Ghosts and Legends of Oklahoma
Meeting the people behind Wimgo…

Previously we introduced you to our newest programmer Mike Ricksecker aka ‘The Phantom Programmer’. At the time he was working on his newest book “Ghosts and Legends of Oklahoma”. He recently finished and published the book, which was reviewed in Mood, a publication of The Oklahoman. We have the edited review below or you can read the full review here.

The jury is still out for me. I’ve searched many places for ghosts. I’ve felt chills from being in the dark as my mind played tricks on me. But so far, no ghosts, no moving objects and no disembodied voices.

It’s not that I don’t want to believe; I am waiting to believe.

That’s why I so enjoyed “Ghosts and Legends of Oklahoma” by Mike Ricksecker, 37, of Yukon.

I met Ricksecker when he came to work with me as a programmer. I was surprised when he mentioned he investigated hauntings with his team, Society of the Haunted.

I found myself asking him likely the same questions he’s heard 100 times before: What have you seen? Scariest incident? He happily answered with a knowing look in his eyes.

A recent transplant to Oklahoma, I know little about the state. That’s why some of my favorite parts of Ricksecker’s book are about Oklahoma’s history. The author includes a history lesson for each place the team researched.

The stories in “Ghosts and Legends of Oklahoma” illustrate Oklahoma’s distinct times of prosperity, periods of decline and some of its darker days. Many of those dark times led to the stories and legends of the supernatural that Ricksecker writes about in his book.

Whether you believe is your choice.

Ghosts in Guthrie

The book begins with some fascinating history of Guthrie. I’ve visited Guthrie several times, but the visits were always short because of my limited knowledge of the town’s history.

For example, I didn’t know Guthrie has its own Boot Hill. When I was younger, I thought Boot Hill was one place somewhere out West, but I discovered years ago that it refers to multiple cemeteries throughout the Old West, primarily for gunslingers.

Guthrie’s Boot Hill cemetery is near what was called the Black Jail. Like its name, it’s a place where dark shadows of its former occupants of notorious gangs and outlaws can supposedly be seen by some, still lurking its corridors.

Guthrie also has some bawdy locales such as the Blue Belle Saloon, which Ricksecker writes once included a bordello. The building has changed names and owners many times, and rumor has it that’s because of all the supernatural activity there including apparitions, objects moving on their own and disembodied voices.

Santa Fe Depot and the Harvey House also are fascinating haunts in Guthrie included in the book. One of the haunted locations I’ve been to that is featured in the book is the Logan County Memorial Hospital. I parked on the street out front and stared up at the windows where legend has it you can see the apparition of someone walking around on the third floor.

I also visited the Stone Lion Inn for a murder mystery dinner. The Guthrie bed-and-breakfast allegedly has an unusual amount of supernatural activity, captured not only by Ricksecker’s team but also by a team from the TV show “Ghost Hunters.” It’s been called the most haunted place in Oklahoma. I’m ready to go back and listen for the ghost of the little girl who still walks the halls and asks people to play with her.

OKC haunts

The next section of the book is about hauntings in Oklahoma City. It begins with the history of the Overholser Mansion, where it’s said Anna Overholser can occasionally be seen wandering the 11,000-square-foot dwelling. Perhaps she is the one who is said to open and close curtains, leave impressions in the bed and make people feel as if they are being watched.

The ghost of a young woman also reportedly haunts the Skirvin Hilton Hotel in Oklahoma City. The version I heard was of a young woman named Effie who committed suicide by leaping from the one of the windows.

Whoever the Skirvin’s ghostly guests may be, many of its living guests, including pro basketball players, have reported seeing apparitions, being touched by something they couldn’t see and hearing a crying baby.

Elsewhere in state

The book also includes accounts of northeast Oklahoma with stories about people feeling someone or something touching them at the 101 Ranch; a ghostly gunshot; a female apparition at the Constantine Theater in Pawhuska; mysterious equipment failures at the Brady Theater in Tulsa; objects moving at the Gilcrease Museum in Tulsa; and voices asking “Who are you?” at the Belvidere Mansion in Claremore.

The book recounts dozens of stories from across the state. People reportedly have seen an apparition of “Aunt Jane” and lights dancing around Fort Washita near Durant.

Some say you might catch a glimpse of the shadow of a long-lost lover at the Ritz Theater in Shawnee, see mannequins move on their own in the dressing room in the Eskridge Hotel in Wynnewood and hear the ghost of a young boy say he’s thirsty at a shop in Shawnee.

