(PUEBLO, Colo.) — Pueblo School District 60 (D60) found a surprising and interesting item hidden inside the well-known “Roncalli” school sign.
D60 announced on Tuesday, July 30 that the recent demolition of the school sign unearthed a sturdy red thermos that served as a ‘time capsule’ circa school years 1973-1976. The thermos contained cache documents and snippets that offered insight into the school’s history.
Documents showed an array of ‘mini-courses’ that were offered at Roncalli including novels, bowling, camping, mountain survival, and more. For eighth-graders attending the school in 1975-1976, electives included French, German, Home Crafts, and others. One of the electives was “Bachelor Survival,” and the handout noted that the course was designed for boys.
“The main emphasis will be on preparing various types and kinds of food,” the handout read.
According to D60, seventh graders were required to take the same courses as eighth graders with the addition of economics and/or industrial arts. Elective choices included chorus, band, beginning winds, and guitar.
Other documents indicated there were three lunch periods — at 11:56 a.m., 12:21 p.m., and 12:46 p.m.— and seven learning periods, lasting from 8:25 a.m. to the traditional 3 p.m.
In 1975-1976, Gentry Stewart served as principal, assisted by Henry Roman, who went on to serve as District Superintendent in the 1990s. The school counselors were Ardell Curtis and Dale Drummond, and a green sheet of paper contained teacher schedules and names such as Alt, Colvin, Dalvit, Pacheco, Spoelstra, and Watson.
The thermos revealed a white index card entitled “The Builders of the Roncalli sign,” which contained the names of seventh and eighth graders who built the sign. Names written in pencil included: Gary Garcia, Ronney Hayworth, Bill Del Monte, Randy DiLuzio, Curt Topping, Jess Placer, Skip Anderson, Jeff Garcia, and Marty Caveza,
Lew DeAngelo, an educator at the school known as Mr. D, led the sign building and inserted the time capsule into the structure.
D60’s Facebook post encouraged those who attended the school in the mid-1970s to leave a comment about any memories. One person wrote they had attended Roncalli from 1972-1975 and had actually helped build the sign.
“We learned how to pour a foundation mix of cement, lay bricks, and help build the forms for the letters,” read the comment. “It was fun and we were all very proud of our work that has lasted almost 50 years! Pretty good for a bunch of 8th graders.”
Another special and unique document the time capsule unearthed was a cache of paper strings, cut vertically from the pages of a ‘Big Chief’ writing tablet, crammed with the handwritten or printed names of hundreds of Roncalli students from grades six, seven and eight, in the school year 1974-1975.
“I remember this well, my homeroom teacher was Mr. Ray the year this was sealed,” another past student commented. “He asked the class to give him items from the era to put in a box for our class along with our names.”
In March 2024, D60 announced there had been significant water leaks of about 700 gallons a day within the school’s water-based HVAC system. A month later, the Board of Education for D60 approved the closure of the school at the end of the 2023-2024 school year.
