Postal Service employees and retirees served their communities throughout 2018.
Melvin White, a retired St. Louis letter carrier, honored the legacy of Martin Luther King Jr. by revitalizing streets named after him, while Melvin McCoy, a Memphis, TN, auto technician, honored his late father, who participated in a 1968 strike to improve conditions for African-American sanitation workers.
Other employees used their personal experiences to highlight health and social issues.
Cross River, NY, Postmaster Clarence Carson shared his story of overcoming homelessness and addiction, while breast cancer survivor Linda Williams-Brettingen, an organizational development specialist at USPS headquarters in Washington, DC, supported efforts to fight the disease.
In Toledo, Retail Associate Jenny Hughes was inspired by her two sons to propose a statewide alert system to help drivers with communication difficulties.
Employees also helped colleagues understand the benefits of charitable giving.
Thomas Jasak, a Vaucluse, SC, postal support employee, told co-workers how donations to Combined Federal Campaign (CFC) charities changed his daughter’s life, while Dolores Williams, an Edison, NJ, customer care agent, recalled how a CFC charity helped with her cancer treatments.
Honoring military veterans was important to employees, too.
Washington, DC, Postal Inspector Carroll Harris continued his work protecting fellow veterans from scams, while Wilson, NC, Letter Carrier Clarence Hollowell spent his free time cleaning veterans’ headstones.
“When we see something in society that’s just wrong, we can make it better if we are willing to step forward,” Hollowell said.