Community

All in good times: Springfield Chamber closing time capsule next week

SPRINGFIELD – The Springfield Area Chamber of Commerce will seal its 2024 Time Capsule for the next 25 years on Jan. 22 in the Chamber building at 101 S. A St. 

The propane tank-shaped capsule was first revealed at the Chamber’s Inspire Excellence Award in February last year. It was part of a celebration of the Chamber’s 75 years of service to the community. 

Vonnie Mikkelsen, president and CEO of the Springfield Chamber, described it as “a legacy project” to be opened on the Chamber’s 100th year anniversary in 2049. The Chamber has never done a project like this before, and neither have other Chambers in the area.

“The Springfield Chamber of Commerce has a very keen understanding that what we do today is really important, the decisions we make…the way we treat each other…and we also understand and recognize the value of those who came before us,” Mikkelsen said.

In July, Chamber members and the public were invited to participate in the legacy by submitting items to be stowed away in the capsule. 

A committee met about six times over the year to discuss the scope of the items they wanted to include in the time capsule. Handwritten letters of hopes for the future from community members give a personal touch for future generations to look back on. Business owners and Chamber members wrote their hopes and wishes for Springfield in the future.

Community members gather at the Springfield Chamber Depot to inspect some of the items to be placed in the time capsule.
PHOTO PROVIDED / SPRINGFIELD CHAMBER

“We’ve read each and every one of them, and we really value the contribution of our community and our Chamber members who have helped us to put the project together,” said Mikkelsen.

“We had one final meeting where we kind of looked at everything on a tabletop of the stuff that’s been collected and made sure that it all fit,” Madeline McGraw,  Springfield History Museum curator. The cylindrical shape of the capsule posed a unique space constraint, but everything could be included.

The focus of the capsule was on items that were directly related to Springfield culture. Other items that were put inside include a hardback version of the historic book, “Springfield: Between Two Rivers” by Dorothy Velasco, photos, documentation about the Chamber from its early years, and more.

The cylinder capsule will likely stay inside the Chamber building and be accessible at different points as a way to keep it “interconnected with the community,” said McGraw. Throughout the years, chamber businesses could put stickers with their logos on the outside of the capsule. 

“This one’s definitely not going to get lost in the shuffle like sometimes happens with those ones that are buried,” she said.

What might the opening of the capsule look like in 25 years? Mikkelsen said it might bring “an element of surprise, and I think, also an appreciation for how our community comes together to ensure that things are going well.” 

This reporting is supported by the Catalyst Journalism Project at the University of Oregon School of Journalism and Communication.

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