MT. JEWETT - On the day the Mt. Jewett Elementary School closed its doors for good, the school's last classes buried time capsules Thursday at the Mt. Jewett Memorial Library.

Students at the Mt. Jewett Elementary School take part in the burial of time capsules Thursday at the rear of the Mt. Jewett Memorial Library. Second, third, fourth and fifth grade classes at the school buried a separate time capsule. The students are scheduled to open the capsules when they are seniors at Kane Area High School. Photo by Ted Lutz.

DeSio has been the president of the PTO at the school, which is being closed as part of a Kane school consolidation plan.

Students from the four remaining classes at the school walked down Main Street (Route 6) from the school to the library for the time capsule ceremony.

The school this year had only four grade levels-- second, third, fourth and fifth. Kindergarten and first-grade students from Mt. Jewett this year attended the Chestnut Street Elementary School in Kane.

About 39 students in second, third and fourth grade in Mt. Jewett will be shifted to the Kane elementary school for the next school year. The 11 Mt. Jewett fifth-graders will be attending the Kane Middle School in the 2007-08 school year.

Each of the four classes at the Mt. Jewett school had its own time capsule-- a waterproof stainless steel container about the size of a 14-quart bucket.

During the school year, students filled the capsules with memorabilia. The time capsules were buried in separate holes in the lawn at the rear of the library. The plan calls for students to open the capsules when they are seniors at Kane Area High School. The plan also calls for the time capsule items to be displayed at the library.

Several students assisted in the burial of the time capsules.

DeSio said the PTO "tried to do as much as possible for the kids" in their final year at the Mt. Jewett school. The PTO held a carnival earlier this week at the school and hosted an outdoor picnic Thursday on the final day of classes for the school year.

DeSio said the closing of the school is "a sad day" because "everything in Mt. Jewett revolves around the school."

"It's just a sad day," said Jane Keller, the treasurer of the PTO. Other PTO officers include Cheryl Flickinger, vice president, and Skye Ogden, secretary.