There was anticipation in the air as two time capsules from 25 years ago were unearthed last week. Joining the Cohuna Secondary College students and staff for the unearthing on Wednesday, October 11 were past staff and students and community members who had a vested interest in the contents.

The capsules had been buried in the front lawn of the school and contained the hopes, dreams, aspirations and predictions of many, along with physical trinkets and mementos like floppy discs, cassettes, photographs, a Nike sock and envelopes containing letters and keepsakes.

School captains, Meiha Burns and Daisy McGlone, led the formalities, with vice captains, Lainie Hawken and Hayley Rooney, principal Fiona Miller and principal of 1998, Glenn Hall, giving an insight into school life past and present.

The capsules were ceremonially dug up by the two school captains and raised with the assistance of Mr Hall and 1998 school captain, Amy Treacy, who had helped bury the capsules.

One capsule was sealed securely and filled with argon gas – and the contents preserved perfectly, but the second did not fare so well and was a grassy, muddy, wet mess. The school is doing its best to salvage the contents.

There were smiles, giggles and gasps as people opened their envelopes and rediscovered the contents – some keen to share what they had found, others quick to put the contents safely away from others eyes.

Simon Dobie sat engrossed in the contents of his envelope, with his daughters keen to read and handle the contents. Denise Morrison was excited to unearth two envelopes, one from 25 years ago, and another from 50 years ago that she had reburied in 1998. Unfortunately, both were amongst the contents that did not survive, as were daughter, Amy’s.

Anyone who has not collected their envelope can contact the college. The school is planning to rebury the capsules for another 25 years, to be unearthed in 2048. 

This article appeared in The Koondrook and Barham Bridge Newspaper, 19 October 2023.