by James Coulter
Matthew Reynolds, 18, remembers visiting Spirit Halloween at age 6. His parents bought him two animated decorations. That visit would inspire his love for Halloween decorations and set the course for his life.
Since then, Reynolds has collected dozens of animated Halloween decorations. For nearly a decade, he has decorated his front yard with them every Halloween.
Nearly 1,000 visitors come to his house each year to see all the ghosts, zombies, and other monsters in action. Many are set in his front yard. Others are in the backyard, shed, and even a makeshift building created with PVC pipe.
This year, Reynolds hopes to impress visitors with new animatronics and scenes. Last year, he had most of his werewolf figurines displayed in a barn. Now, he plans on creating a full barnyard set piece with bales of hay and everything set outside.
“They [visitors] assume I have some help, but this is my passion,” he said. “I do it all myself with months of planning. There are new things every year. I like to add and improve every year.”
Reynolds has been collecting these animatronics for most of his life. Some were given to him by his parents. Most of them he bought himself. He especially loves buying used vintage collectibles online.
Aside from being able to collect animated decorations, Reynolds also taught himself to repair broken animatronics. He aspires to become an electrical engineer and even work as a technician at a theme park like Universal Studios.
Sometimes, Reynolds visits the parks and rides the attractions not to have fun, but to observe how the many animatronics operate. He plans to apply for a job once he reaches age 21, which is the age listed for a park ride technician.
Until then, Reynolds hopes to continue wowing guests with his vast collection of animatronics. He invites anyone to drop by his house on Halloween night. They can’t miss it. It’s the house on the street with the most decorations outside.
“I think our event has become so large, we have to be biggest in the neighborhood, if not the county,” he said. “I do it for the kids and adults. It is nice to see people come and smile and see the display. This is something I have done all my life doing, and to see people come and enjoy my display, it really pays off.”
The Haunted Yard will be on display Halloween evening, on Thur. Oct. 31 from 5:30 PM to 9:30 PM, at 136 Patterson Drive, Auburndale, FL.
