OHIO RURAL LETTER CARRIER OHIO RURAL … › statepapers › August September 2013.pdfRural Letter...

As your Vice President, I attended many meetings throughout the year; beginning with the National Convention in Buffalo, New York. As one of your delegates to the convention, I tried to represent Ohio carriers to the best of my ability. I tried to focus on maintaining the steward system we had put in place, here in Ohio, in light of the new steward system being ready to begin in No-vember of 2012. To that end, I proposed a binding resolution to have the National Of-fice provide regular reports on the details of the system including success rates, costs and

bottom line financial reports. I believe this proves that we need a mandated reporting system that will tell us were the system stands functionally and financially. I would encourage our National Lead-ership to respect the states need to know. It is difficult to plan for contingencies if you don't have the facts on a regular and continu-ing basis. I believe, and the evidence shows the grievance handling in Ohio has remained superior under the stewards we have in place now.

For our spring meeting, we decided to put on a retire-ment seminar for the membership. A standing room only crowd filled the ballroom at the Newark Metropolitan Hotel and the cost was covered by a nominal registration fee from each attendee. I believe that the success of this meeting will dictate that additional seminars be put on in the future. It is my hope that state and dis-trict leadership will begin to think outside the box in order to stimulate attendance at our meetings, especially among the new hires.

Legislatively, I have been engaged in speaking with Congress and Congressional candidates in an effort to preserve our Postal Service. I have made several trips to D.C. and local cam-paign functions and town halls in an effort to gain the attention of our Congressional leadership. The situation has never been more

crucial than it is now and that is why myself, Joyce Bower, Mike Aitchison, Delbert Hutchisson, and Floyd Edler have taken per-sonal time and expense to go to Washington and local events to promote Postal Issues. It is now time for all of us to make sure that the truth is told, especially to the American people.

Finally; I would like to encourage you to consider tak-ing a leadership role in this organization. I encourage you to run

PRESIDENT

TOM GAMBLE

OHIO RURAL LETTER CARRIER OHIO RURAL LETTER CARRIER

The Ohio Rural Letter Carriers ’ Associat ion Off ic ial Publ icat ion

Volume 80 Issue Number 4 August/September 2013

In This Issue:

President’s Report

Page 2 Officer Information /Steward Information

Page 3 Members of the Year

Page 4 Vice President Report

Page 5-7 Convention Pictures

Page 8 2013-2014 District Officers

Page 9 Northern Ohio District DR Report

Page 10 Cincinnati District DR Report

Page 11-13 Secretary/Treasurer’s Report

Page 14-16 Executive Com. Reports/PAC Report

Page 17 Editors Report/National Delegates

Page 18 Fall District Meetings

Page 19 -21 Constitution Changes and Resolutions

Page 22 In Memoriam

Page 23 Auxiliary Page

Page 24 Upcoming Events

Continued On Page 14

2013-2014

NEWLY

ELECTED

OHRLCA

STATE

BOARD

Right to Left: Jeanette Dwyer National President; Tom Gamble, President, Floyd Edler Vice President, Penny Koren

Secretary-Treasurer, Joyce Bower, Mark Funderburgh, Barb Pitts and Diane Cox Executive Committeeman.

The Ohio Rural Letter Carrier August/September 2013

OHRLCA STEWARD SYSTEM

2012-2013 ASSOCIATION OFFICERS President Tom Gamble

PO Box 9, New Middletown, OH 44442-0009

Ph 330-707-4242 Fax 330-707-4242 [email protected]

Vice President Floyd Edler Secretary/Treasurer Penny Koren

1060 Schrake Rd., Chillicothe, OH 45601 104 Clay Road SW, Dellroy, OH 44620-9757

Ph 740-775-5679 Cell 740-703-7002 [email protected] Ph 330-735-2727 Fax 330-735-2535 [email protected]

EXECUTIVE COMMITTEE

Joyce Bower Barb Pitts

7456 County Road 107, Gibsonburg, OH 43431-9531 12914 Washingtonville Rd., Salem, OH 44460-9247

Ph 419-849-2613 [email protected] Ph 330-533-6274 [email protected] * GMAC Insurance Rep

Mark Funderburgh Diane Cox

7450 North River Road, Springfield, OH 45502-9448 4780 Stony Creek, Urbana OH 43078

Ph 937-605-4067 [email protected] Phone 937-206-2537 [email protected]

*Provident Guild

APPOINTED OFFICES

Editor Lori Todd PAC Chairman Mike Aitchison

610 West State Street, Salem, OH 44460 P.O. Box 340, Plain City, OH 43064-8873

Ph 234-567-4222 [email protected] Ph 614-873-4114 Fax 614-873-6352 [email protected]

Established in 1929 by H. I. Carpenter. Published in Salem, Ohio, six times a year. Entered as Non-Profit mail at the Post Office in Youngstown, Ohio. Non-Profit Postage is paid in Youngstown, Ohio. Subscription Price—$10.00 per year. Contributions are opinions expressed by the writers and do not reflect the opinions of the State Officers

of the Ohio Rural Letter Carriers‘ Association or the Editor.

DELBERT HUTCHISSON Northern Ohio District DR

P.O. Box 326, Fostoria, OH 44830-2767

Ph 419-435-3117 Fax 419-436-0376

[email protected]

SUSAN THAYER

Northern Ohio District ADR

PO Box 309, Liberty Center, OH 43532

Ph 567-264-4520 Fax 567-264-4521

[email protected]

MICHAEL WALLIS

Northern Ohio District ADR

PO Box 2, Atwater, OH 44201

Ph 330-699-4445 Fax 330-699-4470

[email protected]

AREA STEWARDS

Tana Humphrey (440-224-1276) – Northern Ohio District Offices

3434 Creek Road, Kingsville, Ohio 44048

e-mail [email protected]

Andover, Austinburg, Bristolville, Brookfield, Burghill, Conneaut, Cort-

land, Dorset, Farmdale, Fowler, Hubbard, Kingsville, Kinsman, Pier-

pont, Rock Creek, Rome, Vienna, Williamsfield, Windsor, Willoughby

Chris McCoy (330-898-2370) – Northern Ohio District Offices

5404 State Route 303, Newton Falls, Ohio 44444

e-mail [email protected]

Burton, Chesterland, Diamond, Garrettsville, Hiram, Huntsburg,

Leavittsburg, Lowellville, Mantua, Masury, Middlefield, Mineral Ridge,

Newton Falls, North Jackson, Orwell, Southington, Warren, West Farm-

ington, Windham

CATHY FUNDERBURGH

Cincinnati District DR

P.O. Box 96, Clifton, OH 45316

Ph 937-265-5477 Fax 937-528-2297 [email protected]

MIKE AITCHISON

Cincinnati District ADR

P.O. Box 340, Plain City, OH 43064-8873

Ph 614-873-4114 Fax 614-873-6352

[email protected]

RANDY ANDERSON JR.


