May is Mental Health Awareness Month. Here are six facts about the observance and its history: 1. It began with a Wall Street financier. Clifford W. Beers had a mental breakdown and spent three years in psychiatric hospitals in the early 1900s, experiencing firsthand the crude, often cruel institutional practices of the day. His ordeal […]
Rural Carrier Sue Christie was recently delivering mail in Crystal, MI, when she spotted a 5-year-old child walking alone in the roadway. Christie stopped to check on the girl, asking her where her parents were. Afraid she was in trouble, the child ran away and fell, scraping her knee and crying when she realized she […]
Online scams are not limited to suspicious emails or fake websites. If you’ve received an unsolicited text message alerting you to an overdrawn account or unexpected package delivery, you’ve probably experienced smishing. Smishing is the text message version of phishing: emails — purportedly from legitimate firms — designed to con users into providing financial or […]
Here’s a look at some recent changes in the Postal Service’s leadership ranks: • San Diego Postmaster Lisa Baldwin was named San Diego District’s acting manager. Cipriano “Cip” Corona, Santa Ana District’s marketing manager, was named acting San Diego Postmaster. • Michael Lloyd, human resources director for Atlantic and Eastern regions, was named acting strategy […]
USPS will unveil its Heritage Breeds stamps May 17 during International Heritage Breeds Week. Here are five facts about these endangered heirlooms: 1. Heritage breeds are pioneers. They include the cattle, sheep, goats, turkeys, chickens and other domesticated animals that were common on preindustrial farms, as opposed to their modern-day factory-farmed counterparts. The latter are […]
Not everyone has valor like Christopher Hill, the Edgewater, FL, city carrier assistant who helped an older customer after she fell and sustained a head injury. As a fellow Postal Service employee, I’m proud to work with people like him. […]
Waddington, NY, Rural Carrier Associate Patrick Chapman was delivering mail one day last spring in a nearby hamlet, Chase Mills, when he heard a customer yelling for help inside her residence. Chapman rushed to the woman’s door and she directed him to spare keys. Upon opening it, he found that she was stranded on the […]
The Postal Service has reported its financial results for fiscal year 2021’s second quarter (Jan. 1-March 31). Here are some highlights: • Revenue. Total revenue was approximately $18.9 billion, up 6 percent compared with the same quarter one year earlier. First-Class Mail revenue decreased by 6.1 percent, while Marketing Mail revenue declined 13.7 percent. Revenue […]
A referral from a Texas Postmaster has led to a shipping deal worth nearly $139,000 for the Postal Service. After talking with a merchant who ships camping, survival and outdoor gear, Roy Russell of Grand Prairie submitted a lead through Business Connect, a program that allows Postmasters, managers and supervisors to alert USPS to customers […]
Postal Service employees can participate in an upcoming webinar to learn about the Federal Employees Health Benefits (FEHB) program and Medicare. The session, “Medicare + FEHB,” will be held Monday, May 17, at noon EDT. Brian Sperling and Mickey Basi, senior account managers for GEHA, a not-for-profit provider of health plans for federal employees, will […]
Rural Carrier Forrest Bailey III was recently delivering mail in Humble, TX, when he smelled a strong odor of leaking gas at a customer’s residence. Bailey immediately called 911, and emergency responders and utility workers soon arrived on the scene. The customer, an 86-year-old woman who wasn’t there at the time, returned and was advised […]
Like Mary Steinbicker, the Minnetonka, MN, resident who sends postcards to different acquaintances, I sent a weekly postcard to my nephew when he served three military tours in Iraq. He still has them all and gives me a big hug every time I see him. […]
The Postal Service is updating employees on its administrative restructuring. In March, the organization announced the second phase of the restructuring, which included the consolidation of districts from 67 to 50, the centralization of marketing functions into the chief customer and marketing officer’s organization and the creation of a 13th division within Logistics and Processing. […]
Here’s a look at the 10 droids featured on the Postal Service’s recently released “Star Wars”-inspired stamps. 1. IG-11. After beginning life as an assassin droid and dangerous member of the Bounty Hunters Guild, IG was reprogrammed to protect Grogu during the first season of “The Mandalorian” television series in 2019. 2. R2-D2. This fan […]
