Stafford Township Preserves History Of 2020 In Time Capsule
MANAHAWKIN, NJ — After an unforgettable year like 2020, Stafford Township officials decided the best way to remember it is with a time capsule filled with mementos from the community that will be sealed for the next 50 years.
On New Year’s Eve, Mayor Greg Myhre and Councilman George Williams deposited the artifacts that Stafford Township received so far into the time capsule, including newspapers, maps, letters from Stafford Township officials and school students, face masks and signs referring to the COVID-19 virus that say “Wash Your Hands, Wear Your Masks, Stop the Spread of Germs."
“It was a year that I think will stand out in history no matter what, so I think it was important that it gets memorialized in some way,” Myhre told Patch. “It also allows the community to leave something for future generations to see.”
Myhre said the 130-pound, solid steel chest serving as the time capsule was crafted by Kurt Brownell of the Stafford Township Department of Public Works using only scrap metal.
After Myher and Williams placed all of the items into the time capsule, they announced that the chest was only half full with still enough storage for people to contribute small mementos of their own that depict the year 2020.
Due to the partial state of emergency, Myhre said the township is giving residents extra time beyond the start of 2021 to donate items, though he urges people to bring them to Town Hall (260 E Bay Ave. in Manahawkin) as soon as possible.
“People had difficulty just getting around—we’re in at least a partial state of lockdown right now,” said Myhre. “We are going to allow additional time for people that maybe didn’t receive the word or maybe they weren’t able to get to Town Hall.”
Myhre said ideal time capsule contributions should be as small as the size of a tennis ball or as thin as a photograph.
Stafford Township officials hope to organize a burial ceremony that will be open to the public in 2021, but an official date has not been announced yet due to current public gathering limitations.
Anyone with questions about the time capsule can reach out to Justin Riggs in the Mayor’s Office at (609) 597-1000 ext. 8559.
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This article originally appeared on the Barnegat-Manahawkin Patch