P.O. Box 795, Moundsville, WV 26041

Ph 304-810-4373

[email protected]

RANDY BURGER


P.O. Box 184, Pittsboro, IN 46167-0184

Ph 317-892-3893

AREA STEWARDS

Michael J. Sikyta (614-855-3767) – Cincinnati District Offices

6162 Tettlin Field Drive, New Albany, Ohio 43054

e-mail [email protected] Fax 614-855-3767 Ashville, Baltimore, Canal Winchester, Carroll, Circleville, Frankfort, Groveport, Jeffersonville, Johnstown, Kingston, Lockbourne, Logan, Millersport, New Hol-

land, Rushville, Somerset, South Solon, Stoutsville, Thornville, Williamsport

Philip Burnside (419-310-3817) – Cincinnati District Offices

8051 Township Road 165, Kenton, Ohio 43326

e-mail [email protected] Belle Center, Bellefontaine, De Graff, Huntsville, Jackson Center, Kenton, La Rue, Milford Center, Mount Victory, North Lewisburg, Ostrander, Prospect,

Quincy, Richwood, Ridgeway, Rushsylvania,

Russells Point, West Liberty, Woodstock


Congratulations

Walter McIntire

Congratulations

Carla Dedden


Bills to Save the Postal Service Postal Service Protection Act (S.316/H.R. 630) Introduced by Sen. Bernie Sanders (D-VT) and rep. Peter DeFazio (D-OR) Eliminates the pre-funding mandate. Refunds overpayments the USPS made to federal retirement systems Ends mail slowdown by re-establishing overnight service standards for first-class mail Allows the USPS to develop new products and services that will generate new sources of revenue. Protects post offices by giving the Postal Regulatory Commission authority to prevent post office closures based on the effects on the community and employees. United States Postal Service Stabilization Act (H.R. 961) Introduced by Rep. Stephen Lynch (D-MA) o 3/5/2013 Requires the Office of Personnel Management (OPM) to recalculate the Postal Service’s pension liabilities to the Federal Employees Retirement System (FERS) using postal-specific salary and demographic assumptions Refunds overpayments the Postal Service made to federal retirement accounts Expresses the intent of Congress that postal-specific assumptions should apply to allocations of past, present and future benefit liabilities between the USPS and the Treasury Protect Overnight Delivery Act (H.R. 2459) Introduced by Rep. Rosa DeLauro (D-CT) and 6/20/2013 Repeals service standards implemented by the United States Postal Service on July 1, 2012 Restores overnight service standards to those that were in effect on Dec. 11, 2011 Protects mail processing plants from closure by preventing the Postal Service from moving to two– to three-day service standards

Beware of Those Who Seek to Destroy the USPS Issa Draft Bill Released by Rep. Darrell Issa (R-CA) on 6/13/2013 Attacks Collective Bargaining Prohibits the USPS and postal unions from negotiating protection against layoffs Requires postal unions to renegotiate current contracts to eliminate protection against layoffs Immediately increases employees’ health insurance costs Allows fringe benefits to return to pre-1971 levels Imposes “final offer” bargaining if parties fail to reach a settlement Slashes compensation for injured employees with dependents and forces them into retirement as soon as they become eligible Deprives Customers of Vital Services Imposes two– to three-day service standards for first-class mail Closes additional post offices, stations, branches, and mail processing facilities Reduces door delivery and eliminates Saturday letter delivery Privatizes Postal Services Prohibits customers from appealing a decision to close a post office, station or branch if a private contract postal unit is opened within two miles. Establishes “competition advocates” to promote contracting out Harms Postal Finances Retains the obligation to pre-fund 100 percent of health benefit costs for future retirees Maintains limits on postage rate increases, preventing USPS from increasing revenue Fails to refund USPS overpayments into the Civil Service Retirement System (CSRS) and Federal Employees Retirement System (FERS) accounts Unreasonably restricts new services

VICE

PRESIDENT

FLOYD EDLER


State Convention Westlake, Ohio

Juniors performing their skit at banquet.

Joyce Bower hard at work.

Janet Preston celebrating her big winnings from the reverse raffle

with PAC Chairman Mike Aitchison.

A fun night at the banquet.

Dominic Crooks scanning the rules.

Come Join

The Fun, Learning

Experience Next Year! The State Convention is a family affair.



Tellers Committee counting ballots.

Fun for all ages. Northern Ohio District DR Delbert Hutchisson deep in thought.

Tellers Committee counting more ballots.

Ray Nichols and Bill Owen catching up.


Cincinatti Disctrict DR Cathy Funderburgh

giving her report.


National President Jeanette Dwyer showing off

her Longaberger basket. Auditing Committee did a great job!

One of the many district baskets for the auction.

Penny Koren at the podium.

Note From The Editor: Some of the articles in this

issue were the end of year convention reports.

Diane Cox our new

Executive Committeeman speaking.


