Longtime Roseville resident Terry Wenger retired from the construction industry three years ago, but he still had a hankering to build and create.
Wenger and his wife Lisa teamed up with neighbor and retired architect Tom Reasoner to construct a fanciful illuminated ice castle in Wenger’s front yard at 352 South McCarron’s Boulevard.
The majestic castle is made up of 90 glowing blocks of ice and 6 towers. It stands about six feet tall, and neighbors admiring their creation say they can see glimpses of it glowing across Lake McCarrons.
“This is the first time we made something this elaborate,” Terry explained. “The problem now is how do I top this next year?”
Terry, Lisa, and Tom invited neighbors over for a lightning ceremony earlier this month complete with a bonfire and popcorn.
“It was so fun to do this with Terry. It was truly his creation,” Tom said. “Terry is known as the guy who helps everyone in the neighborhood.”
The McCarrons Ice Castle is no happy accident. Terry poured years of experience and months of planning and preparation into the project. In 2004, Terry was part of the crew that built the ice castle for the St. Paul Winter Carnival, so he knew the recipe for quality ice.
“Snow and water are the concrete you use to build the ice blocks,” Terry said.
In recent years, Terry and his wife went to a class to learn to make ice luminaries and would create those twinkling works of outdoor art each winter. They also dabbled with ice block construction last year when they built and lit an ice wall.
This year, Terry and crew dreamed big. They started making ice in December. They made so much that they ran out of snow in their own yards and picked up a load of snow from the Dairy Queen parking lot. Terry experimented with different molds. He made ice blocks in bundt cake pans and orange traffic cones to give the turrets their more refined architecture.
They mortared the blocks together with an icy slurry. Terry also used a variety of tools including a chain saw to further refine the castle.
Terry said he’s pleased with how the castle turned out, but he already has ideas for future iterations. When he’s not building, Terry volunteers for two pet rescue nonprofits. He drives as far as Missouri to pick up orphaned and abandoned dogs and cats and bring them to families eager to adopt them here in Minnesota.