(EDITOR’S NOTE: The following article appeared in the December 21, 2022 issue of this newspaper. It is being reprinted at the request of many parish residents inquiring about the origin of the Jena snowman. The former Bank of Jena and CLB building is now home to the Cotton Boll, and owner Amanda Hamilton said she is thrilled to continue the Jena snowman tradition.)
Whether you love it or love to hate it, there is no dispute the snowman at the old Bank of Jena is a big part of Christmas tradition in the town of Jena.
But you may ask how exactly did the snowman watching over downtown from the upper window on the corner of First and Oak Street begin?
The truth is…we don’t exactly know, but many stories surround the snowman and its origins.
“Whether you like him or not he’s tradition,” The Community Bank President Paul Tweedy, who was president of the former Bank of Jena, said regarding their popular decoration. “Collectively a lot of people say, ‘The snowman is up. It’s Christmastime in Jena now’.”
“And some say, ‘Scary is up and all is well’,” he added with a chuckle.
Tweedy said at the bank they call him Scary the Snowman and he seems to have taken on a life of his own, though overall his origins are a mystery.
“We talked to longtime employees of the Bank of Jena about the snowman and they said they just remember it being there,” Tweedy said. “I’ve been in Jena since 1991 and it’s always been a tradition to put the snowman up. One year when we hadn’t put him out yet we received quite a few phone calls asking when we were putting him out and to make sure we were putting him out. It’s something that everyone talks about.”
Jena Mayor LaDawn Edwards was a teller at the Bank of Jena’s downtown branch from 1982 to 1991 so in a way she and the snowman were co-workers and she absolutely loves him.
“I find him warm and inviting,” she said. “He’s a Christmas tradition. I think everyone likes him whether they think he’s creepy or not. You can’t help but look up at him when you go through town. Whether you like him or not he fascinates people.”
Buddy Sharp said he was a part of bringing the snowman back to life for the town back in 1991. He said the year that Colonial Trails had all the businesses in downtown Jena put up small white lights he was putting up lights at the downtown branch of Bank of Jena when he opened the upstairs closet and the snowman almost scared him to death. He said he ended up cleaning it and patching it in a back room of Ginny’s Restaurant (now where La Cabana Mexican Restaurant is) with longtime Jena businesswoman Mrs. Virginia “Ginny” Mitchell.
“The snowman was under a sheet and when I lifted it, I saw the snowman needed repairs,” Sharp said. “I took it to Ginny’s and patched the whole thing and repainted it. He’s made of rough plaster of Paris, so I had to learn to patch with plaster to fix him. He’s a little heavy but part of him is hollow.”
Sharp was told by the late Frances Medica, who worked many years at the downtown branch of the bank, that she thought the snowman was purchased back around the year 1930 by the Jena Kiwanis Club, who met in the upstairs room of the bank building, for their Christmas display in town. Several Jena residents said they think it was the Free Masons who met in the room and not the Kiwanis though.
Sharp said Mrs. Medica said the snowman had been in the closet for quite a while but she wasn’t sure how long exactly.
“I think it was in the closet for at least a decade starting about 1980, ” Sharp said. “When it was on display at the bank before I found it, the snowman was displayed in the middle window then and not where it is now in the corner.”
Sharp said the snowman is an icon and he always loves to see him up in the window.
“I think of him as the town keeper at night, who watches over everything ,” Sharp said. “Kids look for him in the window. And when you come from Alexandria especially and see him standing there, he gives you the Christmas spirit. He’s got the Christmas spirit.”
Back in 2017, Jennifer Justiss Loe asked her mother, Jenna Fae, who used to work in the Bank of Jena d o w n t own branch, about the snowman. Her mother said that back in the 1970s and 1980s she used to decorate the Bank of Jena for Christmas and she said she went upstairs downtown and the snowman was there in a corner not being used, so she didn’t buy him and no one seems to know who did, but she was the one that began using him in the upstairs window.
Jena resident Beverly Young posted about the snowman on Facebook not long after he was put on display this year and the post received dozens of comments about citizen’s mixed opinion of the snowman.
Young said she would miss him if he were not there, although she finds him a little creepy and that she does look for him every year like everyone else.
The Jena Times posted a Facebook post that garnered over 200 comments with further mixed opinions about the snowman, but overall, the consensus was the snowman is a tradition whether he is liked or not liked and the snowman has made quite the legacy in the town of Jena.
Some online comments from The Jena Times post about the snowman include: “Wouldn’t be Jena without him! I love the tradition.” “It wouldn’t be Christmas without the snow man!! I’ve been in Jena 49 years and he’s been there longer than that.”
“Wonderful nostalgic feeling every year I see it.”
“Can’t ever remember a time when I’d look at that window during the holiday season and knew it was getting close to Christmas time.”
“That is the creepiest dang Christmas decoration ever! The season wouldn’t be complete without it.”
“Always have to check and make sure he’s there every year.”
“I remember this thing when I was little and it never really bothered me. But now that I’m older it creeps me out so much when I see him. My mom loves seeing him so one of us always points him out when we go by the bank.”
“Coming into town my teenage daughter noticed him and said ‘The Snowman is back!’ We love our town’s little traditions including him. And I honestly don’t ever remember him not being in the window every Christmas.”
“Means I am in my hometown for Christmas!!!”
“I love him just as he has been for so many years. A Jena tradition at Christmas.”
“He’s an icon.” “Love it. Brings back good memories.”
“I remember my pawpaw and my mawmaw would always drive through the middle of town just so we could look and see if that snowman was waving at us. He’s a very special snowman!”
“Love it. Wouldn’t be Christmas without the old guy peeking out the window!!”
“Kinda freaked me out years ago, but it is just supposed to be there. I’m glad the tradition hasn’t changed.” “He may be creepy, but we love to see him out every year.” “Love the old dude. Although in my mind I always hear the theme song from Psycho and call him Alfred. He’s one of the highlights of my childhood.”
“We know that it’s the Christmas season when we see him; although some of the kids think he’s ‘cweepy.’” “I thought he was scary, but I saw him in the daytime and he is so cute, so it’s how the lights shine on him that makes him weird looking.”
“I love it! Definitely marks Christmas arrival when he creepily appears in the window and I hope he stays a tradition.”
“We call it Scary Frosty, but it wouldn’t be Christmas without him!”
“As a young child he was kinda creepy now I look forward to seeing him out because it is a tradition. Once he is out all the town begins to put up lights and decorate their windows.” “First impres sion creepy. Now…still creepy.”
“Love it. My grandbaby looks at it every time we pass. He loves that snowman. When they take it down from the holidays, I tell him Santa takes it with him until it’s Christmas again.”
“Love it! Jena looks so pretty at night!”
“The Jena Michael Myers Snowman. Better than any elf on a shelf.”
“Love this guy! He’s so special and unique…just like our town.”
“It ain’t Christmas until he’s in the window.”
“Wouldn’t be the same without it but man that thing gives me the creeps. Just something about that face. Makes me think of some kinda snowman that comes alive and gets people.”
“I love him and the boys do too! I tell them he lives in the vault in the summer!!!”
“This thing is hilarious and he gives me life. He is pure nostalgia.”
“He’s an icon.” “Love this guy! He’s so special and unique… just like our town.”
“Wouldn’t be Jena without him! I love the tradition.”