2013-2014 DISTRICT OFFICERS Dis Office First Last Address City St. Zip Telephone

1 President Matthew Burke 4822 Delevan Dr Cleveland OH 44124-1016 216-382-3031

1 Vice Pres Roger Herbster 2770 Windsor Rd Orwell OH 44076-9510 440-437-8259

1 Sec-Tre Dawn Greene 12918 Chillicothe Rd Chesterland OH 44026-3116 440-759-2777

2 Pres Barbara Pitts 12914 Washingtonville Rd Salem OH 44460-9247 330-533-6274

2 Vice Pres Tamye Simms 10257 Seacrist Road Beloit OH 44609-9731 330-831-3849

2 Sec-Tre Thomas Noble 6110 Weaver Rd Berllin Center OH 44401-9748 330-853-0636

3 Pres Patsy Anderson 74765 Dry Ridge Rd Freeport OH 43973-9717 740-658-3666

3 Vice Pres Gladys Dunlap P.O. Box 86 Freeport OH 43973-9717 740-658-3209

3 Sec-Tre Jody Schuler 7951 Euga Rd Newcomerstown OH 43832-9518 740-492-0608

4 Pres Judith McIntire 49290 Beautiful Ridge Rd Clarington OH 43915-9732 740-458-1464

4 Vice Pres Helen Cline 30310 Bracken Ridge Rd Lewisville OH 43754-9408 740-567-3496

4 Sec-Tre Eileen Piatt 3864 Straight Fork Rd Graysville OH 45734-9749 740-934-2849

5 Pres Ronald Ellis Jr 67 Township Rd 1145 Proctorville OH 45669-0801 740-886-1318

5 Vice Pres John Thomas 95 Township Rd 1361 Chesepeake OH 45680-7826 740-867-8450

5 Sec-Tre Elizabeth Altizer 615 Centerpoint Thurman OH 45685-9726 740-245-5193

6 Pres Sandra Heaton PO Box 194 Zanesville OH 43702-0194 740-408-3958

6 Vice Pres Betsy Belen 748 Lexington Ave Zanesville OH 43701-5239 740-454-2341

6 Sec-Tre Patsy Hickle 3141 Beaver Run Rd Hebron OH 43025-9571 740-929-2816

7 Pres Daniel Robinson 17700 N Liberty Rd Fredericktown OH 43019-9784 740-694-9397

7 Vice Pres Carla Daniels 19980 Crooked Rd Butler OH 44822-9488 740-504-4797

7 Sec-Tre Darlene Foos 3378 County Road 31 Galion OH 44833-9686 419-564-2796

8 Pres Barbara Perkins 22389 West Rd. Wellington OH 44233-0068 440-647-5341

8 Vice Pres Melvin Riffle 136 East Henry St. Wooster OH 44691-4304 330-264-3184

8 Secretary Diana Brown 405 Township Rd. 150 Sullivan OH 44880-9723 440-225-7101

8 Treasurer Robin Rowland 49945 Bursley Rd. Wellington OH 44090-9282 440-647-7630

9 Pres Timothy Barker 4395 Cook Rd New London OH 44851-9357 419-901-0900

9 Vice Pres Jason Zedaker P.O. Box 324 Stony Ridge OH 43463-0324 419-367-2834

9 Sec-Tre Brenda Klotz 155 E Fourth St Fostoria OH 44830-3047 419-701-7203

10 Pres Mark Funderburgh 7450 N River Rd Springfield OH 45502-9448 937-605-4067

10 Vice Pres Norman Humphrey PO Box 12 Sedalia OH 43151-0012 740-874-3121

10 Sec-Tre Diane Cox 4780 Stony Creek Rd Urbana OH 43078-9618 937-869-4724

11 Pres Jennifer Bennington 45 Olive St Peebles OH 45660-1129 937-217-0198

11 Vice-Pres Tera Young 138 Brier Ridge Rd. West Union OH 45693-9695 740-775-5679

11 Sec-Tre Emilee Arthur 190 Mathias Rd Winchester OH 45697-9200 740-205-8642

12 Pres Miranda Rodgers 610 South Broadway St Blanchester OH 45107-1416 937-302-9956

12 Vice Pres Jeff Holley 4875 Crosskey Dr. #303 Lebanon OH 45065-1188 513-407-1444

12 Sec-Tre Christina Eubanks 249 Hartford Ct Mainville OH 45039-7944 502-320-4592

13 Pres Janna Hirschfeld 00577 Southland Rd New Bremen OH 45869-9715 419-629-3830

13 Vice Pres Ryan Campbell 17161 Tecumseh Dr E Wapakoneta OH 45895-8075 419-738-5621

13 Sec-Tre Pam Brester 8433 Mill Rd Troy OH 45373-9673 937-845-2295

14 Pres Deb Towers 13875 County Road 27 Fayette OH 43521-9537 419-237-3071

14 Vice Pres Laura Pacer 417 Fernwood St Delta OH 43515-1103 419-344-4948

14 Sec-Tre Susan Thayer PO Box 309 Liberty Center OH 43532-0309 657-264-4520

SEEKING A NEW CHAPLAIN The State Association is in need of a new chaplain. As the Executive Board members do not personally know each and

every member of the association for their abilities, talents and personal callings it was decided to announce the need for a new chap-

lain and to allow individual members to apply for the position as he/she feels called to serve.

The duties of the chaplain include providing spiritual support to members and their families, preparing and leading worship

services at Booster meetings and State Convention, provide the invocation and morning devotions at State Convention, write articles

to be published in the state paper, etc. If you have a personal calling to be considered for the position of State Chaplain, please send

your intentions and a resume to President Tom Gamble at: PO Box 9, New Middletown, OH 44442-0009 by September 30, 2013. Please

give this prayerful consideration..


Distinguished guests, fellow

officers, delegates, and all members of

the OHRLCA assembled here in West-

lake for our 111th Annual State Con-

vention. It is indeed an honor and a

privilege for me to present my Annual

Report as your last State Steward and

first District Representative of the

Northern Ohio District.

Following the 2012 State Convention I served as a Na-

tional Paid delegate at the National Convention in Buffalo, NY. I

was proud to be part of this democratic process as I helped elect

six officers to the National Board. The convention was historic for

two reasons. First the National Steward System was rolled out and

second the Clark arbitration gave us a new contract.

I am currently serving as your first District Representa-

tive for the Northern Ohio District. Catherine Funderburgh has

accepted the position of Cincinnati District Representative. To-

gether with the help of Assistant District Representatives, Michael

Aitchison, Michael Wallis and Susan Thayer we will continue to

serve the rural carriers of the State of OHIO and a small portion of

Indiana and Kentucky. The NRLCA Steward System changed

Ohio from a state based steward system to a district based steward

system on November 17, 2012.

At the time of the change over the steward system in

Ohio was ideally positioned to have a seamless transition into the

National steward system. In my first year as your State Steward I

completely reorganized the steward system to be more cost effi-

cient. We continue to see revenue go down with our costs trending

upward. Cutting services was not an option. In fact, I asked the

board to bring on more assistants and proposed an almost

$10,000.00 dollar increase in the steward training fund. Through

careful research the Board has given me all the tools I needed to be

successful. I have continued this business model as the District

Representative of the Northern Ohio District. During my initial

preparation for the NSS, I divided the state into 5 geographical

regions. On November 17, 2012 it was easy to separate these re-

gions into three for the Northern Ohio District and Two for the

Cincinnati District. Cathy and I have continued the practice of

staffing one Assistant District Representative (ADR) to each re-

gion. This will continue to reduce our potential travel expenses for

years to come.

For this portion of my report I will be comparing and con-

trasting all expenditures to the previous 15 months prior to my

appointed as State steward. I needed to cut the budget but not to

the detriment of stewards or training. First I reduced travel ex-

penses by $16,894.00 dollars. Second, strict measures were put

into place to ensure that stewards scheduled two and three meet-

ings on days that they are in a travel status. This reduced our

ADOP expense by $24,433.00 dollars. Third, by changing operat-

ing procedures on the use of certified and express mail I was able

to reduce our mailing expense by $5,887.00 dollars. Overall I was

able to reduce the steward system operating budget by approxi-

mately $70,463.00 dollars.

For this portion of my report I will deal with grievance

activity in the Northern Ohio District only. Grievance activity has

remained strong over the past year. We have processed approxi-

mately 200 grievances with 67 being discipline issues and 132

being contractual with 1 being class actions. The disciplinary

grievances range from express mail scan failure, misdeliveries,

failure to follow instructions, motor vehicle accident, abuse of

leave, and theft. Removals in the district have risen with seven and

fourteen day suspensions on the rise also. The National Mail Count

that was ordered in September was a surprise as it was an election

season. The standard change for parcels collected and the DPS

standard change if the route had a government provided vehicle

did not result in a net drop in route evaluations. Most routes ex-

perienced an increase in evaluation with some as much as three

hours. The February / March Mail Count allowed for some carriers

to opt out of the count and 58% of the carriers took full advantage

of that opportunity. In the end 42% of all the routes in the district

were counted with an average drop in evaluation of 1.5 hours. Mail

Counts are always big grievance generating times but we did not

see a spike in grievance activity. I believe this was a result of most

routes experiencing an increase in September and with only 42%

of the routes counting in February experiencing mild drops that

actually resulted in net gains for the year.

I have been busy attending pre-disciplinary interviews

with management. This is important because we can sometimes

prevent further action by management at these meetings. The stew-

ards have worked very hard to settle most issues at the lowest step

of the grievance arbitration process. In most cases a grievance will

be settled with the grievant being notified as to the resolution

within 30 days of filing. The step 2 process was streamlined and

we usually have less than 7 files to be adjudicated at that level on

any given day. Ohio is the sixth largest state in number of rural

routes and in the Northern Ohio District I have only appealed one

grievance to step three compared to almost 1800 for the rest of the

country. We have been very successful in getting favorable settle-

ments for our carriers at the state level.

Following the National Convention I returned to Ohio

with a very busy fall schedule. I attended eight district meetings,

Four as State Steward and the rest as a guest of the association. I

spend long hours educating myself on Postal issues that matter to

rural carriers and appreciate the opportunity to share this informa-

tion at your district meetings. Your feedback is valuable to us and I

have discussed all of your concerns with President Hirschfeld and

our National Committeeman David Heather and Steve Traylor. No

one person can run the OHRLCA and I could not do this job with-

out the support of my fellow stewards and the State Board. It is

truly a team effort in managing this association and we work hard

to resolve all of your issues. I have continued this spirit of coop-

eration under the National Steward System.

Two National Mail Counts were called this year and

we had to scramble to hold training classes for the carriers across

the state. The data showed us that the free fall in mail volume was

over. Mail volume was flat in some areas and off the charts in oth-

ers, but over all we seen a slight decrease that resulted in lower

evaluations. I received a large volume of phone calls from carriers

DR Northern Ohio District

Year End Report

Northern Ohio District Representative

Delbert Hutchisson



This is the report that was submitted to the state convention on behalf of all stew-ards in the Cincinnati District. President Dwyer, distinguished guests, state officers, delegates, and all members and guests of the Ohio Rural Letter Carriers Association assembled at the 111th Annual State Con-vention. It is indeed a great honor to present the first Cincinnati District Representative Report. From July 1, 2012 thru November 16, 2012, the Cincinnati District was under three different state stewards, Delbert Hutchisson of Ohio, Frankie Hunt of Ken-tucky, and Roger Taylor of Indiana. On November 17, 2012, Cincinnati became the

thirteenth largest district in the National Steward System. With that in mind, all grievance activity information will be from July 1 thru June 30, 2013. I am very fortunate to have the help and ex-perience of Michael Aitchison, my full time ADR, two part time ADRs Randy Anderson, West Virginia, and Randy Burger, Indi-ana, along with two area stewards, Michael Sikyta and Phillip Burnside. A third area steward has been requested. Since Novem-ber, one local steward has been trained and two applications have just been received and will be scheduled for training. Thirty nine local stewards have completed their enhancement training as a few stewards have left the service.

