SAIT celebrates 100th anniversary with giant cake and time capsule

SAIT marked its 100th anniversary in Calgary on Sunday with a giant seven-foot-tall birthday cake and by cracking open a time capsule from 1966.

Inside the capsule was a newspaper that carried the wedding announcement of David and Hazel Eliason, who celebrated their 50th wedding anniversary last month.

"[When Hazel saw the photo] she was in tears," said David, who taught in the business department for 29 years.

The couple, now aged 72 and 70, travelled from Victoria, B.C., to be a part of the celebration.

Opening the time capsule was no easy task, but a team of students and instructors rose to the challenge. 

SAIT started in 1916 with only 11 students. Today, some 50,000 students attend classes there every year.

In total, there are some 230,000 graduates of SAIT, most of whom still live and work in Calgary.

Mayor Naheed Nenshi was on hand for the cutting of the cake, which towered over him and the thousands who gathered for the celebration.

Some 70 culinary arts students spent more than 1,200 hours carefully crafting the 14 tiers.

"We're trying to represent all the different schools on the cake, as well as the students in the schools themselves," said Rose Warden, a baking instructor at SAIT.