It was a brisk fall night when our Barrier-Free social clubbers met at the entrance of Screamland Farms, Maryland’s Premiere in-your-face haunt for our first Social Club outing! 

Our first stop was the food stand. To warm up before the sun went down, friends filled up on chicken tenders, fries, and hot chocolate. Then the real fun began! Some of us sat around a bonfire to stay warm (and away from the scary). Britt took the rest of the group to the spooky things. Their first trip was through the Hayride of Haunts, where participants sat in a truck bed full of hay, and rode through the dark as monsters tried scare them. The group even saw Sam, a Barrier-Free actor, when he jumped up out of the cornfield. One social clubber, Grace, said that a crazy clown offered her a “haircut,” but it would entail cutting off her scalp as well! Needless to say, we're very glad Grace didn’t take her up on that offer.

We also had a huge surprise while waiting at the bonfire! Langston, our newest social clubber and long-time friend, arrived! We were so excited to see him! After everyone caught up on the happenings of the hayride, Langston joined the crew on the walk-through of Barn of Bedlam. ​I personally can’t say what went on inside the house, but from the outside, we heard screams and saw a very large man with a bloody apron and chainsaw chase our friends out of the building! So scary!

Check out the video of everyone’s reactions below!

After the barn, some of us waited in line for a fortune teller. The rest walked around to see some of the haunted displays. Then our night came to an end. We waved goodbye to everyone and told them how much we were looking forward to seeing them again.

​We are so grateful to everyone who showed up and made our first Social Club outing of the year a huge success.

Our November meetup will be held at The Greene Turtle in Westminster. It will also serve as a fundraiser to raise money for future programming! . 

On Thursday September 26th, Barrier-Free participants, families, counselors, and friends gathered at the Westminster Community Center to discuss and collaborate about the future of Social Club - while enjoying some ice cream!

Over 35 in attendance at our Barrier-Free Ice Cream Social!

We also discussed some key points including - what we wanted to get out of Social Club, days, times, transportation, and cost. 

What We Want to Get Out of Social Club:

• Friendships
• New opportunities
• Feeling at ease
• Getting out of the house

Days/Times:

• Evenings
• Weekends
• Friday Nights
• Definitely not Monday or Wednesday due to Barrier-Free Rehearsals

Transportation:
**Unfortunately Barrier-Free is not a large service agency and does not own company vans/vehicles.  We brainstormed some transportation options.**

• Carpooling - organized via Facebook Events by parents
• Enterprise van rentals (if a social club was far distance and all-day)
• Individual transportation

Cost:

• Mix of more affordable Social Club events with occasional more expensive events
• $25 is a reasonable average cost for a Social Club
• $100 would be a higher-end cost for an event
• Possibility to provide Social Club partial or full scholarships through direct donations to Barrier-Free

Barrier-Free Staff getting set-up for Ice Cream Social!
Pictured left to right: Sandra Roll (Board Treasurer, Concessions Manager, mother to Britt & Lauren Burr),
​Laura Stall (Barrier-Free Content Creator, Board Secretary)

Next Steps:

​In the coming days, we will announce the outings, dates, and costs for Barrier-Free Social Clubs in October, November, and December.

By announcing in advance, it is our hope that Social Clubbers and families can plan accordingly for dates, costs, and transportation.

Announcements will be made via email, website, and social media.

Make sure you're on our email lists and social media to be the first to hear!