Daily printout: Aug. 14

Employees in Hamtramck, MI, recently took part in Touch-A-Truck, a community event showcasing different work vehicles, held in the city’s Veterans Park.

The gathering allowed families to see and touch vehicles from USPS and organizations such as the local fire, police and public works departments.

“I’ve been answering questions from the kids, and even adults, about what we do in the Postal Service,” Letter Carrier Markell Turner said. “I tell them there is a lot of responsibility to the job.”

Many children assume letter carriers just drive around and walk up the street, Turner said, so she explained how they case and load the mail, arrange shelves for efficiency and use the scanner.

“I’m a people person … I like being part of the community at an event like this,” she said.

Christmas in September

Westborough, MA, Retail Associate Tom Brault’s upcoming retirement from the Postal Service won’t resemble many others.

When his 38-year career comes to a close in September, Brault plans to spend his golden years as a full-time Santa Claus.

Brault told a local newspaper that he looks forward to “embodying Santa” and following in the footsteps of his father, who played St. Nick for four decades.

Brault says he has always embraced the Christmas spirit. More than 30 years ago, he started a local letters-to-Santa program that encourages children to drop off mail for the North Pole resident at the Post Office and receive a reply from one of Santa’s elves — in reality, a local high school student.

Brault described the feeling of putting on his red suit for the first time as “magical” and has grown a beard to complete the look. He already has several appearances under his belt.

Although his role as Santa will keep him connected to the community, Brault said he will miss interacting with customers at his Post Office.

“It’s been an honor serving Westborough,” he said.

Unhidden figures

More than four months after their release in April, people are still talking about the Figures of the American Revolution stamps — and at least one of the artists involved.

Julia Bottoms, a Buffalo, NY, artist and one of 12 selected by art director Ethel Kessler to contribute to the 25-stamp set, recently had her work recognized by Buffalo Mayor Sean Ryan.

Ryan said the city was proud to see Bottoms’ talent recognized on the national stage, and he invited residents to come see the stamps, which are on display at City Hall.

Bottoms painted the portraits of Abigail Adams and Lemuel Haynes that appear on the stamps.

In a recent local news interview, she explained that while there was plenty of reference material available for Adams, there was just one black-and-white etching of Haynes that survives.

“This is such a special moment for me both as an artist and as an American,” she said in a story about the project that was published on the USPS Stamps Forever website.

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