# Closing of small town Post Offices



## Jeffery (Oct 25, 2011)

As you probably know, due to a financial crises, the U.S. Postal Service is considering closing down thousands of unprofitable small town Post Offices. But it is not yet a done deal. As a community, if you really want to, you can save your local Post Offices. What your Post Offices need is revenue. Buy your stamps at the Post Office. Buy your pass ports, mailing supplies, greeting cards, and any thing else you can from your local Post Office. And of course, ship by USPS. Like any other business, they are striving to remain open but they need enough income to cover their expenses. Please support your local U.S. Post Offices.


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## Ken Scharabok (May 11, 2002)

I don't think it is in the thousands.

Small office in Hurricane Creek, TN on Lorita Lynn's Ranch is one on the closure list. Very low volume, but at a public hearing seems like people wanted it more for the sentiment than actual usage. They don't have a separate Zip Code. Two mail carrier routes would be taken over by local Post Office, where their mail goes first anyway.

Route carrier loves my eBay packages. Average about ten per day in recent volume count. Added something like one-half hour to her base pay and it only takes her a couple of minutes.


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## Snowfan (Nov 6, 2011)

I would rather see mail delivery cut back to 3 days a week. I'm old fashion so I actually sit down with pen and paper and write letters. Most people respond, unfortunately, with emails or they type it on their computer and print a copy to send me.
The biggest problem with the USPS is management and their retiree expenses. Just my opinion.


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## clovis (May 13, 2002)

I agree. 

If you want your local post office to remain open, start spending money there. 

IMO, when the Postmaster General gets down to brass tacks about which post offices will actually close, it will come down to two factors:

1. The amount of people they serve.
2. Most importantly, the revenue (money) that post office earns.


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## Raeven (Oct 11, 2011)

I serve mine every chance I can. Even when I have to go out of my way to use my branch, I do it. My businesses are both USPS-intensive, so I work hard to keep them working for me.


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## clovis (May 13, 2002)

This reminds me about a very, very small town post office that was in a nearby community many years ago.

People in that area were saddened when it closed, and for good reason. That post office had been there for as long as anyone could remember. It did serve two or three rural routes, and had post office boxes for everyone in town.

But there was a huge amount of people who just loved the sentiment of that old post office, and even though they were just a few miles away from it, they opted to use the 'big town' post office instead. Some of these folks were the loudest complainers, and their business could have helped keep that PO open for many years, opted not to do so.

It kinda reminds me of the folks who insisted that buying foreign built cars didn't matter one iota, but now stand around and complain that there are no decent auto parts factory jobs for their kids.

Go figure.


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## Ken Scharabok (May 11, 2002)

Can't remember the context, but was watching some TV program when they said the area had about 200 people and 'downtown' was a post office and a convenience store. Ah, solution may be to contract boxes to the convenience store. However, typically their labor isn't of all that high quality. Don't know I would like to give them access to the boxes.


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## sunflower-n-ks (Aug 7, 2006)

And then sometimes it seems their fate is already sealed. I decided to try to get information and then would have gone out of my way to use the local post office to try to save it. I called the listed number to see if they had what I needed (boxes). The number was not connected. The tornado took the building, they are working out of a trailer and the phone was not moved.

They are only open 2.5 hours a day, but I don't know what hours those are.

If I "deal" with the route carrier, the business will go to the town the route is coming out of, not the one that is up to be closed.

And it is 10 miles one way on gravel for me to go there, with no other possible shopping while I am there.

The town is crying about the possible closing, but they don't make it easy to give business to them.


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## romysbaskets (Aug 29, 2009)

I really resisted responding to this but I feel inclined to! The other post office in the town we boat over to conduct our mail service closed about 6 months ago. The existing post office where we have a post office box has lines, with personnel who stand around talking in the back ground while the open tellers are about 50% efficient and 50% are very slow and openly rude. They throw our packages in front of us marked fragile, slamming some of them down on the counter! They squeeze envelopes to make sure you have not put anything in them or they charge you $1.71, their new minimum for mailers. They have smashed and damaged items in the past, which I replaced at my own cost and this is requiring a lot more packing material needed for everything sent. I even go to the trouble of boating to another island when I have things of a very fragile nature! I will print my postage and take it to a drop else where to avoid this when I can as well. 

