As the postal clerk pictured in September’s article about the USPS, I feel it is important to offer a little perspective. Michelle, my mother, and myself take great pride in serving this community and we work hard every day to provide dependable service to our friends and customers. Changes in postal processing and postmarking procedures are the result of decisions made at levels far beyond our local office. We do our best to let our customers know of such changes as they come. While it is fair to question and report on those changes, I hope everyone in our little town understands that the dedicated employees behind the counter are not the ones making those decisions. We are simply working hard to serve you within the system we have been given. Is it a perfect system? No. But it’s a pretty darn good one considering everything. I’m sure many of us have mailed a letter that never reached its destination. Or mailed something that was returned to sender months later, or a million other possible scenarios. But all things considered, I am proud of the service we provide and I am even more proud of the relationships we have built with the people of Norfolk. The big takeaway here is this: When you mail time-sensitive things such as your taxes, the best thing to do is come to the retail counter and ask one of us to postmark it right then and there for you.

Last, but definitely not least, I want to wish a VERY happy retirement to my mother, Kathy Bascetta. It has been an honor and privilege to work with you since transferring to Norfolk in 2018. I have big shoes to fill, and I will do my very best to make you proud, forever and always!

—Jenna Brown