Undead Maze at Southern Hills Hospital provides thrills and chills for good cause
Be afraid, very afraid — The Undead Maze is open for business in the parking lot of Southern Hills Hospital & Medical Center.
Proceeds from admission sales to the haunted attraction will help support The Public Education Foundation, the Shade Tree shelter and a children’s orphanage in Taiwan.
The maze is the inspiration of Las Vegas resident Jacob Bailey. As a child, he said he often stayed up late watching scary movies with his three older siblings.
“(They) would have me watch Chucky and Freddy Krueger and scary movies,” said Bailey, “and I’d love the movies, but as soon as it got dark, I was petrified of everything.”
He said he began building haunted houses as a teenager, and it kept getting bigger and bigger each year.
“Halloween was my one chance to do the scaring instead of being scared,” he said.
About six years ago, it got really big, as Bailey and his neighbors decided to make their street, backyards and houses into a haunted experience. As many as 400 children would show up every Halloween to be scared by the extravagant effects in the neighborhood near Rainbow Boulevard and Smoke Ranch Road.
Now, he’s brought the concept to Southern Hills Hospital, 9300 W. Sunset Road, where he is a developmental specialist. To help make it happen, local businesses stepped in to help, including Two Men and a Truck, Rita’s Italian Ice, Gordon Biersch at Boca Park, Nevada Beverage Co., Jersey Electric and HydroBuilder.com.
Joyce Goedeke, vice president of marketing and public relations for Southern Hills Hospital, said Bailey’s maze complemented the hospital’s annual Balloon Festival, which is scheduled for Halloween weekend.
“Jacob’s maze is a great new element to add to our festival and provides him support in giving our community a family fun event to support the High School to Healthcare Scholarship through The Public Education Foundation,” Goedeke said.
A carnival portion also is planned, featuring rides and games for all ages by Davis Amusements. Along with the carnival, early morning balloon launches, daily tethered rides and Friday and Saturday Evening Glow Shows are planned, along with free trick-or-treating Halloween night with the balloon pilots during the Evening Glow Show.
A health fair is planned from noon to 4 p.m. Nov. 1 with flu shots and blood pressure checks, and Southwest Gas is scheduled to be on site to show off its emergency vehicle.
The Undead Maze is scheduled from 6 p.m. to midnight Fridays and Saturdays and 6 to 10 p.m. Sundays through Oct. 31. Admission is $9 for adults and $7 for children. For more information, visit facebook.com/undeadmaze.
Carnival hours are scheduled from noon to 11 p.m. Oct. 31, 7 a.m. to 11 p.m. Nov. 1 and 7 a.m. to 11 p.m. Nov. 2.
For more information, call 702-880-2100.
Contact Summerlin Area View reporter Jan Hogan at jhogan@viewnews.com or 702-387-2949.
