Helser Hall will be hosting its annual Haunted Helser haunted house Friday, Nov. 1, for the Ames community. 

Haunted Helser is free and will take place from 7 p.m. to 12 a.m. and is open to anyone 18 and older. Visitors will be required to sign a waver before going into the haunted house. 

This year’s theme for haunted Helser Hall will be “Monster Zoo,” which will include many famous scenes from popular horror movies. 

“We are recreating the scenes of fames horror movies,” said Eric Mach, president of Helser Hall and junior in mechanical engineering. “Some of the rooms with feature scenes from ‘Friday the 13th,’ ‘Nightmare on Elm Street,’ Leatherface, ‘Texas Chainsaw Massacre,’ a room dedicated to Jack the Ripper.”

Those living in Helser Hall hope to increase the number of people attending this year’s event, said Adrianna Reis, social chairwoman for Helser Hall and sophomore in animal science.

“I’m hoping to hit 300 this year,” Reis said. “We want to bring everybody on campus together through something fun and free.” 

Helser Hall plans on setting up for the event day of and has purchased many costumes and decorations with the help of the Inter Residence Hall Association.

IRHA gave Helser Hall $500 to support the event, and Helser Hall also put in $200 of its own. 

“Big thanks to IRHA for making student events possible,” Mach said. “It is important to organize events like Haunted Helser to give back to both the students and community.”

The haunted house will begin at the door closest to Union Drive Community Center. From there, students will be lead through the basement, into the main hallway, out to the courtyard, to an old garage attached to the building, back into the building and finally back out the door. 

“[We want to] create an ethereal atmosphere that would be in a building and transfer you to somewhere else,” Mach said. 

Many Helser Hall residents are volunteering to try and make the best haunted house, Reis said. 

“[Our goal is to] make people want to do it again next year,” Reis said. “[It is important] to bring everybody on campus together through something fun and free.”

Mach said he believes the event is a true Helser Hall tradition. He wanted to foster the experience and give it back to Helser Hall and the rest of Iowa State the best he can. 

“[It is] a theatrical experience,” Mach said. “[The purpose is] to have fun celebrating Halloween and give back to the community.” 

Helser plans to advertise for their event by creating posters, flyers and write on campus with chalk for the event. 

The events organizers hope for a great turnout, and they encourage people looking for a scare to come to Haunted Helser, Reis said. They hope to make this years show better than it has ever been.