Decades in the future, the Burnt Hills-Ballston Lake High School graduating class will be rocking out to Snoop Dogg, Metallica and Outkast, courtesy of the Class of 2007.
The tunes are being tucked away in the time capsule soon to be cemented inside a cornerstone at the entryway to the high school. When it will be unearthed, no one knows, but the students of the future will need a working CD player.
We wanted to include things that would let people know what was popular during our times, said student government president and high school senior Evan Walsh on Thursday, May 31, at a schoolwide ceremony to officially unveil the chosen items to be saved for posterity.
Walsh helped town historian and teacher Rick Reynolds pry open an aging, green-tinted copper box last fall after construction crews happened upon the discovery during a remodeling project over the summer.
Inside the 1950s capsule were historical documents, such as the deeds for the new high school as well as floor plans, but nothing that mirrored teen pop culture as much as the `Live Strong` yellow rubber bracelet and the Pokemon trading cards added to the 2007 capsule.
`The last capsule told us very little about their lives,` said Walsh. `We want to paint a clear picture of 2007, the people, places and ideas that define who we are today.`
Thus, the senior class elected to pack away everything from their school newspaper to clippings of the terrorist attacks of Sept. 11, 2001. Local newspapers, including a recent edition of The Burnt Hills Spotlight, will also achieve immortality via the capsule. The high schoolers included a handwritten essay (written on acid-free paper with archival pens) about hybrid cars, a message from school superintendent Jim Schultz, and an account of how the 1957 capsule was stumbled upon.
Schultz, in his written message, said music was included in the capsule to help bridge the gap of time.
`Music has the power to evoke strong memories,` said Schultz. `I still remember seeing Jim Morrison and The Doors play at SPAC the year I graduated from BH-BL High School in 1967.`
The complete play list on the CD for the 2007 capsule is:
`Nothing Else Matters,` by Metallica.
`Drop it like it’s Hot,` by Snoop Dogg.
`It’s not Over,` by Daughtry.
`Not Ready to Make Nice,` by Dixie Chicks.
`My Immortal,` by Evanescence.
`Bad Day,` by Fuel.
`Because of You,` by Kelly Clarkson.
`Hey Ya,` by Outkast.
`Good is Good,` by Sheryl Crow.
A quarter, a penny and a photo of the graduating class will also be preserved in the capsule. The kids originally wanted to include high-tech items such as a cell phone or iPod, but were advised they wouldn’t stand up to the test of time.
`Anything with batteries would decay and leak acid, compromising everything else in the box,` said Reynolds. `We found the items in the 1950s capsule were badly deteriorated, and for that matter, they smelled vile. We won’t be including any of the original items in this new capsule.`
The state-of-the-art small square box was purchased from a museum company for $350.
`It will certainly last 50 to 100 years, and beyond that, who knows?` said Reynolds. The accidental discovery of the 1957 treasure trove happened without clues, a map or even a note in school archival records. Reynolds said he’ll make an entry into his files about the class of 2007 creating the time capsule, and the rest, as they say, will be history.
`It will be totally happenstance when they find this in decades to come,` said Reynolds. `In so many ways, that’s part of the fun, is the not-knowing what the future is for this time capsule.`
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