Wednesday, March 28, 2012

Cherry Tree Stamps 'Blossom' in DC


     Last Saturday USPS celebrated the centennial anniversary of the gift of more than 3,000 cherry trees from the city of Tokyo to Washington, DC, dedicating the Cherry Blossom Forever stamps during the National Cherry Blossom Festival.  
     The popular spring festival commemorates the March 27, 1912, gift of Japanese cherry trees from Mayor Yukio Ozaki of Tokyo, Japan who donated them to nourish the growing friendship between the United States and Japan and also to celebrate the close relationship between the two nations. 

     Joining PMG Pat Donahoe and Consumer and Industry Affairs VP Susan LaChance at the National Building Museum for the First-Day-of-Issue ceremony were Ambassador of Japan Ichiro Fujisaki, National Building Executive Director Chase Rynd, National Cherry Blossom Festival Executive Director Diana Mayhew, and stamp artist Paul Rogers.
     “The Postal Service has created a lasting tribute to the gift of cherry blossoms in Washington, DC, as well as the friendship between two nations that inspired that gift,” said Donahoe. 

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