Friday, March 6, 2026
This organization is all heart
Letters of Love mails messages of support to patients in children’s hospitals
Grace Berbig turned the pain of losing her mom to leukemia at age 11 into a cause that sends support and joy through the mail to patients in children’s hospitals.
During her illness, Berbig’s mother found strength from the handmade cards and other artwork she and her sisters would make for her.
“I have the happiest memories of visiting my mom, running up and piling on her hospital bed with my sisters, and showing her all of our cards. She would look through each one with a gleaming smile, give us kisses on the head, and put them on her wall right in front of her bed,” Berbig said.
After her mother died, Berbig vowed to help people who were fighting battles like her mom.
She created her first Letters of Love club in 2018 at Orono High School in Minnesota where she was a student. The members made and mailed cards to children diagnosed with cancer and other serious illnesses.
Today there are 314 Letters of Love clubs at high schools and colleges across 42 states. These volunteers have supplied more than 425,000 handmade cards, letters and artwork to hospitals.
Berbig credits the employees at her local Post Office in Long Lake, MN, with helping her from the beginning and supporting the organization’s growth.
“I know all the Long Lake postal workers, and they have watched Letters of Love truly grow from filling up one P.O. Box to collecting carts and carts of our mail and lots of packages,” she said.
Berbig says her organization sends between 100 and 700 cards in bubble mailers to hospitals and uses USPS for all its mailing services.
“I think what she does is fantastic, and it makes us here at the Long Lake Post Office feel honored to help such an incredible organization and be a part of the relationship Letters of Love has with the people they connect,” said Santos Mejia, the local postmaster.
Elizabeth Hernandez, president of the Letters of Love chapter at the University of Iowa, said, “It gets people off of their phones. It gets them interacting with real, tangible messages that another person can open and read.”
More information about Letters of Love can be found on its website.
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People
Scammers were no match for these employees
Vigilant personnel ran interference between customers and grifters
In recognition of National Consumer Protection Week, which runs through Saturday, March 7, “People” is revisiting several recent situations where USPS employees sensed a scam and acted accordingly.
• Yanira “J” Crosser, a retail associate in Algona, IA, felt something was amiss when an older customer purchased a $2,000 money order and was about to send it to someone he didn’t know. Crosser alerted the postmaster, who consulted with the Postal Inspection Service, and the customer was advised not to mail the money. It turned out he was the target of fraudsters.
• Tashirah Taylor, a retail associate in Glen Ridge, NJ, encountered a similar scenario: An older woman purchased two $1,000 money orders and admitted to Taylor that it was her first time making such a transaction. She pulled out a letter that Taylor recognized as part of a sweepstakes scam. Taylor explained the situation to the customer and refunded her money.
• Vicki Steinbach, a retail associate in Potosi, WI, questioned a customer’s unusual transaction — sending envelopes of cash to one address — but the woman believed it was legitimate. Steinbach contacted a postal inspector, who uncovered a scam. The victim was out $30,000 but it would have been more had Steinbach, who has since retired, not intervened.
• Chris Broyles, postmaster of Benton, MS, grew concerned when a customer prepared to send $32,000 in cash that she insisted was for the purchase of a bitcoin product. Broyles expressed doubt, but the woman insisted on completing the transaction. He contacted a postal inspector, who confirmed the woman had been conned. The money was returned to her.
• Subrena Simpson, a retail associate in Gardner, MA, was uneasy about a transaction involving an older customer sending a check. The postmaster advised her to set aside the envelope while he investigated. It turned out the man was the victim of a sweepstakes fraud. Simpson’s hunch prevented the man from losing a further $29,000 — the scammers had already stolen $15,000.
“People” appears regularly in Link. Got news to share? Email us.
News Quiz
This quilt will now warm envelopes
How much do you know about the newly released Harriet Powers stamps?
“News Quiz” is a weekly feature that lets you test your knowledge of recent Link stories. The correct answers appear at the end.
1. Where was 19th-century quiltmaker Harriet Powers born?
a) Abingdon, VA
b) Athens, GA
c) Mount Airy, NC
d) Oxford, MD
2. What was the 6888th Central Postal Directory Battalion able to accomplish during World II?
a) Finding 1,000 lost letters sent by sailors
b) Handling a two-year mail backlog in just six months
c) Joining soldiers in a covert reconnaissance mission
d) Securing 200 mail bundles during enemy attack
3. What is the main reason for employees to wear seat belts when driving USPS vehicles?
a) Doing so will protect the Postal Service’s reputation.
b) Seat belts save lives.
c) Supervisors will be monitoring seat belt usage.
d) USPS drivers need to set an example for other drivers.
4. In setting a new delivery bar code sorter performance record, how many mailpieces did Jacksonville, FL, Mail Processing Clerk Daryle Rhodes sort per hour for four consecutive hours?
a) 28,000
b) 31,000
c) 35,000
d) 39,000
5. What caused the injury to the customer rescued by Olean, NY, Letter Carrier Kaitlynn Roberson?
a) The customer was burned in a house fire
b) A cat accidentally tripped the customer.
c) The customer slipped on an icy porch.
d) The customer fell down the stairs.
Answers: 1) b. 2) b. 3) b. 4) d. 5) d.
March 13, 2026
Datebook
Lowriders stamps ceremony
The Postal Service will dedicate its Lowriders stamps on Friday, March 13, in San Diego.
The event will be held at 11 a.m. Pacific at Logan Heights Library at 567 S. 28th St.
Attendees are encouraged to RSVP online.
New postcard celebrates peak season success
A postcard focusing on the Postal Service’s successful 2025 peak season was recently mailed to employees’ homes.
The card highlights how modernization efforts and employee dedication combined to yield on-time delivery gains and higher customer satisfaction. This achievement has set the stage for more success in 2026 and beyond, including providing American businesses with new opportunities to harness the Postal Service’s last-mile network.
In addition to being sent to employees’ homes, postcards about USPS transformation efforts can be downloaded from LiteBlue.
Each card addresses a different topic and features information that employees can reference when discussing the transformation plan with co-workers and customers.
Postal Bulletin outlines training for powered industrial vehicle operators
Postal Bulletin’s latest edition, published March 5, reviews the training required for Postal Service employees who operate powered industrial vehicles — including forklifts and pallet jacks.
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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This organization is all heart
Letters of Love mails messages of support to patients in children’s hospitals
-
People
Scammers were no match for these employees
Vigilant personnel ran interference between customers and grifters
-
News Quiz
This quilt will now warm envelopes
How much do you know about the newly released Harriet Powers stamps?
-
March13Datebook
Lowriders stamps ceremony
-
Brief
New postcard celebrates peak season success
-
Brief
Postal Bulletin outlines training for powered industrial vehicle operators