A Postal Service employee from Colorado who defended a customer and her baby from a knife-wielding assailant has been named the 2020 National Hero of the Year by the National Association of Letter Carriers (NALC).
In lieu of its annual fall luncheon, delayed because of the coronavirus pandemic, NALC is using its social media platforms to promote the heroic and humanitarian acts of Grand Junction, CO, Letter Carrier Pedro Mendoza and others.
At the time of Mendoza’s harrowing incident, he said he had a clear message for the suspect: “I’m not going to let you go and hurt anyone on my route.”
NALC also named three regional heroes: Chyanne Fauntleroy of Garden Grove, CA, who found two missing girls in separate incidents; Sydney Rodgers of Buffalo, NY, who came to the aid of an assault victim; and Gerald Soileau of Lafayette, LA, who leapt into action when a plane crashed outside a Post Office.
Matthew King of Champaign, IL, received the Carrier Alert Award for leading two adults and three children to safety after noticing their house was on fire.
The Unit Citation Award went to Eric Beu and Mark Simone of Oklahoma City, who were traveling for work when they helped a blind man stranded in Minneapolis get home safely to Chicago.
NALC also recognized Jerry Giesting of Cincinnati as Humanitarian of the Year for his work with Brad’s Blessings, a charity he founded in memory of his son, who died of cancer in 2016.
The union’s recognition program for heroism and community service dates back to 1974.
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