Mega-Snowmen Return To Montclair For The Holidays (With A Heartwarming Twist)

MONTCLAIR, NJ — The army of giant snowmen are back in Montclair – and this time, they’re on a mission to battle food insecurity.

For the past two years, a weird-but-wonderful holiday tradition has been taking place on Warren Place, where nearly two dozen neighbors have been putting up 20-foot-high, glowing, inflatable snow mascots on their lawns.

The group project has returned for 2025 – but with a heartwarming twist.

This year, the displays will also include a QR code that people can scan on their phones, which takes them to a fundraising page for Toni's Kitchen Food Pantry at St. Luke's Church.

“Your donation to the Warren Street Snowman Project will purchase food and supplies to keep up with the demand for fresh, healthy meals for distribution to families, seniors, and children in need in our community,” the website says.

“This idea of connecting with such a wonderful part of our community and having it be a fundraiser is fantastic,” Anne Mernin, the director of Toni’s Kitchen, told ABC7 News.

The ad-hoc group project started when Ann McCarthy, a local realtor and longtime resident of Warren Place, decided to buy one of the towering inflatables earlier this month as a way of warming up to the spirit of the season.

When McCarthy shared the idea with her neighbor, she also placed an order online for one of the colossal lawn ornaments. Soon, their other neighbors decided to get in on the holiday cheer – and within a day, 14 inflatables had been erected on Warren Place.

Video footage shared by NJ.com shows the snowmen back in action this year.

The wintertime phenomenon has begun to spread outside the block. Last week, Fleet Feet Montclair hosted the first-ever “Ugly Sweater Snowman Shuffle” to benefit the cause, leading runners down Warren Place past the towering, inflatable mascots.

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