Are the movies “Ghostbusters” and “Beetlejuice” in your regular movie night rotation? Do you binge watch “Ghost Hunters”? Are spine-tingling, hair-raising stories your go-to? If so, then Fuquay-Varina Ghosts is something you need to check out.
Liz Pardue and Kelly Prestipino are storytellers at heart. Both women are long-time Fuquay-Varina residents who have taken an interest in Fuquay’s folklore. They started out independently, but through social media discovered their common bond. The two collaborated to form Fuquay-Varina Ghosts, a partnership that fostered the creative and unique Fuquay-Varina Ghost Tours and a recently released book “Fuquay-Varina Ghosts, Legends and Lore Vol.1.”
Before the tours could come to life, Pardue and Prestipino had to gather numerous stories through research of old newspapers, museum archives, location visits, and, most importantly, personal accounts.
“I love learning about history through folklore and legends,” said Pardue. “Whenever I travel, I’ve always asked the locals about their spookiest stories. Everyone has a story to share.”
Last October, Prestipino and Pardue used the stories they had gathered to produce a fun and spooky event — the Fuquay Ghost Tours. It turned out they were not alone in their interest as the 700 tickets they offered sold out in 10 days. Don’t worry if you missed it, the Ghost Tours are back this October with more opportunities to hear about Fuquay’s ghostly past.
The Ghost Tours were successful because of their entertaining presentation. Pardue explained that the tours are more of a theatrical performance than a walking tour. Actors volunteer to play the people involved in each story, with full costume. The tours are held in the evening and cover 15 stories in downtown Fuquay-Varina. Each story is corroborated by multiple people and told with permission if located at a specific home.
“Really, we just enjoy folklore,” said Prestipino. “We are joining history with true crime and ghost stories.” Both ladies admit that they are not looking to be haunted, they just enjoy the mystery and intrigue of a good story. They believe their stories are “an adventure.”
According to Pardue, Fuquay-Varina is quite possibly the most haunted ghost town in the south. In fact, the two have discovered Fuquay has a dash more scary stories to tell, so they have written a book complete with map and renderings from local artists. The community was so supportive of the efforts of Pardue and Prestipino, that they were able to make their pre-sale goal for “Fuquay-Varina Ghosts, Legends & Lore Vol.1”. The book is now available on Amazon.
“Folklore and legends are a tradition,” said Prestipino. “Every single culture has stories that talk about spiritual battles between good and evil. We are folklorists and historians sharing a living history.”
They continue to research and gather information from locals and have already discovered enough validated stories to start on a second book. The Fuquay-Varina Ghosts, led by our town’s own ghostbusters, has many creative plans for future hair-raising events. For now, you can purchase your tickets to the Fuquay Ghost Tours, read “Fuquay-Varina Ghosts” by flashlight, and search for signs of ghosts the next time you’re in downtown Fuquay-Varina.
For Fuquay Ghost Tour tickets and more on “Fuquay-Varina Ghosts,” visit FVGhosts.com, @FuquayGhosts on Instagram, and @FVGhosts on Facebook.
