law of Conservation of Energy states that energy cannot be destroyed only transformed. So, it couples with our memories, personalities and experience and makes a CHOICE to stay on Earth as what I call a GHOST, or cross over into heaven, the cosmos, valhalla, etc. as what I call a SPIRIT .

 HOW DO GHOSTS/SPIRITS MANIFEST OR GIVE SIGNS?  - They use energy. In the next blog we'll explain the kinds of energy they use to get stronger and give signals. 

HOW DO INVESTIGATORS FIND THE GHOST'S ENERGY ?  We use what's called a "K2" meter. It detects electromagnetic fields and ghosts and spirits are energy (electromagnetic fields). Electricians use these, too, to determine if wires in a home are not insulated, and are emitting high energies (which could cause delusions, paranoia, illness, etc.)>

NEXT: THE KINDS OF ENERGY GHOSTS and SPIRITS USE

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To learn more, check  out my books "Ghosts and Spirits" and "Lessons Learned from Talking to the Dead" by Rob Gutro - available on Amazon.com in paperback and E-book

Books for the Holidays for Pet Lovers: Pets and the Afterlife by Rob Gutro

Looking for a holiday present for a friend or family member whose do or, cat  passed?
Consider giving them peace with the books Pets and the Afterlife  and Pets and the Afterlife 2 by Rob Gutro
  Available in paperback or Ebook from Amazon.com (under $10 and $3.99)