October evenings on a lonely, isolated road in southwest San Antonio are filled with screams, shrieks, howls and demonic laughter issuing from the yard of a modest house on Menefee Boulevard.
But despite the plentiful horrors around him, the look on the face of the homeowner behind the Halloween madness is like a kid in a candy store.
Each night, Michael Hernandez and his spouse, Patricia Hernandez, open the gates of their driveway to all comers for a stroll through their yard, to be confronted by more than 200 ghastly figures from skeletons and rotting corpses to cackling witches and mad-eyed clowns.
Admission is free and the “spooky walk-through,” as Patricia calls the bewildering yard display, is open daily from 6 p.m. to 9 p.m and from 5 p.m. to 10 p.m. on Friday and Saturday nights.
Bringing families together
Patricia Hernandez said they’ve decorated their home for years, but given the remote location of their street, only a couple of kids would come by for Halloween treats. That all changed when they turned their yard into a magical wonderland of frightful delights.
“We decided we need to bring more kids out from the community,” Hernandez said, but they didn’t expect to become a social media sensation.
Freshly dubbed Menefee Manor for the fourth year of their Halloween display, the haunted stroll has caught on thanks to videos shared on social media, including an Oct. 6 TikTok post showing a line of at least 100 people waiting patiently one night for their turn to walk through the yard, nerves steeled against the animatronic shocks awaiting them.
On a recent early evening as the Hernandez family prepared to open their yard, there was no line but visitors had arrived a couple of minutes early eager to get in.
The walk-through begins creepily but innocently enough with a demented, purple-haired carnie, a lantern-bearing, black-clad plague doctor and a talking witch, but proceeds quickly to a bench bearing two animatronic figures displaying lifelike, repetitive movements.
Miguel and Brianna Olivarez brought their 2-year-old son Luca Angel, confident that the stoic child would absorb the frights with his usual calm demeanor. Luca Angel kept his cool until a disfigured ghoul popped suddenly off the ground to torment passersby, but his papa’s waiting arms and shoulder provided enough protection to keep going.
Jaime, Jazelle and Joe Fernandez have been through Menefee Manor eight times and returned Tuesday evening for another freaky stroll. Jazelle, 19, said she’s not a big fan of Halloween. “I’m more of a Christmas person, but it brings the family together,” she said of their visits.
Seven-year-old Joe likes the experience so much he gave the Hernandezes a drawing of his favorite deadwood skeleton figure, which Michael Hernandez proudly pointed out had garnered more than 3,500 views on TikTok.
Keeping the fun alive
Michael Hernandez, who delivers bread for a living, was shy about how much he’s spent on acquiring the elaborate animatronic creatures that crowd the family yard. He offered that each costs anywhere from $200 to $400, and that each year he waits for post-Halloween sales to make most of his purchases.
Patricia Hernandez gently chided that she tries to rein in her husband, who she said is “crazy about Halloween.” Friends have told them that they should charge an entry fee, but they are resolute about keeping free admission, though they accept donations.
“I have fabulous patient neighbors,” she said, who have so far tolerated the long lines, cars driving by slowly to take videos and occasional shrieks of scared visitors.
Neighbors have joined in by setting up tents in their yards to offer snacks for sale and paid parking. The Tamez family sells sno-ones, spider lollipops, popcorn and homemade cupcakes in their front yard just across from Menefee Manor.
Jennifer Tamez bakes the cupcakes. Her birthday is Oct. 19. “I absolutely love celebrating Halloween,” she said. Her husband Daniel Tamez said that while the family brings in a little extra money, mostly it’s a “family get-together,” with their two sons Ethan and Jacob, daughter Danielle and Jennifer’s brother Justin joining in.
They said they celebrate Halloween every year and appreciate what their neighbors have done with Menefee Manor. “Once they started putting up their decorations, it just made it that much more fun,” Jennifer Tamez said.
One commenter on the Oct. 6 TikTok post, Monique R, summed up the joy the Hernandezes have brought to their neighborhood: “I love this for y’all and all the people that aren’t able to afford to take their family to expensive parks and haunted houses. Thanks for keeping the fun alive out of the kindness of y’alls hearts.”
Menefee Manor is located at 1606 Menefee Boulevard and will be open every evening through Oct. 31.