KAUKAUNA (NBC 26) — A Kaukauna candy store owner says ever since she opened her business almost two years ago, things have been happening that, according to her, "go beyond science."
- Sweet Treats in Kaukauna has experienced strange activity like jar lids flying off and the oven randomly turning on
- Owner Stacey Hummell believes the events might be linked to a former worker who passed away in the building
- Staff and customers say they have witnessed occurrences, but are not alarmed
(The following is a transcription of the full broadcast story.)
Stacey Hummell, the owner of Sweet Treats in Kaukauna, said, "I have no explanation for it except for maybe it's someone I can't see with my own eyes."
Hummell started the business in January 2023, moving into this 135-year-old building. But shortly after opening, she began noticing some unusual things.
"Pans in the back shaking, the oven turning on and off by itself… which has a dial you have to turn. The jukebox would turn off by itself. Lids on the candy jars randomly fly off at people," Hummell explained.
Over time, customers began to notice things too. One even shared some decades-old history with Stacey about someone who used to work there.
"Someone had passed away in the basement of this building. Passed away from a heart attack. Was shoveling coal into the old furnace and passed away," Hummell said.
She believes it could be that spirit occupying her store, but she’s not sure.
"Sometimes I wonder if that's just him saying 'hey, it's me, I'm still here,' you know?" Hummell added.
Assistant Manager Lindsay McCrander, who started at Sweet Treats only four months ago after frequently coming as a customer, claims she’s also witnessed some unusual activity.
"We both were standing by the oven, and she turned it off again, and we went back to our business. Within a few, I don't know, fifteen minutes or so? The oven was on again a third time," McCrander said.
But she’s not scared. In fact, she’s more amused.
"I don't get the idea that it's an unhappy or unfriendly ghost. Something extreme would have to happen to make me second guess not coming to work," McCrander added.
Stacey tells me she’s open to having a psychic or medium come to her shop to figure out what—or who—is behind the occurrences. But neither she nor her customers seem to be put off by the presence of the paranormal.
