The City of Oxnard Recreation and Community Services Division seeks the public’s help in creating a time capsule that summarizes a year like none before it.
Capturing COVID will record this historic time and help put the year into perspective for those who open the time capsule in the future. It will contain both written word and art, and is expected to help explain this period’s impact on all aspects of life in our community, from the advent of digital learning to isolating at home to missing important family celebrations.
Recreation staff has started pulling together examples of how the worldwide health pandemic has affected Oxnard’s programming, from canceling all activities and closing facilities in early March to innovating and moving activities outside in July to offering virtual fun and walk-through events this fall. This will include the recent holiday season during a second Stay at Home order.
Community members are invited to submit poetry, prose, art and/or photographs that capture what 2020 was like for them. Most submissions will likely focus on COVID-19 and its impact, but there were other historic events this year, including the Dodgers’ title win and a presidential election with historic turnout.
Selected submissions will be displayed in an online gallery within Recreation’s website, and all accepted entries will be preserved in both digital and traditional format in a special container stored within Recreation offices for opening in 10 years.
Submissions should be made digitally using a form, which can be found at http://bit.ly/2WDsBPz or on the Recreation Division’s webpage https://www.oxnard.org/recreation/ . The form includes a method to upload files.
The deadline to submit is January 31, 2021. Artists will maintain the copyright to their work, but must agree that the City will have full use of their materials for Capturing COVID purposes.