Northwood Preschool Opens 1996 Time Capsule
On October 2, 2024, Northwood finally opened a long-awaited time capsule from 1996, an event originally scheduled for September 2020 but delayed due to the COVID-19 pandemic. Built in 1970, Northwood was originally an elementary school, so there was much anticipation over what would be contained and from what grade levels. After years of anticipation, Principal Mary Morton revealed a unique glimpse into the lives of students nearly three decades earlier.
The capsule’s contents—carefully packed in plastic bags—were everyday school items and personal favorites of the 1996 student body. Artifacts from Glenna Bent’s fourth-grade class included nostalgic relics like an overhead projector pen, a box of chalk, a recorder, VHS tapes, an empty A&W root beer can, and a Porky the Pig Pog.
“There was so much excitement and anticipation as we opened up the time capsule,” said Mary Morton, Northwood Preschool’s principal. “Pulling each item from the stuffed pipe, we realized these items were clearly chosen by fourth graders. Some were a mystery—like the whiteout and chalk—while others, like toys and class pictures, instantly made sense. This capsule has been in the ground for over 25 years, and it was incredible to reflect on what’s changed and what’s stayed the same. One of the items was a scrunchie, which has come back in style, and a recorder, which students still use in music class today.”
Alongside these playful items were mementos of a significant historical moment: Iowa’s sesquicentennial (150th anniversary), including memorabilia and the sheet music for the “Northwood School Song.” The capsule also contained a dedication letter to the Robbie Hanson Ballfield, next to Northwood, and a heartfelt letter from Josh Pilcher, a former student who attended Northwood from 1988 to 1994. Pilcher, who wrote the letter in May of 1996, shared his personal experience battling Non-Hodgkin B-cell lymphoma.
In a poignant message to future generations, the students of 1996 posed a question to the class of 2020: “Have scientist [sic] found a way to cure or prevent cancer? Or is it a disease that can be controlled?”
The unearthing of this time capsule offered a rare opportunity to connect with the hopes, curiosities, and everyday lives of students past—a reminder of how much has changed, and how much remains timeless.