Crowd seeks ‘spirits’ at The Shaskeen

MANCHESTER, NH – It’s easy to succumb to skepticism when it comes to believing in the paranormal and spiritual realms. If something is not in front of you and as solid as an American dollar bill—which is still largely imaginary, however—what evidence do you have to prove its existence?

It’s easier to write it off as hogwash and focus your attention on pragmatics and the sensory world. Right?

Not so fast.

On March 26, The Shaskeen Pub in downtown Manchester hosted a sold-out spirit gallery with clairvoyant Brandie Wells, who is the proprietor of the Shadow and Soul Emporium and Tea Lounge in Keene.

And things—for lack of a better term—got real.

Wells, who is also a hypnotist and paranormal investigator, described a spirit galley as an open forum where she channels the spirits of loved ones and allows them to move through her as a medium who communicates with the living.

“It’s a modern-day seance,” said Wells, who appears on Episode 9 of Season 11 of the television show “A Haunting” as a paranormal investigator. “I’m asking everyone to invoke loved ones and calling their spirits into the room.”

Wells took the stage at 7 p.m. and, after a brief introduction, she asked everyone to ground the energy and allow the spirits to enter through her.

“I am here to be at the service of the spirits first,” Wells said. “As a clairvoyant, it is my duty to the spirits to bring messages from the afterlife. There is life beyond this human experience, and it’s my goal to show people that light.”

Once Wells opens herself to the spirits, she said that she will go into “a channeling state,” or a type of hypnosis, and not recall anything that happens for the remainder of the event, except what the spirits are communicating through her.

Wells said that while her gift is strong, everyone has the ability to connect with the spirit world. “It’s like a muscle. The more you practice and attune yourself to the energies and vibrations [of the spirit world], the more aware you become of it,” she said.

As Wells connected with the spirits in the room during the first portion of the event, some audience members seemed to recognize the spirits she described. The first spirit was a bigger man named Mark, and another spirit was a little more elusive, giving only the initials SH.

While Wells is aware that many people may be skeptical of her work, she said it’s not her job to convince anyone of its veracity.

“I’ve had people challenge my work for years,” said Wells. “But it’s my job to be of service to the spirit. I am not just here to help heal the living. I am also helping the spirits to heal.”

After a short intermission, Wells came back for the second portion of the show, which was the calling out section where individual audience members were allowed to seek out the spirits of their loved ones who communicated with them through Wells.

And here was where things got real.

Ashley Alexander of Pelham sought her grandfather but was instead summoned by her grandmother with whom she had a particularly close relationship.

“She pulled in very specific details,” Alexander said. “Everything she said made sense, and it gives you peace of mind to know that [your loved ones] are with you and watching over you. You can’t explain it until you’ve had the experience.”

Wells quickly identified Linda Hickman of Bow as a fellow clairvoyant, which Hickman said happens often. Hickman was convinced that Wells was channeling both her mother and her sister who had passed away.

“I found her very accurate,” said Hickman. “I watched her actions, and I felt that she was doing exactly what she said she was doing: speaking to spirits.”

As the night wore down, Wells started to appear slightly exhausted from the channeling. The last woman to seek a connection with the spirit of a loved one didn’t seem to recognize the person Wells was describing, who was a proud man who worked his entire life in a garage and named his son after him.

It just so happened that your correspondent was sitting near the puzzled young woman, and the man Ms. Wells was channeling described my own grandfather, who passed away more than three decades ago, to a tee.

Some things, I suppose, you just can’t explain.

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For more information on Brandie Wells, or to book her a reading, hypnosis or an event, visit her website at Brandiewells.com.