GALESBURG — When workers discovered a time capsule at OSF St. Mary Medical Center during a recent construction project, they became part of an interesting tradition.
River City Construction workers found the cornerstone box behind a wall plaque in the Galesburg hospital’s lobby area while renovating the hospital’s main entrance last year. The box dated from 1974, the year of the hospital’s original construction, and contained more than 20 items, including two 1974 pennies; a floor map of the new hospital; and a metal rosary with beads molded in the shape of roses.
Shane Garrett, superintendent on the construction project, said he never found a time capsule before his team discovered the one at OSF.
“I think it’s neat when you do tear into an old building and find something that’s a little piece of history,” Garrett said.
Many of the box’s items were donated by the Sisters of the Third Order of St. Francis, who founded the OSF Healthcare system. The nuns have blessed and sent items to place in cornerstone boxes for new or renovated hospital buildings within the OSF network for many years. The time capsule boxes have included everything from newspaper clippings and information about local communities to prayer cards.
The sisters carry on the tradition to consecrate the spaces and to recognize Jesus Christ’s position as the cornerstone of God’s people, as described in the Scriptures. The nuns keep detailed logs of the items they place in the boxes in the archives at their Mother House, 1175 Francis Lane in East Peoria.
“Sometimes we didn’t even know there was a cornerstone buried in the building and when we’ve taken a real old structure down, sometimes we’ve come across a box like that buried in the interior of a building with artifacts in it,” said Sister Judith Ann Duvall, OSF. “It’s kind of neat to have. You’ve almost got an avenue to step into that past world, and you are sharing it by holding those items and seeing them, and wondering what the world was like then.”
During a blessing and dedication ceremony for the renovated entrance Thursday, OSF staff members announced they will bury a new cornerstone box in one of the walls within the new lobby area this year. The 2018 capsule will contain replicas of some of the items found in the 1974 capsule, along with new items such as programs from the Thursday ceremony; a Franciscan Tau pin; and an OFS St. Mary Medical Center Community of Caregivers DVD.
The time capsule brought back fond memories for John Meek, president of Felmley-Dickerson Company in Bloomington, which buried the original cornerstone box. He worked as a laborer for the same company in college in 1974 and was onsite at OSF when the team buried the capsule.
“It’s exciting to see everything that’s in it and to see the things that meant something to somebody, like the rosaries and the prayer cards,” Meek said.
Besides the announcement regarding the new cornerstone box, the Thursday event included a ribbon-cutting ceremony and short speeches delivered by Duvall and OSF staff members and affiliates. Father Deus-Dedit Byabato led the attendees in prayer and blessed the new entrance with holy water.
The cost to renovate OSF’s entrance totaled slightly more than $2.2 million, said Shelli Dankoff, media relations coordinator for OSF Healthcare. The new entrance includes a remodeled lobby and canopy, the latter of which extends over the hospital’s drive-in and drop-off lane. Other new features include a women’s bathroom, an information desk, a pre-registration desk and waiting areas.
The original items from the 1974 time capsule will be placed on display at the sisters’ Mother House. Duvall hoped that those who discover the new OSF box in the future will gain a sense of what the world had been like in 2018, and inspire the Third Order sisters to look back on their own history.
“It’s reflecting on a journey,” Duvall said. “It says, ‘here’s where we were; look at where we are now, and where will God bring us in the future?’ I always say I don’t know, but I know one thing for sure: it’s going to be wonderful.”
Rebecca Susmarski: (309) 343-7181, ext. 261; rsusmarski@register-mail.com; @RSusmarski