The “happy children” of future generations will receive greetings from current Illini as part of a time capsule University officials are compiling. Students, faculty and staff are invited to share greetings and memories, which will be placed in the base of the newly renovated Alma Mater. 

“There’s a unique opportunity to include something that shows where we are as a University,” said Joel Steinfeldt, University brand manager. “It is a way of showing student life (and) faculty life, what the University was like (to) the happy children of the future.”

Officials hope the messages will reflect the spirit of the quote on the Alma Mater’s pedestal base: “To thy happy children of the future those of the past send greetings.” 

Steinfeldt said the notes are an important part of the capsule because they will give personal accounts and information about the campus in 2014.

Departments across campus have submitted almost 100 small items to be placed in the capsule. Though the time capsule is physically small, Steinfeldt said they are trying to include as many people and campus units as possible. 

Some of the items included in the time capsule are: a pick from the Ellnora guitar festival, a brain LED light from materials science and engineering professor John Rogers, a commencement program and pin, a copy of The Daily Illini and a brick from Garner Hall. 

Sophomore in Engineering Relwin Jay Singh’s i-card will be included in the time capsule as one of the commemorative items, by a very lucky coincidence, he said.

Singh needed to replace his i-card because it only worked half the time and told the ID center desk he wanted a new ID. Steinfeldt said he waited for the first student who needed a new ID. When Singh arrived, Steinfeldt stepped forward and told Singh they wanted to use his i-card for the capsule.

Singh said he signed paperwork regarding his privacy and ownership rights for the ID. He said he thinks people will open the capsule, see his i-card and think “Who is this guy?”

“It means something because, right now, my ID will be in the time capsule, and it means I have to be a good boy from now on,” Singh said.

He said he does not want people to look him up after they find his ID and see that he was not an upstanding citizen.

The last time the statue was lifted in the 1980s, another time capsule was placed in the base, but most of the items did not stand the test of time.

“It was actually in a peanut butter jar,” Steinfeldt said. “It had some Polaroid photos that didn’t make it. There were some coins, pennies and things in there and a letter from a professor and students.” 

Some of the items from the 1980s time capsule will be placed back inside the statue, he said, adding another layer of history to the new time capsule.

Steindfeldt said the Alma Mater will probably stay put for at least 100 years because of renovation efforts and a wax coating that will be applied every two years. 

“It would be amazing to be someone 100 years or more from now and to open that time capsule and be able to read messages from students from 2014,” he said.

The deadline to submit a note to the Alma Mater time capsule is Wednesday, April 2, at 11:59 p.m. Current Illini and alumni can submit their messages online through a link on the University homepage. 

The notes from online will be complied in a database and burned onto archival quality gold DVDs that are built to last for a few hundred years. He said the information can be read by a regular DVD player and any other technology that can read DVDs, acknowledging that future generations may not use this technology. 

“I want to encourage students to take advantage of a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity and leave some greetings for the future,” he said.

Claire can be reached at [email protected].