Lake Worth teenagers open a haunted house to benefit the U.S. military

LAKE WORTH, Fla. (CBS12) — The lake is worth it for a freshman to celebrate Halloween and get in the mood.

Park Vista Community High School student Jonah Wides and his mom, Cheryl Wilk, are hosting a haunted house to benefit Forgotten Soldiers Outreach, a nonprofit organization that sends relief packages to our armed forces.

“We do a lot of different philanthropic work, and we thought, ‘Why don’t we include this?’ This has never been done before!” said Cheryl.

“I wanted to do this for the forgotten soldiers because they help the country and I wanted to pay them back and just do my part,” Jonah said.

Admission to the haunted house is free, but donations are encouraged! They collect packaged goods to send to the soldiers, as well as monetary donations.

There is also a station for writing letters of encouragement to soldiers.

They allowed CBS12 News to tour the haunted house that my Jonah, Cheryl and her boyfriend Lenny built.

Each room with a different theme and around every corner, a new chance to be scared!

“I was a gingerbread man,” Jonah said, describing his role in the haunted house. “I don’t think anyone wanted to do it, so I had to do it.”

If it’s not already obvious, Jonah and his mom are big fans of Halloween.

Their connection to the “propaganda of the forgotten soldiers” goes beyond ghouls and goblins.

“When he was a baby, he volunteered with me at the Forgotten Soldiers delivering care packages,” Cheryl said.

The moment is over, and it also gives Yona a chance to enjoy her favorite holiday.

“I think it’s better than I thought,” Jonah said. “I want to scare them and have fun.”

If you want to be scared, Jonah and his friends will be here on Saturday from 7pm to 10pm

They are in the Winston Trails community in Lake Worth.

If you live outside of Winston Trails, you will need to RSVP to access the public gate. Call Cheryl Wilk at ext 561-703-9696.