Each autumn in Polk County, the community supports a locally grown haunted house that has created quite the following over the past decade.

Somewhere between fall pumpkin festivals and the adult scares expected at theme park Halloween events, like Busch Gardens “Howl-O-Scream” and Universal Orlando’s “Halloween Horror Nights,” you'll find a frightening destination scaring families for more than a decade.

"We have some families that will come through five, six times, just to experience it differently,” says Sandra Roth, a Campfire board member. “As the night goes on, we get scarier and so you don't know what to expect when you come through our haunted house."

In Lakeland each autumn, the Campfire Sunshine Council opens its annual haunted house. While the frights are a highlight of the Halloween season, these scares make a bigger impact the rest of the year.

"All of the money that we raise will go back into Campfire's programs that we use year-round,” Sandra explains. “We have a variety of programs where we take care of children pre-school through high school."

Volunteers of all ages participate, creating the scares inside and out. From upstairs, to a winding maze outside, through a make-believe campground and into a tool shed, the scares are in good fun.

"I always liked to go to the local haunts. And I found them to be the best, because there is a lot of community energy in there and it benefits everybody,” expounds volunteer Richard Koon, who dresses as “Dr. Paul Bearer II.”

One of Lakeland's youngest visitors to the Camp Fire Haunted House is also the bravest.

"I wasn't scared,” proclaims Lillian Barton of Lakeland.

The elementary school student took the scares in stride... all until a chainsaw wielding miner came out to play, where she turned to the closest adult and landed in a set of comforting arms.

The annual tradition in Lakeland takes about 15 minutes to explore. On busy nights, the wait to get in can extend past an hour.

"When they leave, they have a memory. ‘Hey! That was fun. That was good. I dead-finetly will be back,’” Koon concludes.