Earlier this month, the U.S. Postal Service announced plans to stop Saturday mail delivery by August. The announcement stirred quite a national debate about the value of Saturday mail deliveries.
In response, a Jefferson City woman and her family have launched a national campaign to remind people of the experience of receiving a personal correspondence in the mail.
Donna Charton Smith and her sister Heidi in Arkansas have created the campaign, called “Because we love snail mail.”
The idea is not complicated.
They ask that people just spend 47 cents and use the postal service this Saturday to mail a letter.
The campaign has gotten national media attention and has gathered support on Facebook.
The sisters say the act of sending “snail mail” makes the sender feel good, makes the receiver feel good and uses the Post Office on Saturday.
via Family’s campaign aims to save Saturday postal delivery – News Tribune
According to their Facebook page:
The United States Postal Service will no longer deliver letters to the public on Saturdays (they will, however, continue to deliver parcels). For people like my grandmother, a shut-in, this is a terrible loss. We’re told the reason behind this is folks are not using the USPS enough and they’re losing revenue in a big way – over $25 million / day.
SO… brilliant and thoughtful woman that my aunt is, she was inspired to get the word out about an idea she has to support our postal service – a drive or push to get people to invest at least 46 cents to send a letter through the post office, and more if you’re inclined to do so.
That’s it.
You send a letter and in doing so, you invest 46 cents to the USPS towards their operating budget, and then invite your friends and other people you know to do the same (be sure to let the friends you invite know you’ve invited them – it’s the polite thing to do).
There are soooo many ways this can be done – postcards, a mix exchange, a bookmark exchange, a book exchange, a fan letter to a favorite celebrity, a business letter or thank you to your favorite local business, signing up as a pen pal, sending a letter to a soldier overseas, a letter of concern to your local politicians, a Get Well Soon card to a child in the hospital, a letter to a relative or a friend you’d like to surprise, a care package to a loved one, a “Thinking of you” card… you get the idea.
You know you adore getting snail mail – there’s nothing like it – an email, a text, an instant message – they don’t have the same effect that one might experience when getting something in the mail which is not a bill or junk mail.
Who: You!
When: Saturday, February 16, 2012
Where: Your mailbox, Your local post office… any place there’s a mailbox or USPS mail service
What: Send something through the USPS to a family member, a friend, a long lost relative, whoever might be worth a few minutes of your time.
Now we are spending 2.2 million for a golf outing. Few more of those and we will need to go to 4 day delivery.
Retire then. It’s about saving the service, getting rid of the people who want to privatize I would rather work every Saturday than see any more services cut before we do all we can to change the real problem. Prefund 70 years of FUTURE retirees health benefits and have to do it in 10 years. And for the record I have 27 years.
It’s not about Saturdays off? That’s funny. In all 40 years I’ve worked for the PO, Sat/Sun off jobs were always primo bid positions held by those of us with the most seniority. That tells my feeble, about-to-retire ass that, this is what employees want…WE WANT WEEKENDS OFF!
they should of closed on saturdays long ago and stop all walking routes
i was talking to that guys aunt who wants to send a letter..wow..
pay the extra saturday fee and mail folks parcels…first class mail has never paid our wages..there is no bulk mail
sorry mail lady..this is about volume and running a business and keeping it going..cant keep paying people when there is no work…clerks stand around for hours a day by the thousands and do nothing..and for carriers there is not the volume to keep all these routes..close on saturday and add a few routes..
Sandy,you need to learn how to read before you call somebody stupid.
Good answer mack. Not to mention UPS and FEDEX (for profit company’s)drop their packages with us every day.
Sounds like Ann cares only about herself. Hope you don’t have long to go if you do you may want to consider management. You have that mentality. Compliment of carriers is management’s problem. They would rather work you hours of overtime a week than hire someone. USPS hands are tied by congress. You can’t make a profit if your allowed to sell widgets but congress won’t let you sell the batteries to run them. Open your eyes. Educate yourself. And for the record I have sent many letters to my congressmen and senators concerning the service. How about you?
I have been a carrier for almost 20 years
and I have heard all the crap about Saturday delivery,
people not doing the job they said they could do when they
applied for it,and how much the postal service loses in revenue
every year.Congress has heard it and do not care.Postage has gone up about
25cents on letters during my time in, gas has gone up $2.20 in 5years and is still going up.The point is when the postal service is gone and you have to pay your mortgage,car,utility and other bills online or by phone you will have to pay a fee much larger than the cost of a stamp.Many credit cards already charge fees as much as $10.to pay online and car payments are $15.to pay by phone.I know some are free and it’s easy to click a button and pay,but maybe people should look at the real cost of not having a service that is the cheapest in the united states then it is to let the service go by the wayside. The postal service delivers to every address in the U.S. 6 days a week and Express mail 365 days a year. No other carrier (UPS- FED-X)does that and certainly not for the price the Postal service does it. That being said I think the creditors should include a postage paid envelope with the bills so the people can pay the bill without being concerned with postage and I think the Postal service should be run more like a service for the people and not a company for profit.
Why not take advatage of what the internet has to offer. Again innovative ideas. Congress created this problem to privatize the service. If it wernt for the pre-funding we would have shown a profit in four of the last five years. Would not have reached our borrowing limmit. Would not have to borrow from the treasury to then turn around and make the payment. Not many cuts happening except the craft employees. NO LEADERSHIP! Unions have worked with management as much as the can. It’s time for the PMG to go and get someone who can turn a profit. Time to get congress and the senate to work together to save this instatution.
Send your grandmother a letter in a Package if it is so important to her to get this on saturday :-)—-
Ok T1 Clerk…what part about volumes dropping and other forms of communications don’t you get! I know in my office we don’t even have enough compliment of carriers to routes…end Saturday …… free up utilitys…..almost full compliment of carriers to routes. Did I forget to mention some of these people do and should retire and enjoy the rest of their life:)
I agree with you maillady…people get off your soapboxes…now is the time to get rid of Saturdays…rest assured I won’t miss it!
Really Mailman! Why is it that the prefunding fiasco is the number 1 problem here!? Volumes are dropping and have been for the last 7 years….you can’t bring that volume back with all the other means of communication…look at you…you’re submitting a comment via internet…maybe you need to call on all your cohorts to take an affix first class postage and mail all your comments to Congress…maybe this would bring in some revenue…Lol!
It’s not about Saturdays off. What will stop the PMG from going to four day then to three. There will be no full time positions then. This is about having no business plan, no strategy to increase business. Slashing services is not a plan. Let’s fix the pre-funding fiasco first. Then get someone in.charge who can run this company. Innovative ideas to take advantage of our unique delivery system.
r u kidding lady..go visit your damn grandmother..most people dont even go to their mailbox on saturday..there is no reason to have mail on saturday..get her a pobox and drive her to the post office..make a day of it every saturday…you r so damn stupid
People need to understand that we are living in a different time,things have changed.It is not a big deal to not have Saturday mail delivery.It seems for some people like it is the end of the world.
Get real,soon that is going to happen anyway.
The Carriers deserve weekends off stop with the ridiculous campaign you need to get real. If you had to work Saturdays and 6 days a week 12 hrs a day no family life you would want Saturday off also. They need 2 days in a row to heal they are not robots and your bulk mail and that is all you get most of the time can wait until Monday.
Tj you are 100% correct. A real joke.
Some people have way too much time in their hands.
enufisenf: Start thinking of others besides yourself. There are a lot of people who would be out of work. Not just TEs or PTFs but also truck drivers and so on. Find another job if that is the only thing important to you.
WE WANT WEEKENDS OFF!!!!!!!!!!