A time capsule sealed by the Rural Municipality of Winslow council in April 2000 was opened Wednesday morning, 25 years after its creation.
The community gathered at the Dodsland Museum on April 9 to witness the unveiling of the contents, with coffee and cookies available for attendees.
Fred Joyce, who served as reeve when the capsule was created, opened the event with a heartfelt speech reflecting on the state of the community a quarter-century ago. Joyce, alongside current Reeve Sheldon McLean, opened the capsule and displayed its contents on a table for public viewing.
Among the preserved items were clippings from the Star Phoenix covering the passing of Sandra Schmirler, the celebrated young curler from Biggar, as well as tickets to the 2000 Brier. Also included were commemorative pins from the RM of Winslow’s 90th anniversary and name badges from the Saskatchewan Association of Rural Municipalities (SARM) convention held in March 2000.
Other items included a photo of council and staff from December 1999, a copy of the reeve’s speech from the April 2000 ratepayers’ meeting, and a poster opposing the Saskatchewan government’s proposed forced amalgamations of rural municipalities.
Regan MacDonald, chief administrative officer for the RM of Winslow, said there is growing interest in continuing this tradition.
“Once it was discovered that the capsule was going to be opened, an idea came forth about creating another time capsule that could be opened in 25 years from now,” said MacDonald. “I’m curious to see what people think. So much has changed in the last 25 years — it’s interesting to predict what’s to come.”