In September, there were 1,720 routes and as of May 31, 2013, the district is down to 1,708 routes in 395 offices. Currently, fifty five percent or 942 routes have LLVs. There are four offices that are still having routes being rebuilt and should be completed very shortly. The district has 248 routes that are not on DPS letters and is currently qualifying 23 offices/ 40 routes for DPS and those routes will be counted in September, 2013. There are fifteen of-fices with 238 routes that are on FSS and Ed Uppenkamp and I agreed to release the 27 routes that were being held for a buffer in those offices. There are two offices that have a PTF carrier. Origi-nally, ten carriers had fallen below the 35 hour evaluation and were due to be excessed but due to rebuilds and retirements that number is down to four carriers in four different offices. Thirty three offices have been DUO in and currently seven offices are scheduled for a July 13, 2013 move with more to be added to the list.

In the fiscal year, the Cincinnati District has handled 363 grievances. Of those grievances, 252 were contractual, 95 disci-pline, and 16 class actions. Last year, the Cincinnati District han-dled 169 contractual, 95 discipline, 20 class action, for a total of 284 grievances from the three state stewards. When you compare those numbers to the last fiscal year’s total for the district - griev-ances are up 127%. When I took over the district, the NSS data base showed that the district had over 255 open grievances from previous years and I was able to close most of them out. I have found that a lot of the discipline/contractual issues are related di-rectly or indirectly to the lack of relief carriers. Other contractual issues are mail count, carriers working off the clock, full day of relief, violation of the relief day work list, compensation issues, denied annual or sick leave, route adjustments, seat belt harnesses, route postings/biddings, seniority list, matrix violation, letters of demand, relief carriers not being hired, and hostile workplace. Dis-cipline issues include missing scans, express mail failures, main-taining a regular schedule, dog bites, delaying mail, failure to fol-low direct orders, theft, emergency placement, and motor vehicle accidents.

When the NSS took off, it was a whirlwind of activity and not enough hours in the day. In January, Michael Aitchison, Randy Anderson, and I conducted five mail count training classes with an average attendance of forty to fifty carriers. In the NSS, an ADR could conduct a training class and that allowed us to cut

down on mileage and the flexibility to conduct multiple classes on any given night in order to beat the deadline for the local pre count conferences. These classes were held at a public library where we had free meeting rooms. During the three week mail count, Mike Aitchison and I were in the plants on different days of the week and at different times night and day checking on the flow of mail. Every lot, trailer, dock, and streets behind the plant were checked for mail. Inside the plants, every corner of the five processing plants were investigated as well. Stewards investigated legitimate leads as to where mail could have been hidden and we made sur-prised visits in offices that had extreme hostility. Rural analyst, Donna Remely and Ed Uppenkamp, were either called or emailed and a lot of problems over proper credit were settled. Cincinnati counted 98.5% or 1,638 of the routes and we only had 2% or thirty four mail count grievances. The average loss of evaluated time was less then thirteen minutes per route.

In the 6.5 months since the NSS was implemented, the four upper level stewards have traveled close to 19,000 miles for trainings, district meetings in three states, booster meetings, con-ference meetings, labor relations meetings, DPS trainings, PDIs, step 1s, step 2s, and an area arbitration in which the carrier was returned to work with full back pay! This does not include mileage or our time for meetings that were attended on our own dime. The most important job of a steward is attending a Pre Disciplinary Interview (PDI) as we try to persuade management to not issue any discipline and if they do then it should be at the lowest level. The four stewards have a total estimation that we have returned over 3,000 phone calls to carriers. This does not include phone calls to the National Officer Steve Traylor, Regional Representative Terry Miner, management, rural analysts, District Manager, shared ser-vices, Labor, POOMS, safety, other stewards, and any other per-son in which a conversation was needed to get the information or to prevent/settle a grievance. When talking to a steward, I would always get a laugh when I asked them how many fires did you put out today by just making a phone call? That is why phone calls are so important.

National Officer, Steve Traylor, Mike Aitchison, and I requested a meeting with the fairly new District Manager, Chuck McCreadie, and as a result of that meeting some changes were made and issues resolved. Instead of meeting with Labor for the step 2s, we now meet with the six different POOMs over their own offices. This has worked out well on contractual issues as the POOMs are finding out the concerns of the rural craft and some-times the lack of leadership in those offices. The jury is still out on discipline as it is tough to negotiate with the POOMs when they were the reviewing and concurring postal official. However, on some occasions, we have been able to avoid grievances by calling the POOM directly and getting the issue resolved. Postmasters/POOMs have been discussed with the DM as well and I am happy to say that those issues have been cleared up as well. In addition, Mr. McCreadie and I have been able to resolve some ridiculous discipline issues.

In conclusion, I would like to thank you for allowing me to serve the association as the Cincinnati District Representative. A big THANK YOU to Steve Traylor, NRO, for his guidance in the last year; Terry Miner, Regional Representative, for all of her advice; the past three state stewards: Delbert Hutchisson, Frankie Hunt, Roger Taylor as their experience and knowledge has been very valuable; Michael Aitchison, Randy Anderson, Randy Burger – I could not have done it without your help and ideas; Keith Can-non who gave me great insight to the workings of the Kentucky offices; my two area stewards: Mike Sikyta, Phil Burnside, and all of the local stewards who worked hard in their offices. Finally, I would like to thank the National and State Boards for their profes-sionalism and dedication to the rural craft.

Sincerely, Cathy Funderburgh

Cincinnati DR Cathy

Funderburgh


Membership

The 2012-2013-membership year began with 4,186 mem-

bers and ended with 4,147, a decline of 39 members. Ohio has

been on a steady downward trend since 2009, because of not hiring

RCAs, routes being held for FSS implementation, and consolida-

tion of offices and routes.

Ohio has 757 non-members, which is 282 more than 2012

total of 475 non-members. Thanks to everyone who has assisted

in recruitment efforts; however we have more recruiting to do.

Below is a comparison of the membership as of June 30th

for the years of 2008 – 2013. June 30th 2008 2009 2010 2011 2012 2013

Reg. Carriers 2238 2205 2174 2188 2208 2206

Rel. Carriers 1567 1576 1438 1248 1052 1035

Ret. Carriers 987 971 953 957 912 896

Associate 45 41 32 28 14 10

4837 4793 4597 4421 4186 4147

Financial

The Financial Report shows an income greater than ex-

penses by over $200,000. The income has many contributing fac-

tors. The most important of which is the cooperation of everyone

to reduce expenses and to stay within budget. A large contributing

factor was the implementation of the National Steward System,

which reduced the state paid salaries, expenses and benefits of the

stewards.

The Budget Committee projected accurately the end of

the year income; however the projected income was reduced by

$9,800 because of unexpected expenses. These unexpected ex-

penses were 4 appeals filed with the State Association and appeal-

ing decisions made by the Executive Board. These appeals re-

quired your Executive Board to meet and

investigate the matters resulting in in-

creased expenses due to travel, lodging and

wages.

