Friday, April 4, 2025
USPS raised $2.7 million for the Combined Federal Campaign
The total includes more than 2,100 volunteer hours
Postal Service employees pledged $2.7 million during the most recent Combined Federal Campaign, the federal government’s annual workplace charity drive.
This includes monetary pledges of $2.67 million and the monetary value of more than 2,100 volunteer hours.
“Once again, Postal Service employees have shown they put their money — and time — where their hearts are,” said Myriam Irizarry, a USPS program and policy analyst who serves as the national campaign manager for the organization.
Among the Postal Service’s four retail and delivery areas, Southern led with $798,000 in pledges. Eastern led the two processing regions, with more than $295,000 in pledges, while Atlantic topped the four logistics regions, with pledges that exceeded $61,000.
Employees at USPS headquarters surpassed their goal of $500,000 by donating $515,000. This includes $478,000 in monetary pledges and the monetary value of 1,500 volunteer hours.
Since its founding in 1961, the campaign, also known as the CFC, has raised more than $8.7 billion for people in need.
The latest campaign began Sept. 1, 2024, and concluded Jan. 15.
People
His egg-cellent idea
The Betty White stamp artist describes a eureka moment, USPS recruits automotive students and a postmaster takes up a new posting
Look closely at the new Betty White stamp and you’ll notice she’s wearing a paw print earring, symbolizing her lifelong work as an animal advocate.
Dale Stephanos, the artist who worked on the stamp, said the tiny detail came to him at breakfast.
“I was absent mindedly drawing instead of eating my eggs and looking back down at the mess I had been making in my sketchbook, I saw that at some point, I had drawn a paw print,” he said. “I had a bit of a eureka moment and thought, what if I just give Betty an earring that’s in the shape of a paw print?”
Calling all gearheads
USPS representatives searching for prospective employees met with automotive students researching employment at a job fair in California last month.
Universal Technical Institute, the Long Beach, CA, trade school that hosted the fair, has roughly 1,000 students enrolled in its 51-week auto and diesel program.
“We come here every year,” said Melissa Madere, workforce planning specialist for California 5 District. “A lot of students were not aware we have automotive mechanics.”
Anthony Hinojosa,supervisor of the Los Angeles Vehicle Maintenance Facility, was looking to fill several positions. USPS has a good case to make for itself, he said.
“Our No. 1 benefit is benefits: health benefits, vision and the Thrift Savings Plan. I don’t think anyone can compete with that,” Hinojosa said.
Motivating strong performances
Michael Hinkle III recently was sworn in as postmaster of Preston, WA, a community about 22 miles east of Seattle.
“As a postmaster, I am a jack of all trades … I like motivating my peers and craft employees to strive for better performance,” he said.
You might say Hinkle, who previously served as postmaster of Maple Falls, WA, helped inspire a performance of a different sort last July. As Link reported, Rural Carrier Lucas Wight showed up for a shadow day with the postmaster shortly before Independence Day dressed as George Washington, complete with powdered wig.
“He surprised us,” an appreciative Hinkle said of the lighthearted stunt.
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News Quiz
Heroes and other doers of good
Do you know about this year’s NALC award winners?
“News Quiz” is a weekly feature that lets you test your knowledge of recent Link stories. The correct answers appear at the end.
1. Blood drives organized by Andrew Fontanetta and Tony Paolillo — two of the USPS employees who received awards from the National Association of Letter Carriers last month — have collected how many pints of blood over the past two decades?
a) 800
b) 1,000
c) 1,200
d) 1,500
2. True or false: Actress Betty White won two Emmy Awards, four Screen Actors Guild Awards and two Grammy Awards.
a) True
b) False
3. What was Mike Duncan’s USPS role from September 2018 to February 2021?
a) Inspector general
b) Special liaison to Congress
c) Chairman of the board of governors
d) Deputy postmaster general
4. What is World Backup Day about?
a) How to safely reverse while driving a USPS vehicle.
b) The importance of keeping an extra copy of your tax return.
c) The dancers who perform behind singers on the stage.
d) Preventing the loss of digital data.
5. In what year did the Post Office Department become part of the executive branch?
a) 1825
b) 1851
c) 1872
d) 1874
Answers: 1) d. 2) b. White won five Emmy Awards, three Screen Actors Guild Awards and a Grammy Award. 3) c. 4) d. 5) c.
Postal Bulletin examines passports
Postal Bulletin’s latest edition, published April 3, offers an overview of USPS passport services.
Updates to the organization’s policies, procedures and forms are also included.
Employees can go to usps.com to read and download the latest Postal Bulletin, along with past issues.
View past printouts
Printout details
What's included
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USPS raised $2.7 million for the Combined Federal Campaign
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People
His egg-cellent idea
The Betty White stamp artist describes a eureka moment, USPS recruits automotive students and a postmaster takes up a new posting
-
News Quiz
Heroes and other doers of good
Do you know about this year’s NALC award winners?
-
Brief
Postal Bulletin examines passports