Flat Stanley — a children’s book character who becomes two-dimensional after being crushed by a falling bulletin board — discovers that flatness has its advantages, including the ability to slip through a mail slot.
The 1964 character is the basis of the Flat Stanley Project, an educational endeavor that began in 1995 to encourage schoolchildren around the world to mail paper cutouts of the flat fellow to friends, celebrities and even landmarks in order to track his adventures.
About 90 second-graders recently visited the Jensen Beach, FL, Post Office to do just that.
The outing offered a lesson not only in geography, creativity and literacy, but in how their local Post Office works. Students were greeted by Postmaster Melissa Potawsky. They also met letter carriers and retail associates, and got a behind-the-scenes look at mail operations.
The youngsters proudly posted their envelopes, sending their iterations of the paper avatar into the mailstream and on to new adventures.
Tag team effort secures very important package
The Tracy, MN, Post Office had recently been told to expect a Priority Mail Express Cremated Remains shipment, but it failed to show up on the appointed day.
Tracy Postmaster Sue Schreier regularly monitored its tracking and tagged the shipment in the Package Remote Encoding System to ensure it was directed to Tracy when it surfaced.
The family due to receive the shipment regularly called the Post Office for updates. They were hoping to get the ashes in time for a funeral service.
Schreier alerted nearby USPS facilities as well as Kelly Buesgens, customer relations coordinator for Minnesota-North Dakota District, to be on the lookout.
The day before the service, the shipment was located in Eagan, MN — about 150 miles away. After a mad dash from Eagan to Tracy, the set of packages eventually arrived, thanks to the efforts of Schreier, Buesgens and others.
“The family was so grateful to have the packages in time for the funeral and thanked us numerous times,” Schreier said. “It felt good to be part of this amazing team.”
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