Remember me
This true ghost story takes place in the oldest home in Goldboro, Nova Scotia - located in Guysborough County on the Eastern Shore. The house was built in the 1840’s & passed down through multiple generations of family until it was eventually given to a man named Wayne Giffin & his wife, Vivian. Wayne was born in the house in 1942 with the aid of a midwife. He grew up in the house, lived in it for a time & used it as a vacation property until the time of his death in September 2022 at the age of 80. Wayne’s older brother Oley Giffin (also born in the home & now deceased) lived with his wife, Niney, in the second house on the property. We realize that nobody can say for sure what was happening at the time that these videos were recorded. We will leave it up to you to draw your own conclusions.
Wayne was the great uncle of my daughter’s fiancé, Conor….which is how I became connected to the Giffin family. Wayne’s wife, Vivian, & other family members continue to gather & use the property as a vacation spot. It’s a lovely 12 acre estate lining the edge of Isaac’s Harbour & boasts two homes where multiple generations of their family have lived, loved, passed & continued to be born. I never had the opportunity to meet Wayne in life, although I wish that I had. My daughter knew him.
On the July long weekend (2023), my daughter, Natalie, & I spent some time at the Goldboro property. There was a large family celebration going on & I was fortunate enough to be invited to spend some time with them in Wayne’s former home. Natalie & I stayed in Wayne & Vivian’s bedroom - located on the second floor of the house. Vivian stayed in a smaller bedroom in the home & everyone else stayed in the second home on the property. Everyone was aware of my line of work & were hoping for a message or two from spirit over the course of the weekend. I couldn’t guarantee anything…but brought my paranormal equipment with me…hoping to find a quiet moment or two to connect.
Behind Wayne & Vivian’s house stood a number of sheds. The first was known as the original casket house…a small wooden building where bodies were kept prior to their funerals during the cool winter months. In more recent years, a new casket house was built & the original one was used for storage. I was intrigued by the shed when I first noticed it - prior my to learning of its original purpose - & when Vivian explained the history of the building, I understood why.
We peeked inside the door. There were stacks of dusty boxes & Christmas ornaments…things that most people would expect to find in a shed. But then my attention centered on a blue metal trunk with brass fittings at the back of the room. I wondered what was inside.
I knew that Wayne wanted me to open the trunk. He was drawing me to it for a reason. I also knew to wait until nightfall…so I held off on entering the building at that time. I mentioned the blue trunk to Vivian.
Vivian explained that all of the items in the original casket house had belonged to her late husband, Wayne. She said that Wayne was a member of the Ontario RCMP for many years. He mainly worked undercover jobs & was a part of the investigative team that had worked on the Martin Luther King case back in the 1960’s. Wayne was very proud of that work. He’d been recognized for his contributions. Vivian suspected that we might find some of Wayne’s RCMP files in the blue trunk…but she wasn’t sure. She then gave Natalie & I permission to enter any of the buildings on the property at any hour of the day or night. She also gave us permission to look in the trunk or any other boxes that we felt compelled to.
My weekend with the Giffin family was wonderful. Natalie & I had a great time. They were a fun bunch & by the end of day one, I felt right at home. Everyone was warm & some great conversations were had. We enjoyed good food & drinks…some psychic readings (of course)…& loads of games & laughter. It was what most people would expect from a large family gathering.
It was late Sunday night when I asked my daughter if she’d like to check out the casket house with me to see what was in the blue trunk. Natalie was game.
We left the party & the fun behind & crossed the yard to Vivian & Wayne’s home. When we got there, the house was silent & still. It was now 1am on Monday, July 3rd. Vivian was asleep on the top floor of the house. Natalie & I tried our best not wake her.
As we gathered our belongings & went to put on our shoes, Natalie noticed a small red light on the other side of the room. “What is that?” she asked.
The light was in the corner of a small white security camera that was sitting on a table next to some photos of Wayne & his memorial candle. We had been in the house all weekend - both day & night - & hadn’t noticed any lights prior to then.
“It’s like it’s trying to get our attention,” Natalie whispered. We walked over to the camera to look at it. The red light had shut itself off by this time.
“We’d have to ask Vivian to be sure, but I don’t think that camera is working,” Natalie exclaimed. “I haven’t seen it come on since we got here. Do you think it’s Wayne trying to get our attention?”
