The undead take over Morgantown in Zombie Walk

Close your blinds and lock your doors. Gather your children and head for the hills.

The living dead will overtake Morgantown's streets for the fourth annual Zombie Walk Saturday.

While zombies typically stumble around looking for brains to eat, community members who participate in the walk are hungry for another cause.

"The main reason behind the Zombie Walk is to raise awareness of the hunger problems in the area," said owner of Illusive Skull, Pam Markel. "We also collect canned foods for the local food drives."

The college population of Morgantown has surprised Markel in its generosity concerning the food donations.

"A lot of kids who live in the area who aren't interested in walking still donate food," Markel said. "They'll come out of their apartments and give some food. I just think college kids too often get a bad rap."

Each zombie who attends is asked to bring one can of food to donate to the Morgantown Food Banks.

This income is distributed to many charities, including Catholic Charities, Christian Help and the Salvation Army.

Zombie Walk got its start years ago and has developed into a global event.

With walks taking place all over the country, Morgantown decided it wanted in on the action four years ago.

After participating in the Pittsburgh walk, three young men gathered their friends in the Free Speech Zone and made their way down High Street to celebrate Zombie Day.

The following year, the three young men went to the Illusive Skull asking if they wanted on board.

Recognizing the event as a great way to spread business, the management at Illusive Skull embraced the event and was excited to sponsor it the following year.

Since then, the event has increased in popularity and has had zombie participants spanning from college students to entire families.

One active participant, Morgantown resident Paden Wyatt, said friends from other cities often commute for the event.

A participant in all four years, Wyatt has been impressed with the increase in the public's response.

"In the first year, people didn't really know what was going on," Wyatt said. "Now it's almost like people lining down the sidewalks to watch a parade. It's really a lot of fun."

In previous years, the march of death made its way to The Warner Theatre, where the group would watch a movie about none other than the living dead.

Due to the Warner's recent closure, however, the group has had to make other plans.

The plague of zombies will stammer into the Billiards and Cue restaurant for a party.

In a separate room, a projection screen will be set up for a viewing of the movie, "The Dead Matter."

There will be a $5 charge for anyone wishing to view the movie.

Another aspect to the event will be some live music. The Renfields, a popular rock band, will be performing during the event.

Also, Midnight Syndicate, a group known for creating backup music for many horror films, will make an appearance.

Though the Illusive Skull used to hold a program to help people prepare for the event, they will simply provide people with the tools to get into "zombie mode" this year.

Make-up is available for purchase at both their Fairmont and Morgantown locations.

All participants have different methods of preparing themselves. From getting their make-up done professionally to searching for "living dead" gear at local stores, the costumes vary to all extremes.

"The first two years, I did all of my make-up myself," Wyatt said.

"I'd go to the Goodwill and get a suit that works, or if I can find something ridiculous, I always go with that. It's always pretty cheap to get dressed up."

Registrations start in the North High Street parking lot next to the Chi Omega sorority house at 7 p.m.

The walk itself is free, but all zombies are asked to bring a can of food for donation purposes.

For more information, visit the event's official website at http://www.morgantownzombiewalk.com.