This past week I enjoyed a further treat from my post office. Every year a form is placed in our boxes, those of us that live out here. It is done at a different time every year. You just mark you are a resident out here and it is a free box. Everyone there knows who we are and this is always a smooth transaction. The lady in charge of this little job of recent..well she made a little mistake with our box. She is new so she first closed our box, never put a slip in and this was 3 days after we were there in person getting our mail? Now all my mail has been sent back!!!! Despite me calling the post office for two days and they told me they were holding it while they FIXED THEIR ERROR. This just never happens they tell me...?????? So now anyone I have corresponded with must be written and told..anyone sending me payments have to be written as well. They are sorry but it is just unfortunate? "It is not my problem" said the guy my husband spoke to in person! I beg to differ, bad service will be the reason that these folks are in danger of losing their jobs, perhaps ultimately their undoing. While so many folks who are unemployed would love to work there!

A friend I know in a different area saved her small town post office from going out of business single handedly. Her business picked up to the point of loads of packages going out daily. They were at first very nice about it and appreciated that they had jobs because of her business. Which this lady was so happy to have done. Then they began complaining and the problems began! If she had an extra large run, they had a spot she would drive her packages to and put in a shed which she supplied. Their large postal truck would pick them up on their run and she paid for the driveway to be maintained there. If the amount was manageable, she would fill a van with packages, drive it over there and bring it in or drive around back if there were a lot. Her workers would then load the packages into the post office bins for them. The personnel there began to treat her very rudely including those that brought these packages there, so this business woman bought a building elsewhere and they lost her business completely! 

It is cheaper to print your postage and there must be valid reasons to want to spend more at your local post office. Where I last lived, the ladies and the one man working that small town post office were some of the nicest folks I know. They were always helpful, friendly and efficient. I actually looked forward to seeing them when I brought my mail in and was happy to conduct all my mail service right there. 

There are different reasons that the one post office is going out of business, and the other one has lost business. They would be in better shape if their personnel supported their business with professional service and efficiently working within the scope of the requirements of their positions. They keep raising the postal prices and their service should reflect what they charge.


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## Ken Scharabok (May 11, 2002)

What I suggest you do is to send a personal letter to:

Postmaster General
Mr. Patrich Donahoe
475 L'Enfant Plaze SW
Washington, DC 20260-3100

Be sure to add Zip Codes to all of the Post Offices mentioned.

Now, he will never see it, but you will likely receive a personalized letter from someone on his staff.


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## fishhead (Jul 19, 2006)

My post office is great. They call me early when my chicks arrive so I can pick them up before the window opens.


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## happychick (Sep 20, 2010)

In my area (Northern IL) we have been hard hit with the little community post offices being closed. There is one under a 10 min drive away from me and the postmaster was so worried she was going to loose her job. But it was not closed, and hopefully never will be.

What I did to help my local post office:
Since I have loads of eBay packages to go out every few days, I changed the postal code to show that it was processed through their post office, not the cities big post office.



Ken Scharabok said:


> Route carrier loves my eBay packages. Average about ten per day in recent volume count. Added something like one-half hour to her base pay and it only takes her a couple of minutes.


*Ken, 
I have thought of doing that too, but was afraid add more work to my very kind and helpful carrier. As I live in the country, and she drives a small car, I didn't want to hand her 30 packages in a given morning and take up all her space! 
But if I shipped every single day, I wouldn't have so many, plus I would get huge discounts w/ eBay fees by offering single day shipping in the holiday season. 
How did you go about it? Talk to your carrier directly...? And how did you get her pay increased!? I would love to do that for her!
Thanks


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## sunflower-n-ks (Aug 7, 2006)

When I moved out here there was a neighbor that ebayed. On days there were a lot of packages to be picked up, the carrier used a pickup instead of the little car normally used.


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## Ken Scharabok (May 11, 2002)

As far as I know carriers don't leave their Post Office until about 9AM. So, if you are going to have a number of packages to ship out, you can call to alert them.

Occasionally my carrier has run very late, say a flat tire. They call the P.O., who usually sends someone out direct and normally it is the Post Master.

On a couple of occasions the carrier has called me saying they are running low on air in one tire. Can I top it off for them. Simply start up the air compressor so it is ready to go when they get here.


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## romysbaskets (Aug 29, 2009)

Ken Scharabok said:


> What I suggest you do is to send a personal letter to:
> 
> Postmaster General
> Mr. Patrich Donahoe
> ...


*Thank you Ken! I have had this thought cross my mind and I realize on a higher level my situation may seem rather trivial in the big scheme of things. ) I think it is certainly worth the few minutes to follow through. I will let you know if I hear anything back? LOL

Happy Thanksgiving Everyone!*


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