Activity Report

I have been very busy this past

year. I have attended a training class in

Buffalo NY on August 13th, one day prior

to the National Convention. October 15 –

19, 2012, I attended a Secretary-Treasurers

Training in Alexandria VA.

May 2 - 5, 2013, I attended the Mid-States Conference in

Traverse City MI.

Along with the trainings, seminars and conferences I also

earned a certificate in Quick Books Accounting II. I was a guest

speaker at two Fall and two Spring District Meetings, designed and

printed district meeting postcards, trained 15 Secretary-Treasurers,

sent membership recruitment letters, maintained ohrlca.org, and

attended five State Board Meetings and two Executive Board

Meetings and three appeals meetings/investigations.

I have focused on performing all my duties accurately and

effectively by working 2932 total work hours this past fiscal year.

As a board member, I have made decisions in the best

interest of the Association, consistently following the OHRLCA

Constitution and the Department of Labor. Making decisions is not

an easy task, but it is a task that I take seriously. My decisions are

not clouded by politics or driven by personal opinion or agenda.

Respectfully submitted by,

Monday June 11, 2013

Westlake Holiday Inn

1100 Crocker Rd.,Westlake OH 44145

Present was President Hirschfeld, Vice President Gamble,

Secretary-Treasurer Koren, Committeemen, Pitts, Bower, Dedden.

Auxiliary President Sandra Schwartz was also present.

June 11, 2013 Noon

Recent Retirees

Michael Baker Maple

Robert French Spencerville

Harold Jordan Prospect

Barbara Kenney Marengo

James Kiser Waynesville

Karen Nolting Westerville

Cynthia Pallant Ashtabula

Theresa Runyan

William Schaal Saint Clairsville

John Siembida North Benton

Paul Wank Defiance

Tom Watren Versailles

Secretary/Treasurer Penny Koren

Charlene Mazgaj Bloomingdale

Nichole Miller Oak Harbor

Sherri Carpenter Barnesville

Robert Dehart Sardinia

Mikeitta Cobb Fairborn

Rebecca Smart Albany

Michael Potter Wauseon

Kaitlin Cox Ironton

Melissa Bethel Richmond

Jeffrey Kruthaupt Oregonia

Susan Walter Hammondsville

Jamie Maxon East Rochester

Elaine Sturgill Norwalk

Bryce Swango Hillsboro

Christina Wellington Vinton

Larry Rooker Pomeroy

Jason Bolser Xenia

Amy Gardner Glenmont

Stephaine Barnhouse New Concord

Tammy Meyers Ludlow Falls

Tammy Boyce Findlay

Eric Snyder Zanesville

Kimberly Sherrick Wapakoneta

Alisha Colley South Webster

Joshua Amburgey West Milton

Steven Vereb Akron

Joy Patten Millersburg

Salah Shaya Loveland

Brinton Conley Loveland

Patrick Brakhage Loveland

Pauline Howard Lucasville

Brenda Garber New Paris

Nicole Slutz-Cox Scio

Starlinda Little Clinton

Edwin Appel Hicksville

Deborah Virgin Willow Wood

Anna Harvey Delaware

Rolland Hauke Seaman

Adrienne Maleski Barnesville

Kristi Brown Pataskala

Susan Kohler Enon

Traci Disbennett Lithopolis

NEW MEMBERS



Vouchers: The entire Board reviewed and approved all

the vouchers submitted by the State Board Members for payment.

The credit card itemization reports were reviewed and approved.

12:30pm Call to Order

Minutes: The minutes of April 29, 2013 were read. Com-

mitteeman Pitts made a motion to accept the corrected minutes, the

motion passed.

Membership: The Association’s current membership is

4156 members. This is a decrease of 146 members for the same

time period last year; the decrease is contributed to route consoli-

dations, and members who retire and do not rejoin as a member.

Treasurer’s Report: The Association’s Financial Posi-

tion was distributed and reviewed. Atlanta Postal Credit Union

was contacted about investing some of the Association’s funds;

their suggestion was to open additional savings accounts. Com-

mitteeman Pitts made a motion to divide the Association’s funds

into 3 savings accounts as soon as possible by the National Con-

vention with the Atlanta Postal Credit Union, the motion passed.

Committeeman Dedden made a motion to accept the treasurer’s

report, the motion passed.

Budget Committee: Reviewed the financial reports and

made no changes to the budget.

Trademark: The National Office will pay for the OHR-

LCA trademark any additional trademarks will be the responsibil-

ity of the Association. To trademark, OHRLCA, we must provide

proof of use with earliest date used. Past official documentation for

proof of use will be gathered for the trademark application.

3:00 PM The entire Board and Auxiliary President

Schwartz met with the Westlake Holiday Inn Representative and

toured the Debra Osgood facility. Room assignments for the con-

vention were finalized.

Chaplain: We have not had any interested person to vol-

unteer for chaplain. Committeeman Edler will be the chaplain at

the state convention with assistance of other members. The Chap-

lain opening will be printed in the next state paper.

Parliamentarian: We have 2 certified parliamentarians

that are interested in being parliamentarian for the convention.

Committeeman Edler made a motion to have Dominic Crooks for

parliamentarian, computer tech and run the ballot counting scanner

for the State Convention and to compensate him $450 plus per

diem for three days and purchase airfare, the motion passed.

Legislative Conference: President Hirschfeld and Vice

President Gamble attended the legislative conference; All repre-

sentatives were very open and agreeable to postal reform. PAC

Chairman Aitchison also attended the conference. Committeeman

Dedden made a motion to pay PAC Chairman Aitchison 2 days per

diem and mileage at the IRS rate to attend the legislative confer-

ence, the motion passed.

State Convention: The program for the State Conven-

tion was reviewed. Other details for the convention were dis-

cussed. Committeeman Pitts made a motion to compensate ban-

quet tickets for our guest at the State Convention, motion passed.

Committeeman Bower made a motion to compensate assistance

for convention preparation at the cost of $350, the motion passed.

National Delegate Ballots: The ballots for delegates to

the National Convention will be in the mail by June 18th.

9:30 PM Adjourn

Editor’s Report: Editor Todd e-mailed her report. Edi-

tor Todd has been appointed to the National Editor’s SOP Com-

mittee. Deadline for the August/September State Paper will be

July 21, 2013.

GMAC: GMAC sent a report with the total of Ohio’s

requested quotes. There will be a table set up during the conven-

tion with information and handouts for GMAC.

Provident Guild: There will be a table with information

about the Provident Guild at the State Convention.

11:10 AM Executive Session

12:55 PM Resume

Equipment: PAC Chairman requested to keep a fax

metal cart for office use. Committeeman Dedden made a motion

to assign the fax cart to PAC Chairman Aitchison. Committeeman

Dedden made a motion to send the Association’s cell phone to the

Auxiliary’s Program of cell phones for soldiers, the motion passed.

Steward Report: The board reviewed a written steward

report from the Cincinnati DR. The report listed the number of

grievances and how many grievances were at each level of the

grievance process.

Board Policy: The current board policy was reviewed

and updated. Committeeman Pitts made a motion to accept

changes and deletions to the board policy, the motion passed.

PAC: The will be a reverse raffle at the State Convention

after the banquet. PAC Chairman Aitchison requested postcards to

be sent instead of letters to members with information for the re-

verse raffle. Since all PAC contributions are to be remitted before

the end of our State Convention, we would like to encourage mem-

bers to purchase the raffle tickets before July1, 2013.

3:52 PM Committeeman Pitts made a motion to adjourn,

the motion passed.

Next Board Meeting

July 12, 2013 at 11:00 AM


1100 Crocker Rd Westlake OH 44145

Friday, July 12, 2013


1100 Crocker Rd Westlake OH 44145

Pre-Convention Board Meeting Present was President Hirschfeld, Secretary-Treasurer

Koren, Committeemen, Edler, Pitts, Bower, and Dedden.

