By By Matthew Nascone
Eight Escambia Academy students received a blast from the past May 17 as they opened a time capsule buried 12 years ago.
Matt Ash, Ellen Corman, Stacey Gibbs, Elizabeth Hendrix, Railyn James, Courtney Smith, Terrell Steele and Jared Van Landingham all witnessed the unearthing of the metal cylinder buried when they were first-graders.
Albert Philyaw was the custodian for Escambia Academy 12 years ago and he was the one who put the capsule in the ground. He is now an employee at Jerry's Ace Hardware, but he was on the grounds of the Academy to dig the cylinder up.
"This capsule was something these kids could look forward to opening up when they are ready to graduate," Philyaw said. "And at the time many people around the area were burying time capsules and it seemed only fitting for this class to do it."
The EA Class of 2006 is the only class at the Academy to bury a time capsule in the school's history.
"This was a fun experience to witness the kids unlock some of the past," EA headmaster Judy Branum said.
That past included many of the popular children's toys of the time. Some of the items inside the capsule were, Power Rangers action figures, Power Rangers stickers, paper dolls, a pen for each student, one of the students' retainer, some baby teeth, glow-in-the-dark stickers, a tape of what they wanted to be when they grew up and an Atmore Advance from the day the cylinder was buried.
The memories were put on hold for a day because of the natural process Mother Nature does to anything buried in the ground for 12 years. The metal cylinder, donated by Ellen Corman's great grandparents, had a lock top with a combination.
The only problem was trying to unlock the top without the numbers needed to know how far to turn the dial. This is where Mother Nature's power came in; the numbers were no longer visible on the top of the cylinder.
However, this posed only a minor stall as the cylinder was taken to Hendrix's Tractor Company and the top was sawed off.
And then the drive down memory lane continued for the eight seniors who will all part ways after sticking together for 12 years at the Academy.
Those eight seniors from Ms. Elaine Swilley's first-grade class had a glimpse into their past before they journey on into their future.