DEER LODGE — For the past 10 years, a group in Deer Lodge has been hosting a haunted house show. This year, the decision to host it in a former funeral home is causing controversy.
Cutler Bros. Productions has received many negative messages on social media and via voice mails.
“This is totally Satanic and what you’re doing, God will hold you accountable. The blood of all these people going through the door will be on your hands,” the voice mail said.
Patrick Cutler was shocked: “It’s getting creepy, so we’re looking at a lot of precautions for Friday and this entire weekend.”
The Cutler brothers have hosted the Creepshow event at different locations for a decade. They needed a new location this year and got permission from the building owner to use the former Jewell Funeral Home location on Missouri Avenue.
Negative messages on Facebook soon came flooding in by those outraged by the location, even though it no longer operates as a funeral home. The brothers believe many of the complaints are irrational.
“It goes so far beyond, you know, human comprehension that it’s like, okay, we can’t take this serious anymore. I will say, this is the first time I’ve been called ‘Satanic,’ so that’s off my bucket list,” said Kelly Cutler.
Some residents are against it because the former funeral home owner died just a year ago.
“If they want to have this event held some place else, more power to them, but I think at a funeral home it shows disrespect for the people that had a service here and the preachers that have been here,” said neighbor Doug Plunkett.
Some of the other negative comments to the brothers about their event: "Totally unbelievable and totally unacceptable, this world is spinning the wrong direction. Sad, Sad!"
“Over a haunted house in a private building,” Patrick Cutler responded.
Why hasn’t anyone filed an injunction to stop this macabre endeavor?
“These are like the grocery store, aisle five conversations that used to happen in the 90s, but now they’re all on Facebook or social media for people to see. I get where they’re coming from, it used to be a funeral home, it’s not anymore, this is just a building. It’s wood and mortar and drywall, that’s all this place is,” said Kelly Cutler.
The event runs Friday through Sunday beginning at 7 p.m. at 601 Missouri Avenue in Deer Lodge.
