Positively Paranormal

As the sun sets on Saturday across New England, the New Hampshire Division of the Paranormal Investigators of New England (PI-NE) gear up for their next investigation. Armed with trunks of equipment, mediums and an insatiable curiosity, this group of dedicated volunteers embark on a weekly vigil to investigate the unknown. 

Founded in 2004, PI-NE is an organization that specializes in all things paranormal all throughout New England. With teams located in New Hampshire, Maine, Vermont and Massachusetts, they’re able to assist with UFO sightings, cryptozoology, hauntings and any sort of unexplained activity. 

Melissa Roberge, Samantha Bravaco and Deborah Dutcher set up for an investigation

With New England’s rich history and historic homes, it’s a haunted haven for paranormal investigators. PI-NE doesn’t just investigate for the sake of investigating. They are sought out by home and business owners who have experienced something… out of the ordinary. As a volunteer organization, PI-NE investigates free of charge. 

New Englanders reach out to PI-NE for help during a sensitive, and oftentimes vulnerable point in a person’s life, said PI-NE’s director, Betty Miller. Typically, PI-NE is called when homeowners feel like there’s no one else they can turn to who will believe them when they say they feel like they’re being haunted.  

“(PI-NE) started when ghost hunting wasn’t cool,” Miller said. “It’s much easier to talk about now, because of the rise of (ghost hunting) TV shows. Those have awakened people to feel more comfortable talking about the fact that there’s spirits around… television has helped people to realize that there are people out there who can help (bring) validation and figure out if there’s something going on in the home, or if it’s the pipes.” 

Unlike the sensationalized ghost hunts on television or social media, PI-NE’s investigative methodology is purely data driven, the group says. They aren’t running down hallways “Scooby-Doo” style — in fact, they don’t run at all. Through the careful use of data collecting equipment, mediums and equal parts belief and skepticism, PI-NE says it’s able to confirm or deny the presence of the paranormal. 

“Our instruments record in different ways,” said Miller, “but they’re all looking for something that cannot be explained. That’s done by using an audio recorder, which may (record) other voices in a room. Our cameras can get an actual video of somebody in the room, when there’s nobody else there. Another way we (gather data) is by measuring the energy in the room, with a light up trigger that (can be touched) and EMF readings.”

Dutcher holds the Onvoy Ghost Box which displays words, numbers, yes/no and icons. It only scans the environment for spikes in EMF, temperature and touch, and does not have a word box.

When PI-NE is contacted to investigate a space, they set up an interview with the home or business owner at the location to get a sense of the space, figure out how many investigators will be needed for the investigation and conduct base EMF readings to determine where the hotspots are, if any. Then they talk to the owner of the space to listen to their experiences. 

“(People) are pretty emotional by the time we get to then,” Miller said. “We go through a list of questions to make sure we have everything covered, and to make sure this is something they truly want to do. We also assure them that we are a well-vetted team and make sure they’re comfortable.” 

Because of the sensitive nature of an investigation, PI-NE promises to keep their investigated locations, and their findings, confidential. Only the home or business owner will receive a copy of PI-NE’s final report following the investigation and the investigators are sworn to secrecy — like ghost HIPPA.

Because PI-NE investigators and regional directors are volunteers, investigations are typically held on weekends, but they don’t need to be at night. 

“It doesn’t have to be dark for spirits to be present,” joked PI-NE’s New Hampshire assistant director, Deborah Dutcher.

Having grown up in Colebrook, Dutcher is no stranger to the world of the paranormal and unexplained. Her own experiences with the paranormal and otherworldly drew her to PI-NE two years ago, where she started as an investigator before becoming the assistant director for New Hampshire. 

The New Hampshire PI-NE team scouts out a possible location.

“I like being able to satisfy my own thirst for answers,” Dutcher said. “But I also love being able to help somebody who is afraid to be in their own home or business to understand that they don’t need to be.”

Every weekend, Dutcher and the New Hampshire team travel all over the Granite State, determined to bring peace of mind to whoever calls. 