Here’s a look at some recent changes in the Postal Service leadership ranks: • Washington, DC, Postmaster Sherry L. Harper was named acting Postmaster for Raleigh, NC. Milwaukee Postmaster Eddie Masangcay was named acting Postmaster for Washington, DC. • Ashlea Meyer, manager of the USPS Human Resources Shared Service Center (HRSSC) in Greensboro, NC, will […]
City Carrier Assistant Christopher Hill was delivering mail one day last summer in Edgewater, FL, when he spotted an older customer who’d fallen outside her home, sustaining a head injury. Hill rushed to aid the woman, safely carrying her inside as he yelled for her brother in the backyard to call 911. Paramedics soon arrived […]
Marlton, NJ, Letter Carrier Nancy Torres, who helps train city carrier assistants, is an employee after my own heart. […]
Two leads from a customer services supervisor have resulted in deals totaling almost $188,000 for the Postal Service. Timothy Rose, of Northport, AL, passed along the tips through Submit a Lead, a program for employees who are not eligible to participate in the organization’s other lead-generation programs. His first tip was about a customer that […]
Postal Service employees can participate in an upcoming webinar to learn about seasonal, food and pet allergies. The session, “Allergies and Asthma,” will be held Thursday, May 6, at noon EDT. Representatives from Blue Cross Blue Shield and the Virginia Hospital Center will conduct the webinar and explain how the body reacts to foreign-but-not-dangerous “intruders” […]
Rural Carrier Penny Clem was delivering mail one day last summer in tiny Broadlands, IL, when she spotted a UPS truck that had overturned on a remote gravel road. Clem immediately stopped to aid the driver, who had crawled out of the vehicle through the shattered windshield. The Postal Service employee called 911, shaded the […]
I really enjoyed the “Words to the wise,” the article about using letter writing to combat isolation in senior communities. It has inspired me to start a similar campaign in my community. […]
Here’s a look at some recent changes in the Postal Service’s leadership ranks: • Richard Acker was named field labor relations operations senior director, a newly created position at USPS headquarters in Washington, DC. He previously served as contract compliance manager. • Gail Hendrix was named field human resources senior director at headquarters. She previously […]
Asian American and Pacific Islander (AAPI) Heritage Month kicks off May 1. Here are five facts about the celebration of this growing demographic: 1. The observance started as a “week” of 10 days. In 1978, President Jimmy Carter signed a joint resolution for an annual Asian/Pacific American Heritage Week. Supporters wanted to include the anniversaries […]
Loved “Words to the wise,” the article about a nonprofit organization that seeks to combat isolation in senior communities through the U.S. Mail. Jacob Cramer, the founder, is an inspiration. […]
Jeanne Norris, a highway contract route driver, was delivering mail on a spring day last year in the tiny desert community of Inyokern, CA, when she spotted a toddler wandering alone on a road. Norris immediately stopped to check on the girl, who didn’t know where she was. There were no houses nearby, so Norris […]
Postal Service employees can participate in an upcoming webinar to learn the ins and outs of menopause and how to manage symptoms. The session, “Menopause: The Next Chapter,” will be held Thursday, April 29, at noon EDT. Representatives from Blue Cross Blue Shield and the Virginia Hospital Center will conduct the webinar and provide an […]
A California employee’s keen eye has resulted in a shipping deal worth almost $100,000 for the Postal Service. David Savillon, a La Crescenta letter carrier, noticed a company on his route had parcel pickups ready for a competitor. Savillon approached the owner and asked if he would like to speak with someone at USPS about […]
Mary Steinbicker puts her own stamp on Minnesota nice. Last year, the Minnetonka resident sent out a postcard a day as part of a resolution/retirement project she designed to send kindness and cheer through the U.S. Mail. Steinbicker retired as a children’s librarian in January 2020 and knew she needed a project to start her […]
McCrory, AR, with a population of around 1,700, is “a small town where everyone knows everyone,” according to the local Postmaster. It’s no surprise, then, that Rural Carrier Associate Jenifer Taylor got word of an accident at a residence on her route, soon after she’d finished work. Concerned by the news, Taylor rushed to the […]
I was so moved by “Words to the wise,” the article about Love for Our Elders, a nonprofit organization that uses mail to combat isolation in senior communities. Jacob Cramer, the young man who runs the group, has a big heart. […]