Mary Schrader went all in when a customer approached the Churubusco, IN, letter carrier recently with a special request.
While Schrader was delivering mail, Pam Wirges asked the longtime USPS employee to teach her eight grandchildren about the Postal Service.
“People don’t write letters anymore,” said Wirges. “I wanted to go to the Post Office, buy stamps and show them how to address envelopes and mail them.”
Schrader accepted the challenge and arranged for Wirges and her grandchildren to visit the Churubusco Post Office.
To prepare for the visit, Wirges and her grandchildren wrote letters to family members. The grandmother also made USPS-themed shirts and satchels for the kids to wear, and she built a mini postal truck to place on top of her 2-year-old granddaughter’s stroller.
At the Post Office, employees showed the kids how to mail their letters and explained how they would get delivered.
“It was awesome,” said Officer in Charge Keiosha McClendon. “It’s not every day we see something like that.”
The next day, Schrader arrived at Wirges’ home in her LLV and was surprised to see the garage had been converted into a make-believe Post Office for the grandchildren.
“She did all that work herself,” said Schrader. “I talked to the kids about what I do and showed them my truck. They were so polite and wonderful.”
Wirges’ “Post Office Week” is one of several themed-weeks she has created for her grandchildren this summer. Other events included a backyard carnival.
She’s especially grateful for Schrader’s involvement.
“She let them try on her mail bag and she showed them how to scan a package that she had addressed to us. There were coloring books and pencils inside,” Wirges said. “She was awesome.”
