VALDOSTA — The Valdosta community of 2010 is preserving its history today at 6 p.m. with a time capsule burial in Drexel Park.

The city’s Valdosta Back to the Future 2060 event is hosted by the City of Valdosta, the Valdosta City School System, and the Valdosta Sesquicentennial Planning Committee (VSPC).

“It is important for us as Valdostans to celebrate the role of history in our daily lives and to preserve the heritage that has shaped us,” Mayor John Fretti said in a press release. “It’s exciting to know that, by participating in this time capsule event, we are also participating in the bicentennial celebration of 2060. I encourage citizens to attend the Aug. 27 event and look forward to seeing the community well represented.”

In 2060, the Valdosta High School Class of 2010 will travel back in time as its members unveil the time capsule during their 50th reunion.

Representing the class at today’s celebration will be Kara Buescher, class president.

“We are very proud that she has accepted the charge from Mayor Fretti to be a part of this celebration and that she will incorporate the time capsule    reopening as part of her 50th class reunion activities in 2060,” Sementha Mathews, the city’s public information officer, said.

As the 2060 community opens the time capsule, inside they will find scrapbooks with present day uses of “transportation, technology, fads, fashion, foods and entertainment,” Mathews said. Valdosta City School System students have been gathering items representing these themes in preparation of the time capsule burial.

Each scrapbook holds glue, different colored paper, fabric, and other materials, which run the risk of disintegrating over time. However, everything has been placed on archival paper inside protective sleeves, so they should not disintegrate, said Archivist Deborah Davis with Valdosta State University Archives and Special Collections.

Being involved with the time capsule and using her knowledge and skills as an archivist has been an enjoyable opportunity for Davis.

“It’s like buried treasure, and being a part of burying the treasure is cool,” she said.

Most of the items being placed into the time capsule are paper material because it is safer and will last longer, Davis said.

Copies of CDs and slide shows have been scanned and printed because technology will be more advanced in 50 years.

“(CDs are) probably the most vulnerable thing going in,” Davis said. “If anything has happened, at least they’ll know what they should have looked at.”

To offer further protection, every item is placed inside large protective bags, which are water, heat, flame and bug resistant. Once the air is sucked completely out of the package, the end is sealed shut using an iron.

All of the items must be wrapped separately to avoid one potential problem affecting the entire time capsule. If you have one problem and all of the items are wrapped together, the problem will be much larger, Davis said.

Once all of the items are inside the box, it will be welded shut until its unveiling in 2060.

“It’s (the box) supposed to be impermeable,” Davis said. “It’s supposed to be rust proof.”

The biggest problem the time capsule will face is moisture underground.

“Moisture is your biggest enemy,” Davis said. “Moisture is always going to come a knocking.”

Other issues that make the time capsule vulnerable are people forgetting its location, the contents turning to mush, or construction taking place at the site, she said.

While the time capsule is not large enough to hold contributions from everyone in the community, the Valdosta Sesquicentennial Planning Committee has been gathering items that reflect present day.

“These are the items that Valdostans in 50 years will probably treasure the most, as most of the ones who contributed to the scrapbooks will still be around to enjoy and reminisce,” Mathews said.

The entire community had the opportunity to sign a 200th birthday banner that will be included in the time capsule. In 2060, the banner will be hung in honor of the city’s bicentennial celebration.

Being the oldest park in the city, Drexel Park was chosen as the location to bury the time capsule due to its rich history and its central location in Valdosta.

“Certainly, in 50 years, Drexel Park will remain one of the favorite community parks for citizens to enjoy,” Mathews said.

The time capsule will be buried underneath a granite bench to be unveiled today. Engraved, the bench reads, “The Valdosta Sesquicentennial Time Capsule, A Gift From Valdostans in 2010 To Those in 2060. While The Present Recedes Into The Past, Please Sit And Enjoy This Lovely Park.”



Items going into the time capsule

• Phone Book

• Newsletters

• CDs

• Scrapbooks

• First grade puzzle on transportation

• Valdosta State University program

• T-shirts and pens from Valdosta State University

• City of Valdosta annual reports

• Valdosta City School System annual reports

• City of Valdosta Sesquicentennial ornament

• Valdosta-Lowndes County Industrial Authority bag packed with promotional items

• Moody Air Force Base slide show about its mission, hat, poster, mission patches, achievement coins, and pilot scarf

• The Valdosta Daily Times Newspaper from Friday, Aug. 27, 2010