This Halloween, North students had a new way to celebrate while also raising money for Service Day. The Haunted Hallway was held during lunch on October 31. It was an experience reminiscent of haunted houses, with students being “scare actors” to scare people walking through hallways and rooms filled with frightening decorations.

“I thought it was very fun and actually pretty scary,” said junior Violet Hunt, who experienced the Haunted Hallway. “I liked how into it the scare actors seemed.”

On October 27, fake newspapers appeared on the tables in the Commons, saying that the administrators were “missing” and that there were human remains buried under the school, setting the stage for Haunted Hallway.

“I wanted to go through the Haunted Hallway because it seemed like a fun experience and I wanted to check it out since it’s new,” said Hunt.

Service Day leader Deborah Wyman was a main contributor to the project, along with other staff members like Amy Born, Virginia Lugge, and Dana Lindenmann. “[Born] came up with [the] theme [of an] abandoned lot in a construction site,” said Wyman. “And we had a couple kids who were interested, and they kind of voted on a theme that they wanted, and that was the most popular one.”

This event and the cost of 50 cents is part of the new Coin Wars, a year-long fundraiser to raise money for Service Day. Coin Wars is also a competition between grade levels to see who can raise more money. 

“It’s really important that it’s not just the adults that are raising money,” said Wyman. “I want the students to be involved, too.”

Many students from the Viking Academy were involved in the Haunted Hallway, from scaring people to working the front desk.

“Depending on the type of person you are, you can find scares in different ways,” said sophomore Aidan Gilion, who greeted people at the entrance and later scared them. “And everyone has a different job, so it doesn’t feel crazy.”

The Haunted Hallway was a success, with many students experiencing the hard work of their peers and the staff. However, during the first lunch, the fog machine set off the fire alarm, momentarily pausing the event while the fire department responded.

“The fire department guys thought this was really cool,” said Wyman. “They were like, ‘this is the coolest thing.’” 

Wyman wants to potentially have the Haunted Hallway again next year, with even more student involvement. “The biggest challenge was trying to get students to take ownership of it and to take on a leadership role,” said Wyman. “A big part of Day of Service is trying to instill leadership qualities and teach kids how to have leadership qualities, and it’s a really important part.”

Day of Service is April 9, 2026, and gives students the chance to make a difference in their community. Students can choose how to serve their community, whether that be by assisting Special Olympics, doing various activities in and around the school, or going off-campus. Information will be given to students in the coming months.