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"Debunker" Brad Smith, of American Paranormal Investigations in Sacramento, speaks to about 40 people at Wednesday's meeting of the Lodi Paranormal and Historic Anomaly Society. (Brian Feulner/News-Sentinel)
Lodi group to study ghosts
Would you like to find out if there are ghosts, UFOs, aliens and mysterious disappearances?
Well, a newly-formed Lodi group has been created to learn about them.
Tom Presler, a lifelong Lodi resident, has formed the Lodi Paranormal and Historic Anomaly Society. The first meeting was just a week ago, and on Wednesday night, a more established Sacramento organization told about 40 people how to establish such a group.
Does Presler believe in ghosts?
"I want to believe — I don't know," he said.
But he found that his friends, customers at New World Pizza on Cherokee Lane and the customers' friends seem to have odd stories — such as something spooky like their grandparents' house, Presler said.
Presler said he hasn't experienced anything really out of the ordinary, but as a child, he heard some noises that he couldn't explain. But his friend, Kasey Voorheis, who owns the pizza restaurant, has an even stronger interest.
"Who doesn't want to learn about historical anomalies?" Voorheis asked. "You don't have to believe it to have fun with it."
Legend has it that the first attempted alien abduction actually happened in Lodi, way back in 1896, said Voorheis, who has an article from an old Stockton publication on his wall describing the incident.
Another charter member of the Lodi club, Wendy Lieginger, is anxious to check out the occult.
"I have always been fascinated by paranormal activities, whether it be ghosts or ESP," Lieginger said. "My first experience with any kind of investigation was in New Orleans the year before Katrina. They taught me how to research. I had an amazing experience, kind of life altering for me."
Lieginger, a hypnotherapist who also worked in disabled student services at San Joaquin Delta College until she was laid off Thursday, said she has experienced some spooky things in her life.
"A male was standing next to my bed while I was in it about three months ago," she said.
But nobody was really there next to her.
Another time, Lieginger said her cat freaked out after being touched by someone who didn't appear to be there.
"I heard inexplicable sounds, and I've been touched on the back," she said. "It's not scary. I think it's fascinating."
Brad Smith, a member of American Paranormal Investigations in Sacramento, said the Lodi group turned out to be a good bunch of people.
"We're more than happy to show up and kind of give them a glimpse of what could happen (with the Lodi club) the next few years," Smith said.
The newly formed society plans to take field trips to places where paranormal activity may have existed.
Meetings will be held at 7 p.m. each Wednesday at New World Pizza, 651 N. Cherokee Lane, Lodi. For more information, call Presler at 747-6141 or New World Pizza at 368-4444.
Editor's Note: This story was updated at 11:32 a.m. Monday, June 29 to correct the phone number of New World Pizza.
Contact reporter Ross Farrow at rossf@lodinews.com.
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TLPresler wrote on Jun 30, 2009 10:31 AM:
Giovanina wrote on Jun 30, 2009 2:34 AM:
Lodian wrote on Jun 29, 2009 3:15 PM:
TLPresler wrote on Jun 28, 2009 10:23 PM:
dyan wrote on Jun 28, 2009 9:10 PM:
Lou wrote on Jun 28, 2009 9:05 PM:
dyan wrote on Jun 27, 2009 9:15 PM:
TLPresler wrote on Jun 27, 2009 12:56 PM:
What exactly it is, or what exactly is going on... I don't know. There's a lot of theories, a lot of ideas, and a huge discussion... and I'm not an authority to say who is wrong and who is right. But it's certainly interesting and well worth the time to delve in to, I believe. "
dyan wrote on Jun 27, 2009 9:35 AM:
Brian wrote on Jun 27, 2009 8:13 AM:
" Watch and listen to small children who have "invisible playmates." These kids have a good connection to the spirit world -- until we teach them that it doesn't exist, that is. If you ask questions and listen to them they are sometimes able to tell you fascinating -- and verifiable -- stories about their playmates. "
-Indeed,
My son has spoken about my mother being with him in the same room. My mom has been dead since 1987. "
edumacation wrote on Jun 26, 2009 11:52 PM:
Could these strange beings (interplanetary aliens---not the plain jane illegal types) be the ancestors of some of the "Good Ol Boyz"?
Could this explain the secretiveness and nasty attitudes of the GOB? Maybe the aliens were from the planet GREEDO.