During a recent investigation, Dutcher and a small team of investigators, Samantha Bravoco and Melissa Roberge, found themselves in one of New Hampshire’s historic mills (the exact location not revealed per the owner’s request). There, they conducted an investigation following reports of phantom footsteps and doors slamming shut when no one is around.

“We tend to go in blind, with no details and then compare notes after,” Dutcher said during the team’s walkthrough of the building

While this investigation didn’t have a medium present (she was out of town), typically the investigators will split up during the walkthrough, and write down what they experience in the space. Then, they regroup and compare notes among themselves with the medium. Oftentimes, each investigator’s findings regarding hotspots are aligned with what the medium senses. 

“There are four types of hauntings,” Dutcher said. “The first is a poltergeist, which tends to be in the neighborhood of a pubescent child or an older woman. The second is intellectual, which is when the spirit interacts with something (like a door or ball). The third type is residual, which is like an imprint. It’s when the energy recreates their life when it was physical — like an echo. The fourth is non-human or demonic, which we do not deal with.”

While walking through the halls of the restored mill building, Dutcher paused in one of the original, untouched stair cases. Standing on the landing between the third and fourth floors, she said that she had a feeling that this is where they should set up their equipment.

With their phones off as to not interrupt the EMF equipment, Dutcher, Bravoco and Roberge began to set up shop. While Dutcher set up the SLX camera, which captures energy and temperature, Bravoco and Roberge placed a desk bell and a light up cat ball at the top of the stairs. 

Why the cat ball? Bravoco explained that when an energy is close to the ball, or touches it, the clear ball will light up. She demonstrated just how close something would need to be to the ball for it to light up. If you simply wave your hand around the ball, or stomp next to it, the ball remains unlit. A gentle touch causes a flashing rainbow of colors to erupt from the toy.

A peek inside one of PI-NE’s equipment boxes, which contains the cat balls, a spirit box and more.

The bell is easy, Roberge said. Everyone knows what a bell is and how to use it. It also doesn’t take the same amount of effort or energy to ring the bell as it does to light the cat toy. 

“The first thing we do is say hello to the space,” said Dutcher, after everything had been placed. In a calm, friendly voices, the same way you might talk to a scared child, the PI-NE team introduced themselves one by one, and explained that they, and their equipment, were safe and only there to communicate. They also explained how each piece of equipment is used, and how the spirit can use it.

Then, Roberge asked if anyone was present. There is no one standing at the top of the stairs.

The bell dings.

The cat ball lights up.

The investigation begins.

Roberge establishes a quick yes or no guide — one ring for yes, two rings for no. She asks the unknown if they want to answer a few questions.

One ring responds for yes.

“Are you a man?,” Roberge asks.

Two rings respond no.

“Are you a woman?,” asks Roberge.

Ring.

“Did you work in these mills?,” Roberge continues.

Silence responds, followed by a few scattered rings.

“Are you in school?,” Roberge tries again.

“Ring,” answers the bell.

“Maybe I’m not asking the right questions,” joked Roberge.

Ring. The team laughs — spirits have a sense of humor. 

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Most investigations are an exercise in patience. The team will ask a question and then wait for a response, which sometimes never comes. Sometimes, they’ll experience something, and sometimes they won’t. It’s all part of the process because finding nothing is just as important as finding something. They’ll never provoke a spirit — that kind of thing would be rude, and totally goes against their ethos.

The view through the SLX Camera while Bravaco listens to the spirit box.

“We aren’t provoking or looking for something to jump out at us every two seconds,” Roberge said. “We just get to experience this cool thing with cool people… the spirits are never here to entertain us, and we want to be decent human beings about it.”

Oftentimes, Dutcher added, spirits don’t realize they’ve died. They’re just living the routines of their lives as they would have lived them because that’s what they can do. The investigators aren’t in a position to tell that spirit they’ve passed on, or to tell them to leave, she said.

It was clear that being a paranormal investigator requires an incredible amount of empathy for both the living and the departed.

