Ghostbusters come to Canonsburg

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Christen Mitchell (left) plays a themed game hosted by the Steel City Ghostbusters during a two-day event in downtown Canonsburg. [Conner Goetz]

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Patrick Bell and his son, Lennon, attend the second day of a two-day event in downtown Canonsburg hosted by the Steel City Ghostbusters during. [Conner Goetz]

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Levi Elk poses with members of the Steel City Ghostbusters during a two-day event in downtown Canonsburg. [Conner Goetz]

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Members of the Steel City Ghostbusters prepare their authentic ectomobile recreation during a two-day event in downtown Canonsburg. [Conner Goetz]

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Attendees line up to inspect props made by the Steel City Ghostbusters, who hosted a two-day event in downtown Canonsburg. [Conner Goetz]

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Grandpa Joe’s CEO Christopher Beers knew just who to call when he had the idea to host a spooky, family friendly event in Canonsburg ahead of Halloween – the Steel City Ghostbusters.

The nonprofit fan group assembled around the 1984 classic movie brought their proton packs, jumpsuits and, of course, the Ecto-1 vehicle, for two days of “Ghostbusters”-themed fun this weekend.

David Swartz, president of Steel City Ghostbusters, said that he was impressed by the turnout on Friday, which was strong in spite of poor weather and a marquee high school football matchups happening at the same time.

The group still managed to raise over $1,000 for a variety of local children’s health charities on Friday, and hoped to more than double that total during the second half of the event on Saturday afternoon.

The nonprofit hosts around 40-50 events throughout the year to raise money for charity and spread their love for the movie franchise, Swartz said.

Several hundred committed sci fi-fans turned out to see the car, inspect the authentic homemade props and play a number of themed games throughout the event, with many attendees sporting their own jumpsuits and ghost-hunting gear.

The group arranged an extensive scavenger hunt for the event weekend, where kids could investigate ghost stickers hidden around several participating businesses on Pike Street to earn a number of special Ghostbusters prizes.

“This needs to be an annual event,” Beers said.