Students from a past Sussex Consortium summer program reunited at Cape High recently to open a time capsule they buried in 2016 on the grounds of Mariner Middle School.

Six years ago , students gathered a selection of personal items, toys and artifacts, letters and a mini-autobiography to bury in the capsule as a way to develop their sense of awareness and expression with plans to open the capsule before graduation.

On May 24, students were able to hold the capsule, a roughly two-foot long capped plastic PVC pipe decorated with paintings, initials and superhero logos. 

Unsure how to open the thick time capsule, student Thomas Kramer donned safety goggles and hammered away at the pipe, which he opened with assistance from Sussex Consortium Principal Vivian Bush.

As artifacts poured from the end of the capsule, students found items they buried and mused over their writings, drawings and papers, some of which were water damaged. Student Sarah McClung reclaimed two stuffed animals she buried in 2016.

All students had included a piece of string that was used to measure their height in 2016; naturally, the strings didn’t measure to their current heights.

The price of liberty is eternal vigilance.