Vouchers: The entire Board reviewed and approved all the vouch-

ers submitted by the State Board Members for payment. The credit

card itemization reports were reviewed and approved.

12:40pm Call to Order

The minutes of June 11 - 12, 2013 were read. Committee-

man Pitts made a motion to accept the corrected minutes, the mo-

tion passed.

Membership: The Association’s year-end membership is

4147 members. This is a decrease of 39 members for the same

time period last year.

Treasurer’s Report: The Association’s Detailed Finan-

cial Position was distributed and reviewed.

National Delegate Ballots: The ballots to elect delegates

to the National Convention were in the mail stream by June 18th.

There were 15 ballots returned NSF, and one ballot was refused.

Four ballots were resent to corrected addresses.

1:45 PM the entire board met with the Westlake Holiday

Inn Representative.

Convention: The Board reviewed the State Convention’s

Agenda and finalized preparation for the banquet and the Rock and

Roll entertainment. There will be door prizes for the game of

name that tune / artist, a prize will also be awarded to one of a first

time convention attendee.


Minutes Continued from Page 11


Ohio Rural Letter Carriers' Association

Statement of Financial Position

Balance Sheet For the 12 Months ended June 30, 2013

ASSETS

Current Assets

Savings Account $745,046.44

APCU Checking $18,307.11

Kindler Fund $8,189.97

($8189.97 Restricted)

Total Checking/Savings $771,543.52

TOTAL ASSETS $771,543.52

LIABILITIES & CAPITAL

LIABILITIES

Current Liabilities

Payroll Liabilities $2,783.18

Sick Leave $9,450.60

Vacation Leave $0.00

Total Liabilities $12,233.78

CAPITAL

Retained Earnings $519,946.15

Net Income $239,363.59

Total Capital $759,309.74

TOTAL LIABILITIES & EQUITY $771,543.52

GMAC: GMAC has a name change it is now National

General Insurance, everything remains the same only its name has

changed. A National General Insurance presentation will be pre-

sented during the convention.

Provident Guild: The Provident Guild will be presented

during the convention. A drawing will be held for new and current

members.

Constitution Changes: Changes to the OHRLCA Con-

stitution was reviewed, the Board will submit changes to the Con-

stitution.

Resolutions: Submitted Resolutions were reviewed.

Parliamentarian: The certified parliamentarian is ready

for the convention.

Convention Assignments: Committeeman Pitts - Time

keeper and charter, Committeeman Dedden – Resolutions Com-

mittee, Committeeman Bower – Constitution Committee, Vice

President - Tellers Committee.

Trademark: Committeeman Dedden made a motion to

have the NRLCA pay for the trademark Ohio Rural Let-

ter Carriers’ Association and for OHRLCA pay for the trademark

of OHRLCA. The motion passed.

Guidelines: Guidelines for committees are in need of

updates; the task will be added to a future agenda.

5:15 PM Recess

July 13, 2013

9:00AM Call to order

Vice President Gamble was present.

Convention Committees: Three convention committees

needed member replaced.

Committeeman Pitts made a motion to compensate the

district secretaries and or treasurer $100 for attending the Secretary

-Treasurer Training.

Vice President Gamble made a motion to maintain the

past practice of training the District Secretary or a Representative

at the state convention, the motion passed.

Editor: Editor Todd reported she posted on website up to

100 words for delegate to National convention.

She will be participating in a teleconference for the national edi-

tors sop task force.

12:30 PM Recess for Lunch

1:10 PM Meeting Resumes

Auxiliary: Auxiliary President Schwartz, Vice President

Ortz, Secretary- Treasurer Diane Hausfeld and Committeeman

Burke presented the Auxiliary Convention Agenda.

NRLCA Steward Reports: Northern Ohio District Rep-

resentatives Hutchisson and Cincinnati District Representative

Funderburgh gave a steward report to the board.

5:00PM Adjourn

Post Convention Board Meeting

Wednesday, July 17, 2013

Westlake Holiday Inn 1100 Crocker Rd

Westlake OH 44145

9AM

Present was President Gamble, Vice President Edler, Sec-

retary-Treasurer Koren, Committeemen Pitts, Bower, Funderburgh

and Cox.

Vouchers: The entire Board reviewed and approved all

the vouchers submitted by the State Board Members for payment.

11:30 AM Call to Order

Welcome to the new board members, Three (3) year

Committeeman Funderburgh and One (1) year Committeeman

Cox.

State Convention: The convention went very well, atten-

dance was down and the Board will continue to brainstorm for

ideas to attract carriers to the convention.

State Paper: Articles for the state paper is July 21, 2013.

Articles should be sent to President Gamble, Secretary-Treasurer

Koren, Editor Todd and NRLCA Steward District Representatives

Hutchison and Funderburgh for review.

District 13 Member and Vice President, Ryan Campbell,

ask to speak to the State Board about the 2017 Time and Place

Hotel Presentation.

State Board Appointments: PAC- Mike Aitchison,

Provident Guild - Committeeman Cox, National General Insur-

ance - Committeeman Pitts, Legislative Chairman – Vice Presi-

dent Edler, Media Northwest - Committeeman Bower, Media

Southwest – Committeeman Funderburgh, Media Northeast –

Editor Todd, Media Southeast – Vice President Edler.

Chaplain – The position will be printed in the State Pa-

per requesting resumes for the position.

Committeeman made a motion to pay mileage and hotel

accommodations, if needed, for the PAC Representative to attend

and present PAC at the Fall District Meetings, the motion passed.

PAC: Ohio will have a table at the national convention

offering items for sale with the proceeds going to PAC.

Convention Committees: Guild lines for the convention

committees will be reviewed for updates.

Booster Meeting: The Booster Meeting will be sched-

uled in the spring of 2014.

Appreciation: Thank you cards will be sent to the Na-

tional President Dwyer, the auctioneer, NARFE Representative,

and the Westlake Holiday Inn Staff.

1:30 PM Committeeman Pitts made a motion to adjourn,

motion passed.

Next Board Meeting

October 21-22, 2013

Minutes Continued from Page 12


for a position in your district, if you haven't done so before, and at the state level if you have served in your district. There is plenty of experience to help and support you along the way.

I believe that we will be relying on strong leaders in this organization for quite some time into the future. Please help us to help you! We need new blood and new, innovative ideas to keep our Association strong. Please convey any idea you might have to one of the officers you see listed on page 2 . It is vitally important that we chose our leaders and delegates with an emphasis on those that truly want to put in the time and effort to make this organiza-tion strong structurally, financially, and politically, in order to pre-serve our craft and work philosophy, well into the future.

Yours in Unity and in Service, Tom Gamble OhRLCA, President

President Gamble Continued from Page 1

at this time. I set up a daily phone schedule meeting with the three

rural analysts to discuss issues as they arose during the mail count

as a preemptive measure to resolve issues before they became

grievances. This preplanning resulted in a lower than normal vol-

ume of mail count grievances. I and my team of stewards as well

as Vice President Gamble physically inspected all the plants and

distribution centers at the beginning and end of the mail count.

The FSS facility at the Cleveland annex did not have any mail

flow problems as it did last September and routes receiving FSS

flats from that facility experienced a 17% increase over the same

time last year. The team found no other major discrepancies to

report. We were able to keep the pressure on management to get

the mail out of the plants and into the AO’s during the count. The

February / March mail count was similar with only the Cleveland

plant experiencing a small delay of flats and DPS letters due to the

Mansfield plant closing. The Union and the district Manager of

Operations identified the routes affected and they were credited

with all delayed flats and DPS letters.