Ricksecker recounts stories of a ghost hanging from a noose at Fort Sill and the apparition of a bruised little boy who appears to some at the Riverside Indian School in Anadarko.

The spookiest of all

The scariest of all the book’s stories is near the end. The legend of the former Missionary Baptist Church in Eldorado will remind you of the “The Amityville Horror.” Ricksecker writes that, in this church, which was later used as a family home, there were reports of pets barking at something unseen in the kitchen, people attacked by flies that appeared and then disappeared into thin air, people felt a presence that caused their hair to fall out and others heard menacing growls throughout the house and voices saying “Get Out!”

“Ghosts and Legends of Oklahoma” is a great read for those who love history and ghosts stories alike. Ricksecker skillfully weaves bits of history together into a narrative using evidence and tales from eyewitnesses. The book is both fun and at times may make you feel a bit of chill. Perfect for a haunted Halloween eve.

click to see the original article

Website: MikeRicksecker.com

The Phantom Programmer
Meeting the people behind Wimgo…

Our newest programmer at Wimgo is Mike Ricksecker and he has earned the title The Phantom Programmer because of his hobby of paranormal investigation just like on the TV show Ghost Hunters. Yeah I know. I had the same reaction. I was both intrigued and disbelieving because I’ve never seen a ghost or a ghost hunter in person. In fact I’ve never had a paranormal experience of any kind outside of the feeling that something was there in an otherwise empty room. So I cannot discount whether ghosts are real, but I now have proof that there really are at least a few out there hunting after them. I may become convinced about the ghosts though, especially after listening to the stories Mike tells from his investigations.

Wimgo: I guess we should start with a few normal questions. How long have you been married? How many children do you have?
Mike Ricksecker: Robin and I will be married 18 years on August 15. We have four children: Collin, 18. Arielle, 16. Chase, 14. Cameron, 9.

Wimgo: How do you balance the day job and family with the paranormal investigations?
Mike: It’s a very delicate balance. I try to spend as much time with my family as I can when I’m at home. Our investigations are generally every other week, so that helps with the balancing act.

Wimgo: Do you have any hobbies outside of paranormal investigations?
Mike: Writing. Computer games. Wine making. I’m a big baseball fan and used to play back in the day.

Wimgo: What was it that got you into paranormal investigations?
Mike: I’ve always had an interest in the paranormal since I was a kid because ghosts were such a mysterious thing that people didn’t know much about. I enjoyed both reading and writing ghosts stories, but it wasn’t until I’d written a mystery novel and a couple paranormal ghost stories in my adult life that I was offered an opportunity to write Ghosts of Maryland. That really set me off down the path I’m currently on.

Wimgo: What investigations have you done so far?
Mike: As a member of Society of the Haunted I’ve been on dozens of investigations including residences, historic locations, and cemeteries. The most notable, perhaps, is the investigation in Edmond that was featured on Animal Planet’s television show The Haunted.

Wimgo: Do you have a favorite investigation?
Mike: My favorite investigation was a night at the Stone Lion Inn in Guthrie which was extremely active in paranormal activity. Doors were opening and closing on their own, objects were falling off the walls, and I caught an interesting white wisp on camera.

Wimgo: Do you have a scariest moment?
Mike: Aside from a couple things I experienced as a child, I haven’t really been scared by the paranormal.

Wimgo: What was the experience? What happened?
Mike: A shadow figure once lurked near my closet during the middle of the night and approached me at my bed. I also witnessed a strange blinking type of apparition in the shape of a gorilla at my grandparents’ house. To a young child, both were quite scary, but I’d love to see them again. I have seen other shadow figures as an adult, but they have darted out of the room instead of approaching me.

Wimgo: Have you ever seen things move by themselves?
Mike: My experience at the Stone Lion Inn mentioned above is a great example for that with doors opening and closing on their own and objects falling off the wall. The back door of the Edmond house in our episode for The Haunted blew open multiple times during an intense moment with the homeowners’ daughter.

Wimgo: Why are ghosts so hard to find and capture on video?
Mike: Unfortunately, you can’t make the paranormal act on demand, so trying to capture something becomes a big waiting game. Just seeing something with your eyes is rare enough and usually happens very quickly, so there is a degree of luck in having the camera pointed in the right direction at the right time. Even then you hope you have the camera focused properly when the shot is taken.

