It was Friday, December 29, 2006, when Alma Avalos first saw Mary in the freezer.

Avalos works as the market manager for the Thriftway supermarket in Morton, Texas. In the back of the store, in the walk-in freezer, she noticed that water dripping from the ceiling had frozen on the floor into a clear ice tower, maybe 18 inches tall. It resembled the Holy Mother.

Unusual miracle manifestations favor this part of the U.S. -- less than 100 miles away is the Miracle Tortilla.

News spread quickly in this Panhandle town, and soon visitors were flocking to see the apparition, pray before it, and leave offerings of flowers and candles. The traffic in and out of the freezer raised its temperature and played havoc with the safety of the food (and of Mary). Avalos thought of taking it home, but the supermarket owners (who are not Catholic) told her that she could keep it in the store. This past week, Avalos emptied one of the glass-fronted store freezers, "back by the frozen pizzas," she told RoadsideAmerica.com, and put Mary on display.

Avalos said that although Mary's traffic has remained brisk weeks later, sales in the store have stayed flat. That seems pretty un-Christian to us, and we trust that any future visitors to Freezer Mary will purchase some groceries, too. Or at least an ice pop.

[01/13/2007]