As they search for their next location to set up cameras and equipment, the investigators talk about investigations from years gone by. While setting up the spirit box, a device that scans radio frequencies so quickly that it never lands on one channel so spirits can use it to communicate, Dutcher and Roberge talk about how once, two spirits had a conversation with themselves through the spirit box. 

The team was using the Estes Method in two separate parts of a house, with four investigators. The method dictates that one person be blindfolded and hooked up to the spirit box using noise cancelling headphones. A second person stands far away, and asks questions to the spirit — the sensory deprived person will hear the response and will repeat what they heard. Following the session, the two investigators will see if what the one investigator heard over the spirit box matches the questions asked.

It took a while for the team to figure out why the answers were so mismatched, and more like a conversation. Once they figured it out, they had a good laugh.

In a different hallway on the mill’s third floor, with a clear view of a nearby river (water is a known conductor of energy of all kinds) Dutcher and Bravoco use the Estes Method to see what they might hear. 

Sometimes, they’ll invite the spirit to touch their arm if they’re not interested in using the equipment.

“The equipment is great, but nothing beats your own senses, or just having a conversation,” said Roberge after her forearm felt cold in what was otherwise a very hot space.

“It’s validating to what we’re doing,” said Bravoco, after it was clear the Estes Method wasn’t working in that space.

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Next, the team moved into a different stairwell, pausing because Dutcher’s senses felt they should for a second time. 

With the same SLX camera, cat ball and bell set up, the team began to ask some more questions. It was clear that the presence, or presences, preferred the bell, which rang almost at random. Every few rings, the team would discuss if it was paranormal, or if there was a vent, breeze or strong draft that impacted the ringing. It’s the additional questioning as to why something is happening, rather than immediately assuming it’s paranormal, that makes PI-NE’s process so thorough. They want to be sure that there are no additional factors at play before they confirm a place has activity beyond the veil.

Dutcher scans a hallway with the SLX camera, while Roberge uses an EMF reader and Bravaco records.

“Disproving is as important as proving,” added Roberge, “It’s all experimental, and we experiment as we go, as well.” 

“You’d be surprised at how much we find on our cameras after the investigation,” said Dutcher. Bravoco and Roberge fervently agreed — the cameras and audio recordings catch what they might miss, or were too quiet, in the moment. They comb through hours of video, frame by frame, to ensure that they didn’t miss a thing.

In the stairwell, Dutcher decides to use a different spirit box. Again, the team introduces themselves, and asks if anyone is there.

The bell rings again, the cat ball lights and voices are heard over the box.

Roberge asks if there is more than one spirit present.

Ring.

Roberge asks how many are present.

A faint “seven” is heard over the spirit box.

Dutcher asks if any of them can share
their names.

“Matt” and “Ed” are heard clearly over
the box. 

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None of this is alarming to the team. For the most part, being able to communicate with someone who might not have been spoken to in who-knows-how-long is why they do what they do. They love being able to piece together someone’s story, and bring peace of mind to a homeowner. Frequently, their final reports reflect findings of people’s pets or loved ones, or someone who once lived in the space and isn’t quite ready to move just yet.

They also love hearing your stories and experiences with the paranormal.

“The people in our little team are so cool, normal, positive and fantastic,” said Bravoco, “And it’s so cool to share stories with the people we meet.”

“Everything coalesces into something that’s so positive, and you just have to go with the flow,” said Roberge.
To contact PI-NE, or for more information visit pi-ne.org.

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End note from Elisa: While the final report of their investigation remains confidential, through my research on the building, I learned that that particular mill once held career advancement classes for workers. Additionally, the name Ed came up twice in early reports on the building.

Upcoming PI-NE Event: Oct 30 at 1 p.m. at the Cashin Senior Center in Manchester.

Haunted Spots

Boo! Here are some spots across New Hampshire said to have paranormal activity. 

Omni Mt. Washington Hotel • Bretton Woods

Three Chimneys Inn • Durham

The Library Restaurant • Portsmouth