November 21, 2024
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Scaring up fun at Oswego house

Oswego couple Phil and Dannielle Dienoff have transformed their yard into a giant Halloween display

By Eric Schelkopf
Phil and Dannielle Dienoff use fog as part of their haunted yard trail display on Wednesday Oct. 16, 2024, held at their home in Oswego.

Phil and Dannielle Dienoff use fog as part of their haunted yard trail display on Wednesday Oct. 16, 2024, held at their home in Oswego. (David Toney for Shaw Local News /David Toney)

Growing up, Halloween was always Phil Dienoff’s favorite time of year.

“I always loved the cool air and going out and dressing up and meeting somebody different,” said the Oswego resident, who is originally from St. Louis.

His love for Halloween is on display at his home in Oswego. The display, called Raven Hills Cemetery, features an array of creatures designed to scare up some fun.

Through the name, Phil Dienoff is showing his love for the Baltimore Ravens football team.

“I’m a big Baltimore Ravens fan,” he said.

Those who stop by Phil and Dannielle Dienoff’s house at 224 Presidential Boulevard in Oswego are invited to walk through the display, which extends into their backyard. Hours are from 6 to 9 p.m. Thursdays through Sundays.

The display will be open from 6 to 9 p.m. Oct. 28 through Oct. 31. The display features some of Dienoff’s own work.

For example, he built the two pillars at the entrance to Raven Hills Cemetery by hand.

“They are built from the ground up, by myself,” Dienoff said.

Phil, right, and his wife Dannielle Dienoff pose for a photo in front if a pillar that Phil made and are on display on Wednesday Oct. 16, 2024, that sits outside his home in Oswego that is part of his haunted yard trail.

Phil, right, and his wife Dannielle Dienoff, pose for a photo in front of a pillar that Phil made and are on display on Wednesday Oct. 16, 2024, that sits outside his home in Oswego that is part of his haunted yard trail. (David Toney for Shaw Local News /David Toney)

His handiwork can be seen in other parts of the display. Dienoff and his wife, Dannielle, have been putting on the display since moving to Oswego in 2019.

Their display keeps on getting bigger each year. The couple gets ideas for the display from other sources, including from the TransWorld’s Halloween & Attraction show in St. Louis, which they visit yearly.

“We get ideas there and we buy stuff there,” Dienoff said. “If I see something that I know I can build or make it better in my opinion, I’ll do that.”

Along with having the chance to come face-to-face with many menacing creatures, those who drop by the display can experience what it would be like to walk through a swamp.

Phil Dienoff is all smiles on Wednesday Oct. 16, 2024, as he stands in his favorite prop of his haunted yard trail display known as the swamp. He has spent 16 hours creating his swamp that sits in his back yard of his home in Oswego.

Phil Dienoff is all smiles on Wednesday Oct. 16, 2024, as he stands in his favorite prop of his haunted yard trail display known as the swamp. He has spent 16 hours creating his swamp that sits in his back yard of his home in Oswego. (David Toney for Shaw Local News /David Toney)

Fortunately, a person won’t get wet. This swap is created through combining fog with lasers.

Those who go through the swamp will hear the sounds of crickets and frogs in the background, making the experience feel even more real. The swamp is a new addition this year.

People are loving the experience.

“Every time we have it on and people walk through, they comment on it,” Dienoff said. “And kids always want to hide in it.”

The display has been open this Halloween season since Sept. 13, which, fittingly enough, was a Friday. With the help of others, the couple starts putting up the display every year on Labor Day weekend.

It is a long process.

“To get everything in place where we have it now, it took three weeks,” he said. “I took a whole week of vacation the week of Labor Day. We have a couple of friends that help us out.”

One of the many animatronic props that sit outside the back yard of Phil and Dannielle Dienoff is on display on Wednesday Oct. 16, 2024, at their home in Oswego.

One of the many animatronic props that sit outside the back yard of Phil and Dannielle Dienoff is on display on Wednesday Oct. 16, 2024, at their home in Oswego. (David Toney for Shaw Local News /David Toney)

The display has proven to be a popular attraction this season.

“Last weekend, we had a line all the way down the sidewalk here,” Dienoff said. “It was about a half an hour wait per person. For two hours straight, it was just wall-to-wall people.”

On Friday and Saturday nights, Dienoff and others will dress up and scare those in attendance. He dresses up as a character named Henry Gourd.

Appropriately, the character’s head looks like a pumpkin.

Phil Dienoff shows off the mask he wears where he plays a charter named Henry Gourd during the haunted yard that takes guest through his yard on Wednesday Oct. 16, 2024, in Oswego.

Phil Dienoff shows off the mask he wears where he plays a charter named Henry Gourd during the haunted yard that takes guest through his yard on Wednesday Oct. 16, 2024, in Oswego. (David Toney for Shaw Local News /David Toney)

For those who enjoy bubbles, a machine at the front of the display creates bubbles they can catch as they are walking by.

“There is fog in the bubbles so when you pop them, fog comes out them,” Dannielle Dienoff said. “It’s my favorite.”

Dannielle Dienoff pops a fog mixed bubbled known as a Fobble that was floating around the front yard during the haunted yard trail on Wednesday on Oct. 16, 2024, held in Oswego.

Dannielle Dienoff pops a fog mixed bubble known as a Fobble that was floating around the front yard during the haunted yard trail on Wednesday on Oct. 16, 2024, held in Oswego. (David Toney for Shaw Local News /David Toney)

The display attracts people from all over the Chicagoland area, including as far away as Gurnee. For the last two years, the display has earned the people’s choice award in the Oswegoland Park District’s Halloween House Decorating Contest.

Although people can walk through the display for free, donations are welcome. This year, the couple will donate half of the donations to a nonprofit organization called Don’t Be A Monster.

The organization works on preventing students from being bullied. Donating a portion of the proceeds to that organization fits in with what the couple is trying to do with the display.

“We do this for the kids and families and the neighborhood and community,” he said. “The last thing that we want is for kids to be bullied. Life is too short.”

Dienoff hopes to generate even more scares in the future.

“My dream one day is to own my own haunted house,” he said. “That’s the goal, to turn it into something professional one day.”

More information about Raven Hills Cemetery is at its Facebook page.