Teamwork Returns MTE to USPS

Story & Photos: Gale Jackson, West Palm Beach Customer Relations Coordinator

Loxahatchee Rural Carrier Associate Dolly Noriega (above) poses with MTE that was recovered after she discovered it on a customer’s property.

Congratulations and thanks to Loxahatchee Rural Carrier Associate Dolly Noriega, who cited three pieces of Mail Transportation Equipment (MTE) at her customer’s home while delivering mail on her assigned route.   Noriega contacted Loxahatchee Officer In Charge Gale Jackson, who notified Postal Inspector Johnny Niedzwiedski about the containers.   When Inspector Niedzwiedski arrived at the home, he found three orange hampers full of trash in the customer’s front yard.  

Jackson notified West Palm Beach Manager, Transportation Roe Herzog who dispatched Tractor Trailer Operator Sergio Valencia to collect the hampers. A deputy from Palm Beach County Sheriff assisted Valencia in emptying and loading the hampers onto a postal truck.   

“I knew this customer should not be using this equipment and I just wanted to do the right thing,” said Noriega. “I got some soap, a water hose and washed down the equipment, it’s now back into circulation,” Valencia said.

West Palm Beach Manager, Transportation Roe Herzog (left) thanked Tractor Trailer Operator Sergio Valencia for his role in returning the equipment.

MTE is essential in accepting, sorting and moving mail within the processing network and is extremely expensive to replace. As a rule of thumb, the Postal Service suggests that no more than a seven-day supply of MTE remains on hand. Unfortunately, there are many instances where the equipment is never returned by customers who sometimes use the containers for personal use.

MTE is federal property. Anyone caught stealing or misusing it can be fined $1,000 and face up to three years in prison. The equipment can be returned to local Post Offices or to processing and distribution facilities. Arrangements also can be made for the Postal Service to pick up larger amounts of equipment and/or pallets by sending an email to hqmte@usps.gov with "Equipment Pickup Request" in the subject line. Please include the company name and address where equipment is located, the type of equipment and quantity, and a contact name and phone number.

Fort Lauderdale Employees Deliver Outstanding Customer Service

Fort Lauderdale Main Office Carrier Annex Manager, Customer Services Raymond Borger presented 25-year Service Awards to Distribution Clerk James Peglow and Letter Carriers Cynthia Everett, Augusto Pimentel, Helen Rhodes and John Torres. 

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Fort Lauderdale Retail Associates who earned a Gold Star Award for achieving perfect scores on recent Retail Customer Experience (RCE) transactions include Regina Mason, Sabal Palm Postal Store; Wadau Ogionwo, Colee Finance Unit; Linda Prince, Southside Station; Tivisay Rivero, Gateway Finance Unit and Oakland Park Branch, and Helen Wolfe, Alridge Station.

Fort Lauderdale SSA Judith Burke Earns Perfect RCE Score

Fort Lauderdale Main Office Retail Associate Judith Burke performed perfection on a recent Retail Customer Experience (RCE) transaction.  She achieved a perfect score and was recognized with a Gold Star Award.

Photo: Amy McCall

NALC Food Drive

Miami West Carrier Annex Employees Praised for Outstanding Performance

Miami West Carrier Annex Custodian Jenard Fletcher (left) receives his gift certificate from Supervisor, Customer Services Susy Ramos (right).

          

Miami West Carrier Annex City Letter Carrier Jaqueline Nicolas (left) receives her gift certificate from Supervisor, Customer Services Susy Ramos (right). 

Miami West Carrier Annex City Letter Carriers Alexis Diaz (left) and Richard Regalado (right) pose with their gift certificates and Manager, Customer Service Operations Marcia Pedraza (center).

Miami West Carrier Annex Supervisor Susy Ramos (right) recognizes City Carrier Assistant Antoinette Anderson (left) with a gift certificate.

  

Miami West Carrier Annex City Carrier Assistant Migdalia Cordero (left) earned recognition for outstanding performance. Supervisor, Customer Services Susy Ramos (right) presented Cordero with a gift certificate.

NALC Food Drive

This year’s Stamp Out Hunger — the nation’s largest one-day food drive — will be held Saturday, May 9.

The Postal Service encourages customers to place a sturdy bag containing non-perishable food next to their mailboxes prior to regular mail delivery May 9. Letter carriers will collect the food, which will be donated to local food banks.

“For more than two decades, the National Association of Letter Carriers and the Postal Service have worked together to stamp out hunger in America. This year, we’ll come together once again to help feed families in need,” said PMG Megan Brennan.

Approximately 50 million people face hunger every day in the United States, including almost 17 million children.

Stamp Out Hunger has collected more than 1 billion pounds of food since the annual drive began in 1993.

In addition to the National Association of Letter Carriers and USPS, sponsors include the National Rural Letter Carriers’ Association and Feeding America, a national network of food banks.

For more information, visit the Stamp Out Hunger site and watch this year’s public service announcement, as well as a new video on the role of food banks.

May Celebrates Asian-Pacific American Heritage Month

May is Asian-Pacific American Heritage Month, a time to recognize the accomplishments of people of Asian and Pacific Islander descent.

This year’s theme is “Many Cultures, One Voice: Promote Equality and Inclusion.”
May was selected because it includes two important dates. The nation’s first Japanese immigrants arrived May 7, 1843, and the transcontinental railroad was completed May 10, 1869. The railroad was built mostly by Chinese immigrant laborers.
Asian-Pacific American Heritage Month is also known as Asian-American and Pacific Islander Heritage Month. It’s celebrated by people of Bangladeshi, Bhutanese, Burmese, Cambodian, Chinese, Filipino, Hmong, Indian, Indonesian, Japanese, Korean, Laotian, Malaysian, Nepalese, Pakistani, Sri Lankan, Thai and Vietnamese descent.
The Asian-American and Pacific Islander population grew almost 43 percent between 2000 and 2010 and is projected to grow 19.5 percent by 2020. The population is expected to reach 47 million by 2060.