By Stephen Smoot
At a school named for an important artifact of Shinnston city history, it was right and appropriate last week to hold a time capsule opening ceremony at Big Elm Elementary.
The capsule dated back to 1993, created and buried in the opening year of the school, which consolidated multiple smaller schools at the time. With 2024-25 representing the school’s officially 30th year of existence, it came time to see what it contained.
Donnie Powell, principal of Big Elm, stated that “they didn’t set a specific time,” but that some former staff had asked about opening it.
“We had a pretty good turnout,” Powell remarked. He added that “it was nice to get it on our open house. It allowed us to have more people.” Schools throughout Harrison County held back to school open houses to welcome back students and their families.
One of the connecting themes in the event and open house was described by Powell, who said “we definitely have the support of the community. They go above and beyond for the school.”
Opening the time capsule proved to be a special event for past and present students alike. Many current students have parents that attended Big Elm during and around the time of the capsule, which brought even more excitement to the event.
The time capsule held a collection contributed by students, faculty, and staff. Children’s artworks and essays were retrieved, One essay from a student was on “what they hoped to have in life.” Other artifacts included class rosters and other items showing day to day life of the school.
As piece by piece came from the capsule for identification, Powell said “you could tell the excitement when something from their class came up.” Additionally “their parents were excited to share” with their children.
Also “a lot of retired teachers were telling me things that they might have put in there,” Powell shared.
One of the most important guests was Mike Stalnaker who constructed the container. Powell said “he still has the key after all these years.” The ceremony also drew a number of retired teachers and administrators