The Mid-States Conference was held in Traverse City,

MI this past May. Ohio was well represented at the conference

with carriers and Board members. There was a lot of discussion

about a five day work week and doing away with Saturday deliv-

ery. At present support is waning on Capitol Hill for this change

and it would take an act of congress to eliminate Saturday deliv-

ery. President Dwyer addressed the conference on the history mak-

ing decision to call for PMG Patrick Donahoe’s resignation. The

National Board was unanimous in calling for the PMG’s resigna-

tion following a series of press releases that have destroyed the

board’s confidence in the PMG’s ability to manage the USPS. I

found the conference to be very informative and I was not disap-

pointed in the level of discussions and topics affecting the rural

craft as we go forward into 2013.

The spring district meetings are always well attended and

I was assigned to three as the District Representative and I at-

tended four as a guest of the association. I was able to pass on

valuable information involving contract issues and how to avoid

possible discipline issues that were going on in each district. We

discussed FSS and routes being released that were previously held

open as impact buffers. I helped districts draft resolutions and elect

delegates to this convention. We accepted new applicants as mem-

bers into the NRLCA. I would like to welcome you all and hope

you are here today.

Catherine Funderburgh and I have conducted ADR /

Area Steward Enhancement training classes as part of the manda-

tory training under the national Steward System. The national

Constitution mandates that all stewards complete enhancement

training. In Northern Ohio I have scheduled and trained 40 local

stewards to date. The classes are on weekdays with the local stew-

ards receiving $247.00 plus mileage reimbursement to the training

site.

In conclusion I would like to thank you for allowing

me to serve this association as your State Steward and presently as

the Northern Ohio District Representative. Thank you to all the

Stewards that have helped me at meetings and the Auxiliary Board

for all their contributions. Finally I would like to thank the Ohio

Board for their professionalism and dedication to the betterment of

the rural craft.

Thank you kindly,

Delbert K. Hutchisson

DR Year End Report Continued from Page 9 We just finished our 111th Ohio State Convention in Westlake, Ohio. Those who could not attend missed a great convention. I am honored to be elected to serve you as a 4 year committeeperson. I take my duties as a Board Member very seriously and will continue to represent everyone and watch over the finances of our Association. I will continue to look at every issue and hear both sides before making any decisions. There were some amendments made to our Constitution to clean up some lan-

guage and a decrease in dues. One amendment will allow the Board to have more flexibility in setting the date for our State Conventions. This will allow the convention to be earlier so there will be more time between our convention and the National con-vention.

We were honored to have our National President, Jeanette Dwyer in attendance. It was good to hear from Representative Marcy Kaptur and Senator Sherrod Brown in video, a letter from Representative Kaptur and Representative Marcia Fudge. We have many in Congress who are looking out for the Post Office and the workers. There was a letter of appeal to the Postmaster General about the closing of the Toledo Processing Plant and we were able to have a copy of that read to us.

It takes time to make the contacts with our members in Congress, but we need to continue in order to keep our Post Office and our jobs and the benefits we have. I urge all of you to get in-volved.

It was great to work with the members of the Westlake Holiday Inn, They did an outstanding job. The hotel chef prepared an incredible banquet and lunches for us. I hope we will have the opportunity to work with them again in the near future.

May we stand together as union brothers and sisters. The Post Office is counting on the weakest link in order to privatize us. We need to stay on our toes and keep in contact with those in Con-gress who support us. We need to remember what it took for those before us to get the working conditions, pay, and benefits that we enjoy today. Let's not let them slip away from us. We also need to keep up with the Right to Work Issue. It is NOT what it sound like. It really means the right to work for less money and benefits. It is Managements' Trojan Horse designed to destroy the middle class way of life. I will plan to spend time at the State House again this year to rally against Right to Work.

Have a safe summer and hope to see you at the National Convention in St. Louis.

Joyce Bower

Joyce Bower Executive

Committeeman


Welcome National President

Jeanette Dwyer, State Board members,

Auxiliary members and guests to the

2013 State Convention at Westlake

Holiday Inn. The past year has gone

rather quickly,starting off with a state

board meeting immediately following

the close of the state convention. At

this meeting we greeted our newly

elected President, Janna Hirschfeld, and

committeeman,Carla Dedden . At this

meeting I was asked to be the GMAC

representative for Ohio. Then in Au-

gust it was off to the National Convention in Buffalo ,New York.

Thank you to all of you who voted for me. My first duty was to

attend a breakfast for GMAC, which have now changed their name

to NATIONAL GENERAL, and learn of their new incentive to

celebrate their 60 years of service with Rural carriers. During the

convention I was charged with going to the FERS retirement semi-

nar which I found very informative but too short to get all ques-

tions answered which the members wanted to ask. In October we

had our fall booster meeting at Cherry Valley and our annual duck

race, which was a great hit again, not to mention the PAC money

raffle. A few more meetings with the board to settle appeals that

seem to still be a thorn in our side. We can’t forget the fall Dis-

trict meetings which I attended two and the spring District meet-

ings which I represented the board at two and visited two on my

own. We decided not to have a Spring Booster meeting but in-

stead had a CRS and FRS retirement seminar with the speaker ,

Joni Montroy, who spoke at the National Convention. To our

great amazement , this was attended by more members than I have

ever seen at a state convention. Needless to say, we got some ex-

cellent feed back and questions to the fact of hosting another

seminar . Our next item on the agenda is preparing for this years’

convention. It takes a lot of work and preparation to make sure

that everything runs smoothly and the hotel is able to accommo-

date all our members.

I would like to take the opportunity to thank all of my

fellow rural carriers for all your support in the past year and appre-

ciate your faith in me. I hope you all have a great convention and

get involved in running this association . Don’t forget that we as a

craft are not out of the woods yet, so keep contacting your con-

gressmen and senators about six day delivery.

Blessings to All,

Barb Pitts-Committeeman

Good day to everyone. I was

elected to your state board at The 111th

OHRLCA Convention in Westlake,

Ohio. I am proud to serve this associa-

tion again. After the convention I was

appointed to the legislation committee

for the southwestern part of the state.

While I was attending the

State Convention I learned, from our

National President, she told us about

scientific study and who the engineers

where going to be. She talked about the

one that is our pick and how he wanted

to ride the route of a rural carrier. He

picked a route on his own, after watching all the carriers in the

office, and he picked the 18 year union stewards route for the of-

fice. How lucky can we get. She also informed us of the postal

service’s new vehicle of the future, it was in the eastern area up-

date about two issues ago, the electric cargo van. The post office

spent millions on designing this new and efficient vehicle only to

find out it will not go over 12 miles on a single charge and has

been towed back because it will not run. I do not want to think

how much mail would be stacked up on my route waiting on this

new vehicle to perform my duties to my customers in a week.

I would encourage everyone to go to the national website

and sign up for the E-activist alert, that is when a very important

response in needed in Congress’ actions we are alerted and need to

act on it to save our jobs and look at the new website design. The

address is www.nrlca.org .

Congress is introducing new bills to save the postal

service as I am writing this article and we, the working postal em-

ployees and retirees need to let them know what we think of their

bills, if we do not do this they will make the decisions for us based

on what the Postmaster General has told them. I know all of us

that work or worked at USPS believe everything he tells us right.

Let your voice be heard and tell the congress person of YOUR

district that you want to keep six-day delivery and that we need the

overpayment back to make us financially solid again.

If you are having problems getting your time off re-

quest a RCA be hired in writing to management and contact your

union office with what needs done. With unemployment at record

levels I can not believe the post office cannot find people that

want to better themselves by working for the government and giv-

ing themselves a chance at a better way of life.

Thank you for all you time and I hope to see everyone at

a fall meeting or spring booster.

