I love USPS. Having been an employee over 20 years ago, I know the around the clock work taking place from the inside the public often isn't aware of. Working holidays as Christmas, Thanksgiving and Fourth of July. Sundays extra long hours is the norm. Your shift beginning at 2 p.m. one day and not leaving until all the mail was caught up the next day.
So this is not to criticize USPS. After nearly 50 years of deliveries to the same address, I've never had anything of this nature to happen before.
I received a box today from a relative out of state, who's also a military veteran. The contents were mainly for a 90+ year old elderly relative who still lives alone, but the size of their mailbox isn't equipped for boxes. The box was so destroyed, with box and contents wet, even a shirt for the elderly relative, two collectable musical globes destroyed. It appears as if someone went out of their way to purposely do as much damage as possible.
I'll be taking the wet box with damaged contents to the post office tomorrow. I've already alerted the relative who sent it of the weird damage that was done.
The items are only things. Though sentimental gifts, that's not the issue. Things can be replaced. The relative who sent them is already talking about going out to try and replace the items. It's the seemingly going out of the way and possible purposely destruction of the box and items that's troubling. It seems as if the box was soaked in water, and the top ripped halfway off. Usually when something of that nature happens at the USPS facility, they'll include a note. I believe this happened outside the USPS. I'm not sure if there may have been other times inside the box that may have fallen out. That's just how damaged the box was.
Thank you, USPS, for all the near five decades of good delivery service.
Brenda Washington