Illustration by Juan Carlos Campos
Ghostly encounters in Moody and Koehler.
By Richard Montemayor
rmontemayor15@student.alamo.edu
Do you ever wonder what goes on at this college after dark, when students and faculty have gone for the day?
One librarian does, and she has made paranormal activity a hobby.
Librarian Christina Petimezas said her grandmother, mother and sister are all psychic and have an interest in paranormal activity, which made her want to get involved in the family tradition.
“I myself have seen three ghosts in my time, so it’s just an interesting area for me, kind of a crackpot,” she said.
Petimezas has been a librarian at this college since 1970.
One of Petimezas’ ghostly encounters happened on the fifth floor of Moody Learning Center.
It was the spirit of a book donor who bequeathed the college a collection of books from the 18th century, she said.
“I just saw her from the corner of my eye; its kind of chilling when you see a ghost, they kind of take the energy from you to materialize,” Petimezas said.
Librarian Eileen Oliver said in December 2012 the Alamo Colleges board approved giving the collection to Texas A&M University in College Station.
“We got that collection in 1968 with the transfer in early 2013 to Texas A&M,” Oliver said.
Petimezas said once the transfer was complete, the spirit disappeared from the fifth floor.
But Petimezas is not the only one who has seen ghosts at this college.
Housekeeper Amalia Vara, who has worked at this college 11 years, has got a tale or two to tell about her ghostly encounters working here.
“In McAllister, I would hear like somebody whistling or you know, things falling,” Vara said.
One of the places Vara avoids working at night is Koehler Cultural Center, a donation to the district in 1973.
“We used to work at night,” Vara said. “The lady across the street would call the police on us and say how come we would always leave that lady on the porch.”
Vara said nobody lived there while she was working there.
On another occasion, while working the seventh floor in Moody, Vara encountered evidence of a baby who appeared out of nowhere, she said.
“I had gotten wax on the floor (and) several of us (employees) saw baby footprints,” Vara said, adding they did not locate a baby.
So if you find yourself at this college after dark and sense you are not alone, just know it’s probably one of the many ghosts haunting these halls.
