MINNEAPOLIS — A local winter tradition is in jeopardy, forcing two sculptors to ask the public for help.
Austin, Trevor and Connor Bartz, the Bartz brothers, have crafted giant snow sculptures in New Brighton since 2012. Their first creation was a puffer fish, followed by a shark, an octopus, a sea turtle, a whale, a walrus and more. In 2024, the brothers created a 21-foot-tall "Sparky" the sea lion, their biggest creation to date.
Last winter the brothers told KARE 11 they had to harvest snow from parking lots across the metro and build the behemoth inside a shed at Brightwood Hills Golf Course.
"We're taking sleds of snow from outside on the pond, we're sledding it inside, bringing it around this way and into the snow factory," explained Austin Bartz.
Earlier this month, the brothers started a GoFundMe to raise $25,000 to keep their tradition going.
"We still need another $25,000 to cover upfront costs (lighting, labor, supplies, machine costs, gas, lumber, rental costs). Due to the growing popularity this is NOT a cheap event to run."
The brothers plan for all the proceeds raised by their sculpture to go to the charity World Vision to provide clean water to people in need. If they aren't able to reach their fundraising goal to build another snow sculpture, the brothers wrote on the GoFundMe that all of the money raised will go to the charity.
