Penn Township woman tries to help others through paranormal group

If you can easily explain away the psychic feelings that Kari Danser experiences at a scene, she won’t get angry.

In fact, looking for any other explanation for phenomena is the first thing the Penn Township woman does when she visits a site.

“Not everything is paranormal. Debunking is the first thing we do,” Danser said. “Sometimes it is just a wiring issue, and you can call an electrician and get that fixed.”

When objects move seemingly on their own, random sounds are heard or other reported things cannot be explained, Danser said she tries to communicate with the spirits who might be causing them.

“I can see things, feel things and hear things,” Danser said. “We also have different equipment that we can use.”

The Northern Appalachian Paranormal Society — of which Danser is a member — recently held an event at Bushy Run Battlefield. The last Saturday of September — Sept. 24 this year — has become known as the world’s largest ghost-hunting day.

Devices designed to measure electromagnetic activity and ambient temperatures, digital voice recorders and other equipment was on hand for people who signed up for the event. Participants were split into two groups of 12 to check out locations in the museum and in the field.

Danser said she believes there was paranormal activity at the battlefield during the event.

“They were saying our names,” Danser said, referring to spirits she said she could hear. “And then I could hear a little girl singing. She told me her name was Sarah.”

Danser said there was electromagnetic activity indicated on one of the devices, and when they played back a digital voice recorder, people in the group agreed they could hear a young girl’s voice.

High-tech tools are mainstays on television programs about the paranormal, but Danser said those shows can be frustrating for her to watch.

“What you see on TV is not what we do,” Danser said. “They call themselves ‘ghost hunters,’ and we are not ghost hunters,” Danser said. “They are just trying to make it big on TV, and they do it for views. We are trying to help people.”

Making connections

One of the people that Danser has helped is Brittany McGuire, owner of Collective Boutique in Manor borough.

McGuire met Danser when she walked into her store a few months ago and the two began talking. She said Danser picked up on some things she was thinking about before she could even verbalize them.

“It is like she knows what I am about to say before I say it,” McGuire said.

McGuire said she believes that Danser was able to connect with her dad and was able to answer some questions about the cause of his sudden death in 2007, when he was just 46.

“She is the real deal,” McGuire said. “It is funny to think that six months ago I didn’t know her at all. But now she has become a great friend and has helped me a lot.”

That help also comes in the form of paranormal classes and consultations for families who reach out to the Northern Appalachian Paranormal Society. The organization has a special emphasis on events at historic sites, which is important to Danser, who has been volunteering with her family at the battlefield since she was a child.

“We want to bring attention to these sites. And tell the real history of them,” said Danser, 23, who earned her master’s degree in forensic science and law at Duquesne University.

The society hosts or participates in events at local sites of paranormal interest, including the old nursing home Hill View Manor in New Castle and the Greene County Historical Society’s Harvest Fest .

In addition to the larger events, society members hold classes to explain how to communicate to spirits and the proper etiquette for doing it.

“They (the spirits) tell me what they want me to know. It could be a word or a sentence or a whole paragraph,” Danser said. “And you have to respect that.”

Danser said that a lot of the things she has experienced depend on who is trying to communicate with her.

She cautioned that she doesn’t always have a clear message, as some spirits might be around but not have anything to say.

“If you were a hermit when you were alive, you are probably not going to want to talk a lot or have a lot of attention now,” Danser said.