The credo from the planet "Greedo" was probably --- " NOW IS THE BEST TIME TO BUY a 1000 sq ft east side estate FOR ONLY $400K! ? "
edumacation wrote on Jun 26, 2009 11:45 PM:
1) The first printed report about aliens landing in the US was in the predessor Stockton Record.
2) The event was a close encounters that occured between Lodi and Lockeford in 1896..."
Colonel H. G. Shaw, along with his friend Camille Spooner, had a close encounter with previously unknown entities, traveling with their UFO in 1896. Shaw was in charge of putting together an exhibition to be displayed at a Fair in Fresno. Shaw and friend were traveling by horse and carriage in route to Stockton, when their horse froze with fright.
Three Tall Aliens:
To the two men's shock, they saw the cause of the horse's actions: three tall alien looking beings. They had small delicate hands at the end of their spindly arms. They had no hair on their heads, yet a soft, light fuzz over their bodies. Large eyes made their small mouths and ears appear even smaller. The two eyewitnesses would later tell authorities that the beings had a "strange" type of beauty to them.
Continued "
Cogito wrote on Jun 26, 2009 11:04 PM:
Contrapasso wrote on Jun 26, 2009 10:55 PM:
T & C wrote on Jun 26, 2009 7:32 PM:
Back to Tom tho... "pleas ee-mail me when you get some spare time. I would like to get to know more about your group. raymond@iwriteghoststories.com "
Bob Hussein Loblaw wrote on Jun 26, 2009 6:41 PM:
Bob Hussein Loblaw wrote on Jun 26, 2009 6:39 PM:
wlieginger wrote on Jun 26, 2009 6:05 PM:
Btw, your quote from Hamlet is one of my favorites!
journey, I believe you're absolutely correct about adults teaching children that this stuff doesn't exist. There's a great story exemplifying children's greater understanding of the unseen world in Colin Tipping's book, Radical Forgiveness. "
M2CW wrote on Jun 26, 2009 6:02 PM:
Bob Hussein Loblaw wrote on Jun 26, 2009 5:28 PM:
TLPresler wrote on Jun 26, 2009 4:26 PM:
Cogito wrote on Jun 26, 2009 3:54 PM:
Bob Hussein Loblaw wrote on Jun 26, 2009 3:02 PM:
TLPresler wrote on Jun 26, 2009 2:46 PM:
wtf wrote on Jun 26, 2009 2:26 PM:
"The phenomenon presented by UFOs is far larger than current speculation about “aliens from space.” It raises questions about consciousness, about the nature of reality and about human history on the Earth."
http://www.mysterious-america.net/jacquesvalleeint.html
One of my favorite books by Jacques Vallee is titled "Revelations" "
Cogito wrote on Jun 26, 2009 1:38 PM:
TLPresler wrote on Jun 26, 2009 1:35 PM:
My personal email is thomaspresler@ymail.com and anyone is invited to email me regarding their interests, stories, questions or anything. And I will return all emails with further information.
New World Pizza (formally Pizza World) is our business sponsor and the restaurant is actually decorated with many exhibits on the walls, news articles and so forth, mainly centering around the topic of UFOs, including the ORIGINAL Stockton Evening Mail newspaper report of an alien visitation, as reported by a traveling U.S. Army Colonel. Very cool exhibits on the walls there! "
TLPresler wrote on Jun 26, 2009 1:25 PM:
Lodian wrote on Jun 26, 2009 1:25 PM:
Lodian wrote on Jun 26, 2009 1:24 PM:
Cogito wrote on Jun 26, 2009 1:12 PM:
TLPresler wrote on Jun 26, 2009 12:36 PM:
Bob Hussein Loblaw wrote on Jun 26, 2009 11:33 AM:
lodi boy wrote on Jun 26, 2009 11:03 AM:
There is too much evidence to brush off now. Ghosts are simply spirits who don't know they're dead.
UFOs probably are from other worlds. There are trillions of star systems out there. For us to believe we're the only civilization is quite an ego. "
journey wrote on Jun 26, 2009 9:21 AM:
T & C wrote on Jun 26, 2009 7:49 AM:
wtf wrote on Jun 26, 2009 7:42 AM:
Yet, the intriguing thing is, quantum physics is now proving out quite a bit of the psi-type phenomena as well as many of the theories and hypotheses of metaphysics. Sounds way cool!
To quote Shakespeare:
"There are more things in heaven and earth, Horatio, Than are dreamt of in your philosophy." "
M2CW wrote on Jun 26, 2009 7:22 AM:
jbhiker wrote on Jun 26, 2009 6:38 AM:
Comments on this story are now closed.