By Melissa Coleman
“We believe the Stanthorpe time vault will cater for every man, woman and child in our district, is the only vault of its kind in Australia.”
Those were the exact words typed on a letter from the Stanthorpe Community Service Club dated December 1987 after the letter was unearthed in the time capsule last week.
Secretary for the Lions Club of Stanthorpe Stuart Perrett said that since opening the capsule, many items have been gathered to add to the time capsule from families and community groups.
“Over 50 items have been submitted, and we are expecting another 30 to 50 to come,” Mr Perrett said.
However, the Lions Club of Stanthorpe would love for more schools to submit items so now is your chance to add items to the vault before it is sealed closed again.
Submissions can be left at the Stanthorpe Visitors Centre before Christmas.
The time capsule will be sealed in early January to allow enough time for the 150 Celebrations of Stanthorpe to be included.
The original letter which was found in the Council parcel will once again remain sealed in time.
The time capsule will be opened in 2047.
“It has been a wonderful experience going through the many items and seeing people’s eyes light up as they open their parcels,” Mr Perrett said.
“It’s amazing how well preserved everything is, and even the old photos have not discoloured very much.”
“It has been a wonderful thing to do to celebrate the 150 th of Stanthorpe, and I’m looking forward to being around in 25 years’ time to do it all again, but I may be pushing to see the following opening as I’ll be 104,” he continued, “maybe science will get me there, but I’ll be sure to include something special for people to see next time round.”
The capsule was an initiative of the now-defunct Stanthorpe Community Service Club and was sealed in 1988 as part of the nation’s bicentenary.
