Who you gonna call? Ghost Moms!

East Mom Julie Chapman sat surrounded by paranormal tracking gadgets, placing a fresh set of batteries in each piece of equipment. Her stash is an accumulation of over 10 years — 10 years of her husband urging Julie to pace herself when purchasing devices that she sees on ghost hunting TV.

“I want ghost equipment like some people want jewelry,” Julie said. 

She made sure the EVP — a voice recorder meant for paranormal activity — wouldn’t die out and the REM pod — a device that sounds when surrounding energy is strong — would stay active for her upcoming girls’ trip.

The Ghost Moms — Julie Chapman, Kelly Seibert, Emily Penke and Liz Beedle — are all mothers of East district students who travel across the Midwest to haunted places, witnessing and recording paranormal activity. On a girls’ trip to New Orleans last May, the women attended ghost tours offered in the city. Liz knew a spot back in Kansas City they should scope out on their own, and by January, the group of women had a new hobby.  

Kelly, mother of Prairie elementary and Indian Hills middle school students, once recruited her longtime friend Julie to test Kelly’s newly purchased — but 100-year-old — house for paranormal activity. Julie brought her equipment and they walked room to room, asking spirits if anyone was present. When the REM pod stayed silent, she determined the house was clear. After having experienced the excitement that comes with hunting for paranormal activity, Kelly sometimes wished the house wasn’t devoid of spirits.

Kelly is considered “The Historian” of the group. On her four mile runs around Mission Hills, she listens to podcasts detailing haunted locations around the Midwest. When she discovers a promising location every couple months, like the Pytheon Castle in Springfield, MO or Axe murder house in Villisca, IA, a text is sent into their group chat, “Ghost Moms,” encouraging the other three moms to read up on their next stop. 

Julie, assigned with the duty of booking, communicates with the owner of a location, explaining their situation and often scoring a deal. Kelly tries to imagine what the family of the house looked like 100 years ago, what they did during the day, who they might hear or see. 

Upon arrival, the moms check in with the owner of the hotel or house, who usually gives background history on the location. At the Axe Murder House in Villisca, the owner in sunglasses and a full beard laughed as they walked in — Kelly guesses he took one look at their Lululemon leggings and Uggs and didn’t think they’d last the night. 

That happens a lot, according to Kelly. When venturing into a haunted winery in Liberty, MO, the moms couldn’t help but notice judgement coming from the accompanying group. The others were shocked to find that the ghost moms brought more equipment and left with better results. 

“They thought we were, well, not a bachelorette party because we’re too old, but just some silly little girls’ trip,” Kelly said. 

After check in and grabbing dinner, ghost hunting begins around 8 p.m. The moms have a strict rule of not drinking at dinner — in the hardcore ghost hunting community, any impairment would forfeit their findings. Although once, they wound up at Denny’s at 3 a.m. in the morning so slap happy, the workers must have assumed they were drunk.

Typically, activity doesn’t present itself until 11 p.m., so to withstand the hours of waiting, the moms ritually down a Five Hour Energy. Then, they say a prayer together and turn on the equipment. But once a paranormal whisper, whistle or mumble is heard, the need for caffeine disappears and adrenaline kicks in. 

According to the ghost moms, they approach ghost hunting with a more light-hearted and positive energy. Some ghost hunters want to explore the more dark, sinister side of the paranormal, trying to aggravate demonic spirits — the moms are all about the Casper ghosts, Julie says. Childrens’ spirits are drawn to their “mom energy,” and have shown themselves when the REM pod lights up like a christmas tree, the red and green lights flashing and the audio buzzing. They’ve told stories of Rapunzel and Cinderella, even sung songs to make kids’ spirits feel comfortable. 

At a lot of the destinations, such as the Axe Murder house where six children were murdered, kids have suffered traumatic events. So when the moms ask questions like “Would you like us to continue telling stories?” the REM pod shows activity, indicating a yes. Silence indicates a no, or that nothing is present. Once at the Wornall House, they caught a crystal clear recording of an intelligent spirit — a little boy saying, “Let’s play,” on the EVP.  

Once, a flashlight flew off the mini fridge by who they believed to be the ghost of a cowboy named Zeke. Kelly and Emily went screaming. Liz, the fearless one, ventured forward to investigate. Other guests of the hotel in Beaumont, Kansas reported this specific spirit was prone to throwing remote controls. The four moms all slept in the same king bed that night. On their Instagram post from that trip, they hashtagged, #weloveyouzeke.  

“We always say we’re like the real housewives of ghost hunting,” Kelly said. “Because we’re in our 40’s and silly.”

There are two kinds of spirits that the moms have found. Intelligent and residual. An intelligent spirit is aware of their presence and can interact. Like Zeke throwing a remote, or once at the Rice-Tremonti Farm House when a female cooed, “Hello,” as they entered the slave cabin. A residual energy is a non-interacting spirit stuck in the loop of what they may have done in life. For example, a spirit who was a maid in life is on a continuous loop of cleaning. The REM pod is best at tracking these energies and lighting up when activity is close. 

The best feeling, and the richest adrenaline rush, is when the group can’t debunk a finding — like if a whisper on the recording was actually Emily, not a spirit. The moms assess every other possibility of what the recording could have picked up and when nothing makes sense, the feeling is like jumping out of a plane, according to Kelly. 

A ghost hunting night is never a good night’s sleep, because the rush of ghost discovery keeps them up until three or four in the morning. Before leaving, the moms say another prayer, thanking the spirits, but making sure to inform them that no one is allowed to follow the moms home. The next day, they grab breakfast on the road, and by 3 o’clock p.m., the moms are back to picking up their kids and going to soccer games or swim meets. 

“Even with a bad night’s sleep, you gotta keep being a mom,” Kelly said. 

Their instagram, @ghostmomskc, features group pictures in front of destinations and EVP recordings of spirits. While their Twitter followers are paranormal hunters, their Instagram followers are filled with community members who are interested in what they do. 

Nine times out of 10, people want to come with them on ghost hunts after finding out more. Once, Kelly couldn’t leave her pilates class because another woman wanted to make sure she wasn’t being messed with . Another time, one of her interior design clients wanted her to check out the house — the client had sensed a presence and seen her door open and close on its own through their Ring doorbell.

The moms make fun of themselves because of how scared they get on missions. But they would never make fun or make light of paranormal investigators. The ghost community is serious and tight-knit, and for the moms, the hunts are just something to enjoy together. 

“This is a girls night out that just happens to involve ghost hunting,” Julie said. “It could be bridge, tennis, golf, but at night I’d much rather ghost hunt with these girls.”