Seventy-five years after St. Ann School in Arlington first opened its doors, its students gathered Sept. 25 to preserve a piece of their own history for generations to come.
As part of the school’s 75th anniversary celebration, students, faculty and families gathered after the all-school Mass to officially close the St. Ann 75th anniversary time capsule, which will be opened in 2051, the year St. Ann celebrates its 100th anniversary.
Founded in 1951, St. Ann has spent 75 years educating generations of students to “Believe, Achieve and Inspire,” the school motto. The time capsule ceremony offered today’s students an opportunity not only to remember that history, but to recognize that they are now part of it.
Students from preschool through eighth grade contributed assignments offering a snapshot of daily life at St. Ann in 2026. Younger students drew self-portraits and what they hope to be when they grow up. Elementary students highlighted favorite school traditions, books, movies and activities, while also wondering what the future might hold, including whether there will be flying hoverboards, self-driving cars and robots.
Middle school students documented significant events and cultural moments of 2026 and wrote letters to the students who will attend St. Ann in 2051. The eighth graders, meanwhile, wrote to the future graduating class of 2051, offering advice to “lock in and study hard,” remember that “the teachers at St. Ann are the best,” and “make every moment count.”
Principal Anthony Sahadi added his own letter to the capsule, addressing the future St. Ann community. Students Gadiel de Guzman, second grade; Elizabeth Gastner, fifth grade; and Alena Khat, eighth grade, were selected to represent their classes and place student assignments into the capsule. Missionhurst Father John T. Raharjo, pastor, then blessed the time capsule before it was officially sealed.
The capsule will be displayed on top of the school trophy case, where it was exhibited for St. Ann’s friends and families during the school’s Fall Festival Sept. 26. The next time it is opened, the school and its students will undoubtedly look different, but the pride, faith and community that define St. Ann will remain the same.
For the St. Ann students who witnessed the sealing of the capsule, it represents more than a collection of papers. It is a reminder that history is not simply something that happened before them, they are part of it, and they are making history right now.
In 2051, when the capsule is opened, the students celebrating St. Ann’s 100th anniversary will have the opportunity to discover what life was like at their school in 2026 and, in a small way, meet the students who came before them.