Wimgo: Have you ever felt like a ghost was trying to communicate with you? What were they trying to say?
Mike: There have been a number of occasions in which we’ve been able to get a ghost to respond to questioning by asking it to light up an EMF (electromagnetic field) detector for a yes response to questions. In those cases we’re trying to find out if it’s a male or female spirit, if it’s connected to the house or the family, and how long it’s been there. Other times we’ll pick up EVPs (electronic voice phenomena) in response to our questions. These come across our audio recorders as eerie whispers and can range from anything from a word to a complete sentence.

Wimgo: What proof have you acquired so far?
Mike: I’ve captured a few interesting photographs including that white wisp just after a bureau drawer closed on its own, an unexplained self-illuminated ball of light at an abandoned church, and a bed impression first thing in the morning after nobody had been there at the Samuel Mudd House in the room where John Wilkes Booth spent the night. I have a nice collection of EVPs and a couple video clips of our interactions with EMF detectors as well.

Wimgo: What do you say to people that don’t believe in ghosts?
Mike: I tell them I respect their opinion but I know what I’ve seen and experienced. Perhaps one day they’ll experience the same and their opinion will change.

Wimgo: Are there a lot of haunted houses in Oklahoma?
Mike: There are quite a number of haunted locations in Oklahoma. They’re a bit more spread out than what I’m used to back east, but they don’t lack in quantity. I really had to pick and choose what to write about for my upcoming book Ghosts and Legends of Oklahoma due out September 28.

Wimgo: What investigations are coming up?
Mike: We’ll be investigating an old sanatorium in Arkansas, and later we’ll be revisiting the 101 Ranch near Ponca City. We’ll be following up on a local residential in between.

Wimgo: What do you eat while on stakeouts?
Mike: We try to hit some of the more recommended restaurants in the area where we’re at or that are along the way. For instance, if we’re on the way to Lawton we’ll stop in at Meers for the big pie burger. Our case manager, Cathy Nance, is a chef, so she usually has a list of great places for us to check out.

Wimgo: You’ve only been here a short time, but do you think Wimgo HQ is haunted?
Mike: I haven’t yet come across anything that would make me think Wimgo World Headquarters is haunted… but you never know.

Mike Ricksecker is the author of the Chase Michael DeBarlo mystery series, Ghosts of Maryland, and the forthcoming Ghosts and Legends of Oklahoma. As a paranormal investigator and “ghostorian” with Society of the Haunted he has appeared on Animal Planet’s The Haunted. His first novel, Deadly Heirs, was published in 2004.

Descended from settlers of Frederick County, Maryland, Mike has lived in Ohio, Massachusetts, Alaska, Maryland, and Oklahoma. He and his wife have four children and a cat.

Website: MikeRicksecker.com

Wimgo Employees Volunteer at Infant Crisis Services

Recently Wimgo employees had the privilege to volunteer at Infant Crisis Services, an Oklahoma non-profit that provides babies and toddlers with life sustaining formula, food and diapers. Although the time spent volunteering was fairly short, the experience was one that will not soon be forgotten.

While at Infant Crisis Services Wimgo staff members made toddler and infant food packs, diaper packs, organized donated clothing and the “shopping” area and helped families that visited the facility.

The mission of Infant Crisis Services is clear: no baby should go hungry. Through speaking with Infant Crisis staff members, it’s easy to see how passionate they are about fulfilling this mission each and every day.

According to their website, they assist more than 1,000 infants and toddlers per month. And on Wednesday, May 25, 2011, Infant Crisis served their 150,000^th child.

Infant Crisis Services is able to serve the community through private donations, grants and volunteer efforts. They receive absolutely no state, federal or United Way funding. Monetary donations are accepted at the facility or online. They also accept new or gently used clothing (up to children’s size 6), toys, blankets and shoes.

The main facility is located on Lincoln Blvd., north of the Oklahoma State Capitol. They also have two other locations:  NW 10^th Street & Tulsa and another at S. Douglas Avenue & SW 44th, all in Oklahoma City.

Visit the their website (http://www.infantcrisis.org/) for more information or if you or someone you know is in need of children’s food and/or clothing.

You can also connect with them on Facebook and Twitter.

And if you get a chance, volunteer at Infant Crisis Services. You will not regret it.
-Wendy with Wimgo

Jordan & Amber organize clothes.

