Ross leads group in Face of Horror contest

In August, Desiree Ross was selected as a competitor in a nationwide contest held on Facebook where fans vote for one person to be that year's "Face of Horror."

The winner will receive a $13,000 cash prize, paid travel expenses for a three-day trip to Los Angeles, California, for themselves and one guest, and an exclusive photo shoot with Kane Hodder – an actor known for his role as Jason in the "Friday the 13th" series – for Rue Morgue magazine. The photo shoot will take place in the Woodbury House, a notoriously haunted filming location in Altadena, California, known as the setting for horror shows such as "V/H/S" and "American Horror Story."

Ross in an earlier interview said that she was persuaded by friends to enter the contest. Being an avid fan of horror and a lover of all things Halloween, she seemed like the perfect candidate to anyone who knew her.

They just might be right, because Ross has not only made the cut to the "Full Moon" round of the contest which thins the competition to the top 15 in her group; she has been in first place nearly the entire time. The exact number of groups is unknown.

She said, "There were two days at the end of last round where this one girl got a ton of votes right at the end. She came out of nowhere and knocked me down to second. But I came back with a vengeance, and ever since this round started I've held on to first again."

Voting for the current round of the contest ends on Sept. 21 (today), and it will give way to the "Silver Bullet Round." This round cuts to the top 10 contestants of each group, ending on Sept. 28.

If Ross continues to remain No. 1 in her group and becomes the sole survivor, she will advance to "The Living Dead" round, where new groups will be made out of each group's finalist. The Living Dead round begins on Oct. 16, and voting ends Oct. 26.

Ross said that she has been moved by the support she has received so far in the contest. She noted how one Worland Facebook group had called her 'Worland's Favorite Witch,' a nickname that she was quick to embrace.

She will need this continued support to hold on to her current lead and make it into The Living Dead Round. If you are on Facebook and you aren't doing so already, you can vote for Ross once a day for free at the link faceofhorror.org/2023/desiree-ross. Votes can also be purchased.

Ross said that between working on contest submissions with her friend and makeup artist Sheena Tilley and preparing her store, she has been busy. The owner of Secondhand Treasures in Worland, Ross said that she has been hard at work getting her store ready for her favorite holiday. She said, "I've been really really busy decorating my windows. I always try to do a light theme in one and a darker theme in the other. So this year I did the Addams Family, with Wednesday and Pugsly at camp in one and Gomez and Morticia in their castle in the other.

She added, "I've gotten a lot ready for Halloween, but still have a lot of stuff coming in; lots of costumes. I splurged on costumes this year, I got some of the nicer ones."