“It’s possible,” I said. “Spirit tend to show up at family gatherings. Wayne & Oley loved parties & celebrations. If they were going to show up, this would be the time.” We continued to stare at the camera in the darkened room. “This was Wayne’s house & we are heading to the casket house to look in the blue trunk that once belonged to him.” I added. “Spirits will often manipulate electronics to get people’s attention. It would make sense that Wayne would make his presence known if he’s here. He may also be indicating the importance of the blue trunk.” I pulled out my cell phone & started filming. It was important to me to document any interaction we might have. To our surprise, the lights interacted with my questions in a way that led us to believe that Wayne was possibly there. (Video with audio below)
Part way through filming we realized the date & that it would have been Wayne’s 81st birthday. We wished him a happy birthday. He also communicated with us in a way that let us know that he wanted the blue trunk to be opened. Natalie & I thanked Wayne for making his presence known & proceeded to the casket house. We made our way to the blue trunk at the back of the room. Upon opening it, we discovered Wayne’s RCMP dress uniform…very neatly preserved…& I realized that Wayne was wanting to be remembered for the work that he’d done. It was a sobering moment. Wayne’s career as an undercover RCMP officer had been incredibly important. He’d made an impact on our world. He made a difference.
After a few more moments of looking around, my daughter & I decided to call it a night. We didn’t find the Martin Luther King files…but we suspect that they’re there…likely hidden away in a different container. With the families' permission, I would love to go back some time to do some more digging.
The following morning, Natalie approached Vivian to ask her about the cameras. She didn’t mention the lights, the questions or the interaction we’d had. She didn’t mention the recordings. Natalie wanted to know if the cameras were working or not without planting seeds by suggesting anything more.
“They’re security cameras,” Vivian replied, “but they’re not hooked up right now. Why do you ask?”
“There were red lights lighting up on one of the cameras when we came in the house last night,” Natalie responded. “We hadn’t seen any lights on the cameras prior to then & we thought it was strange. We didn’t know if the system was working or not so I thought I would ask you about it.”
“That’s odd,” Vivian seemed puzzled. “I get notifications sent to my cell phone whenever there’s activity with the system.” Vivian unlocked her cellphone to check for notifications from the alarm company. There weren’t any. “It’s not hooked up right now,” she said. “It’s shut off.”
Natalie showed our video to Vivian. She didn’t know what to say. She gave us permission to go to the second house & show the others.
Turn up the sound - we were whispering as someone was sleeping upstairs. This video was taken in the former home of Wayne Giffin in Guysborough County, Nova Scotia on Sunday, July 3rd at 1:11am. July 3rd would have been Wayne’s 81st birthday - which we only realized while filming. Notice Wayne’s memorial candle & framed photos nearby. This video has been shortened in length for sharing purposes. No other editing was done. The Giffin family has viewed the footage, confirmed that the camera system was not hooked up/working & have no plausible explanation. Vivian has given me permission to share the video & the story.
At the second house (occupied by Oley Giffin’s widow, Niney, & where family & friends often gather), people were just waking up & starting their day. Natalie & I made the announcement that we’d captured some interesting footage the night before & shared the recordings with people in the room.
“Vivian says the cameras aren’t hooked up,” Natalie stated.
“They’re not,” a family member confirmed. “Let me see that.” He took my phone from my daughter’s hand & was intrigued by the footage. “I believe there’s an explanation for everything,” he said, “but I can’t explain that.” With a blank expression on his face, he handed the phone back to me.
“How is that possible!?” another family member exclaimed. “I jumped around in front of those cameras trying to set them off when I first got here because I wanted to say hi to Viv, but they weren’t working so I gave up.”
After a little more visiting & a quick trip to a nearby cemetery, Natalie & I gathered our belongings, said our goodbye’s & headed back to Halifax. I thought about Wayne a lot during that drive & I wondered if he’d communicate with us some more. A few days later, I tried a flashlight test to see if Wayne or his brother, Oley, would make their presence known.
Flashlight test using gold rings once owned & worn by Wayne & Oley Giffin (laying on each side of the flashlight). This video was filmed in my daughter & her fiancé, Conor’s, home with my cell phone camera. You can hear Natalie & Conor’s voices in the background. Oley was Conor’s grandfather. He called him Papa. Wayne was Conor’s great uncle. This is a very close knit family.
Note that spirit can sometimes have trouble manipulating electronics to do exactly what they want (making the light brighter instead of shutting the flashlight off). It would have been new territory for them - similar to someone learning how to ride a bike for the first time. Another possible explanation, as Conor mentions at the end of the video, is that spirit are having a little fun.
I’ve been told by spirit on many occasions that how a person is remembered is the only thing that matters on the other side. Their memory is their legacy.
I think we can all agree that Wayne would like to be remembered for his work with the Royal Canadian Mounted Police & for his contributions to this world. I hope this story does him justice. May he rest in peace.
Do you think I should go back to Goldboro, Nova Scotia? Would you like me to update this story if I learn anything more? Please leave a comment below.