Tim & Summer making diaper packs.

More diaper packs. Doesn’t Tim look like he’s having fun?

The “shopping” area at Infant Crisis Services.

Cribs located inside the facility.

The cow that greets everyone that visits Infant Crisis Services.

And Baby Makes Three
Meeting the people behind Wimgo…

My name is Mick, the Wimgo Toastmaster, and I have the honor of working with people at Wimgo who are simply top notch. They are not only professionals who work hard, but also add a lot of character to halls of Wimgo HQ. We recently gave you an update on one of them, our programming friend Isaac, who decided to take part in the extremely cold OKC Polar Bear Plunge. And this week we want to introduce you the young woman who is the public face of Wimgo. You’d know her smile and laugh instantly because she is featured in all the video and radio shows for Wimgo. Something beautiful, incredible and miraculous has happened in her life recently and we wanted you to hear all about it from her.

Mick: So what’s the big news Wendy? What’s the big thing that’s been going on with you recently?
Wendy: I just became a mom! If you watched the weekly ‘Wendy with Wimgo’ videos during 2010 this is not a shock to you, as there was no denying that my waistline was expanding! On November 16, 2010, my husband and I welcomed our beautiful, healthy baby boy, Cannen Ace, into this big ole world.

Mick: What changes did Cannen bring with him?
Wendy: During the last nine weeks I can tell you I’ve never showered less, my house has never been messier and I’ve never been more tired in all of my life. And I can tell you with complete confidence that I would not change it for anything.

Mick: Going back a bit, what was the worst thing about being nine months pregnant? The best? Can you even think of one thing?
Wendy:  Can I think of one?! Oh please, I can think of many! Now, I don’t want to scare off anyone that may be considering getting pregnant and having a kid…but pregnancy in general wasn’t awesome for me. The first trimester was absolutely exhausting. The second trimester was okay because I got some of my energy back. But once the third trimester rolled around I was exhausted again and just ready to meet my son. My body ached, I had ‘pregnancy brain’ and I was a roller coaster of emotions.

I think one of the worst things about pregnancy is the vast amount of information available. I know, I know – information is a good thing. But trust me, there is too much out there! There’s information telling you how to sleep and how not sleep, what to eat and what foods to avoid, cleaners to use and cleaners to avoid, exercise tips and probability of birth defects. Not to mention all of the information on giving birth and so on and so forth. It’s overwhelming. And, when you have 9 long months to let your mind wander about what could happen, it kinda drives you crazy.

With that said, I didn’t hate being pregnant. It was amazing to me that a life was growing inside me and that I was all he needed. I loved to feel him move and kick. I loved imagining what he would look like and the special bond I began to have with him while he was in utero.

Mick: Did you have any weird pregnancy food cravings?
Wendy: No, I just wanted to eat all the time!! And, admittedly, I had my fair share of Chips Ahoy cookies.

Mick: How did you and Kyle settle on the name ‘Cannen’?
Wendy: Wow – that’s a long story! Basically we could not decide on anything so we bought a book.  You know, one of those books with 100,000 + 1 baby names. After scouring it for months and finding absolutely nothing, I finally told Kyle that maybe we should try to find a “K” name. He was reading off names and I heard him say “Kannon” and I absolutely loved it. I asked him to read the meaning and it wasn’t something I liked. At all. And I didn’t feel comfortable naming my son that although I loved the name. But, as luck would have it, the name was also spelled with a “C” and had a meaning I could live with, so Cannen it was! And I should probably mention that Kyle really likes the name, too. I wasn’t going to name Cannen that unless we both agreed.

Mick: What were the first seven days like with Cannen?
Wendy:  Exhausting. I had him on a Tuesday by c-section and we were in the hospital until Friday. Recovering from a c-section is no joke and it was painful getting out of bed and even walking around or taking a shower. My mom came and stayed with us for a few days once we were home and it was so nice to have her help. Cannen – that little stinker – had his days and nights confused so he would sleep all day and want to party all night. It already seems like such a long time ago, though. It was a blur and it was terribly difficult but I loved it just the same.

Mick: Is there such a thing as “me” time any more?
Wendy: Sure – on my drive to and from work! Since my husband works from 1 – 11 p.m., it’s only me and Cannen in the evenings so ‘Wendy time’ is practically non-existent. But Kyle is great about watching Cannen on the weekends when I need to run errands or spend time with friends away from the house for a bit. I have plans to go on a girls trip in March which will be so nice – although I know I’ll miss Cannen like crazy!

Mick: What are some of the things you’ve learned as a mom so far?
Wendy: I’ve learned that I can function on a very small amount of sleep day after day and night after night. Even when I think I cannot make it I somehow find the strength and energy. It must be the knowledge that there’s a precious little life that depends solely on me and no matter how tired I am I will always find a way to care for him. It’s as if love takes over when my body cannot.

I’ve learned that my heart is capable of a massive amount of love – more love than I thought possible.

I’ve learned that Cannen’s bodily functions don’t repulse me and that everyday is a complete surprise!
I’ve learned that I’m much stronger than I ever thought myself to be and I respect my body more. Pregnancy and childbirth are not easy but all of the bad things, the painful things, the unpleasant things and the downright awful things disappeared the first time I held my baby.

I’ve learned to appreciate my parents more even though I’ve only been a mom for a short amount of time. I’m beginning to understand their love for me and I know that understanding will continue throughout my lifetime.

I’ve learned the things I once thought of as sacrifices no longer seem like sacrifices.

I’ve learned that the mother instinct simply just kicks in. Before Cannen (BC as I like to call it), I had never been comfortable around newborns. Sure I’d held babies, but I never really knew what to do with them. When they cried I immediately handed them off to their mother. Now I was going to be the mom and people would hand my son to me when he cried…and that scared me to death. I was so worried that I wouldn’t know what to do or how to handle him. But, much to my surprise, the instinct took over the second I first heard my son cry in the delivery room. That magnificent, boisterous scream gave me the confidence that I could do this. And when I was finally able to hold that precious little boy in my arms, I knew everything would be just fine.

Mick: If you could sum it all up into one bit of advice for soon to be first time mom’s then what would you say?
Wendy: You can be as prepared as you want to be but at the end of the day what’s going to happen will happen. Roll with it and don’t stress about the small things. And buy yourself some Spanx.

Taking the Cold, Cold Plunge
Meeting the people behind Wimgo…

It was a perfect day for a plunge. Clear skies, not much wind, but a plunge in Oklahoma City in January?

That was the plan for about a dozen people who showed up to take part in the Third Annual Polar Bear Plunge. Some of the contestants looked eager, some not so eager. If you’re not familiar with it, a Polar Bear Plunge is an event held during the winter where participants enter a body of water despite the low temperature. The cold varies from place to place and in some cases the ice has to be chipped away to make room for people to jump in.

Lake Hefner is the annual site for the Polar Bear Plunge put on in part by the Oklahoma Outdoor Adventure Group. The contestants compete for a prize to see who can stay in the freezing water the longest. One of our programmers is a member of the group who decided to the take the plunge on New Year’s Day.

Isaac Hildebrandt joined about 50 people on the frigid shore of Lake Hefner. Most people were bundled up for the cold, which according to the forecast the temperature was 32° but the ‘feels like’ was only 23°. The wind literally hurt any exposed areas, at least for many of the crowd.

The plunge official gave the go and a dozen people entered the water walking out far enough to reach their waists. The official had them stand there for about five minutes before yelling out “drop to your necks”. By that time there were only three people still taking part, including Isaac.

After another five minutes it looked like all three of the “bears” were stubborn enough to not give in to the cold. The official called them in closer to the shore for the next phase. The finalists had to lie down at the shore in the water on their bellies. After a couple of minutes it was clear that the last three were just not going to quit. If anything two of them almost seemed to be enjoying it as if it were a summer day on the lake. The official called it a three way tie after thirteen minutes in the water.

The secret of his success? Isaac says he’s taken part in events similar to the polar bear plunge before, so he wasn’t worried about how well he would do. He was ready to go when the official gave the word.

Isaac hopes to convince several people from Wimgo to take part next year. We’ll see how convincing he is the next time the plunge comes around.

Isaac is the programmer who built the Wimgo framework that the website sits on so anything you’ve used on the site he’s touched in some way. He has a degree in Illustration from Oklahoma State University. Isaac has been with Wimgo for two years but has had an assortment of jobs including flooring and hotel management. You can find him on Twitter as @KingIsaac.

The Oklahoma Outdoor Adventure Group is a new outdoor club formed in Oklahoma City. The group is for enthusiasts who love hiking, kayaking and camping. You can find out more about them on Facebook and at their website.