CONVENTION REPORT Delegates 81

Auxiliary 17

Juniors 30

Non-Delegates & Guests 4

Total 132

CONTEST

Every issue of the Ohio Rural Letter Carrier will contain a name of a member in the body of one of the board members articles. Find your name in the article and win a $25 Visa Voucher from Atlanta Postal Credit Union. The name will be placed where it makes no sense (example: The USPS is a great place loritodd to work). Contact Penny Koren at 330-735-2727 to claim your prize.

Jennie Vonderhuevel found her name in the last issue. She received a $25 Visa Voucher. Con-gratulations Jennie!

Mark Funderburgh Executive

Committeeman

Barb Pitts Executive

Committeeman

http://www.nrlca.org/


Hello, fellow Ohio Rural Letter Carriers, from

your new committeeman of the Ohio State

Board. For those who don't know me, I have

attended many state and national conventions as

delegate representing the interests of the rural

carriers of Ohio. I am also a local steward in

my office, and district secretary/treasurer. At

this year's convention, we were very happy to

welcome National President Jeanette

Dwyer. She brought us very much information

about the Postal Service and what will be af-

fecting the rural carriers in the coming

months. This year's convention attendees had a great time at the

banquet and learned a lot about how to contact their congressman

to protect 6-day delivery. I would like to extend an invitation to

all of you to come to state or national convention. If this is not

possible, please try to attend your district meeting. I feel that we

can all give up one evening twice a year to protect or jobs and

benefits. If WE don't, then WHO?

I would like to remind everyone at this time that yearly

dues for Provident Guild are past due and should be sent in as soon

as possible. If you have misplaced your notice or would like to

join, please call me and I can help you pay or sign-up. My phone

number is 937-869-4724. Provident Guild is a wonderful benefit

available to all carriers under age 56. Don't wait to join as this can

greatly help your family at a time

when they need it most.

I am looking forward to see-

ing everyone at the national conven-

tion in St. Louis and also at the district

meetings this fall!

The PAC Report Of course, and true to form, Postal Employees have another crisis on our hands. The enjoyment of the good news that the 2014 federal funding bill contained language preserv-ing 6 day delivery, service at no less than 1983 levels, was short lived as Daryl Issa’s minion’s put forth HR 2748. Congressman Blake Far-enthold of Texas introduced HR 2748. It ap-pears that one of the provisions of this bill is

the elimination of Saturday delivery with the possibility of greater reductions in 2018. It appears that this bill would eliminate door to door city delivery, with customers picking up their mail at CBU boxes. But rest assured that the welfare of the customer is of ut-most concern as for a fee of a few hundred dollars, customers can buy a specified number of deliveries to the door. The operating powers of the USPS Board of Governors will be stripped from that board and placed with a five member Postal Service Financial Re-sponsibility and Management Assistance Authority which will have the power to restructure and cut costs wherever they deem necessary. I truly hope that when you are reading this article, Ohio Rural Letter Carriers will have done their part as they have done so many times in the past, stepped up to the plate and did every-thing within their power to preserve the greatness of the United States Postal Service, to preserve the sanctity of the mail, and to preserve the quality and quantity of jobs that so many of us are so dedicated to. The reverse raffle and basket auction was a big success again this year. The imagination and resourcefulness of rural car-riers are boundless as illustrated by the uniqueness and quality of baskets brought forth by not only our districts, but by individuals as well. Our first winner of the evening in the reverse raffle was

Donna Mull of Camden, who received the GPS navi-gation aid. Joyce Bower of Gibsonburg was the win-ner of the Kindle, Robert Chapman of Negley won the Keurig coffee maker, Dixie Shortland of Pickerington won the corn hole game, Donna Jean Hickman of Clinton won the large screen television, and Janet Preston of Madison won the thousand dollar cashcard Grand Prize. The auction was headed up by auction-eer Jay Kurtz, with the assistance of his lovely wife, Dorrine. Kurtz quickly developed a rapport with the OHRLCA members, as many of them left an indelible print last year. The auctioneer was able to develop some highly competitive bidding among the attendees, especially between Mark Funderburgh and Tim Barker. There was a little something for everyone and even our National President Jeanette Dwyer had to find a ride to St. Louis for a basket that she won the bidding on. While it was quite an entertaining eve-ning, this experienced auction goer believes everyone got a bargain with the proceeds going to PAC My next report will have details about how much Ohio Rural Carriers have supported PAC with a breakdown of donations. These details are provided to me at the National Convention, and I will share them with you in the next issue of the OHIO RURAL LETTER CARRIER newsletter. Hopefully, I will also be able to share with you how Postal Employees and the public at large rallied to quash HR 2748.

United we bargain; Divided we beg!! Michael D. Aitchison

Mike Aitchison PAC Chairman

SUSAN THAYER, ADR DELBERT HUTCHISSON, DR MIKE WALLIS,

CATHY FUNDERBURGH, MIKE AITCHISON, ADR

RANDY

ANDERSON,

I-75 71

270

77

National Steward System

Diane Cox Executive

Committeeman


LORI TODD EDITOR—ANNUAL REPORT I attended the State Editors Meeting at National Convention in Buffalo, New York last year. At this meeting I received the score

for the NRLCA Newsletter Contest. I would like to take this opportunity to share that with you. I sent in two copies of the newsletter and

they are judged according to layout, organization, spelling, grammar, etc. Our overall score was 6.96 last year. I am excited to receive

this year’s score in St. Louis.

Last year at the editors meeting Ronnie Stutts and Melissa Ray were tasked with forming a SOP (Standard Operating Procedure)

Committee. This committee will form a SOP for all state editors to follow. I am honored to have been chosen for this committee. The

committee and I are in the first stages of our task.

2012-2013 REPORT

There were six issues sent out this past year, the 2012-2013 total cost was $19,134.79 for printing and postage. Last year’s 2011-

2012 total was $16,575.85 with six issues also sent out.

We have continued this past year with the bimonthly schedule for the paper. The deadline is the 12 th of the month prior to pub-

lishing unless otherwise noted. July 21st will be the next deadline for the August/September paper. This deadline is delayed due to the

State Convention. This means that all “Fall District” meeting notices must be sent to the OHRLCA Secretary/Treasurer by that date.

All issues of the paper are posted on the web site, ohrlca.org. Please check this out. It is in full color and is posted as soon as the

paper hits the mail stream. So remember if you misplace your copy or just want to see the photos in full color, just click and view.

Thank You All,

Lori Todd Editor

2012-2013 PAGES PRINTING COST POSTAGE TOTAL

AUGUST/SEPTEMBER

4276 sent (.74 per issue) 24 2,013.54 1,169.99 3,183.53

OCTOBER/NOVEMBER

4350 sent (.63 per issue) 16 1,584.54 1,162.99 2,747.53

DECEMBER/JANUARY

4350 sent (.63 per issue) 16 1,585.12 1,160.67 2,745.79

FEBRUARY/MARCH

4244 sent (.88 per issue) 24 2,533.54 1,206.08 3,739.62

APRIL/MAY

4109 sent (.78 per issue) 16 2,045.63 1,165.07 3,210.70

JUNE/JULY

4244 sent (.82 per issue) 20 2,301.45 1,206.17 3,507.62

TOTAL 12,063.82 7,070.97 19,134.79

Name Votes received

Delbert Hutchisson 317

Raymond R Nichols 292

Michael D Aitchison 289

Penny Koren 292

Shirley Ortz 272

Thomas Gamble 270

Carla B Dedden 270

Janna Hirschfeld 260

Shirley Huffman 244

Gayle Sweet 243

Erik Hirschfeld 242

Sandra Laramee 240

Mark Funderburgh 222

Floyd Edler 222

Barbara Pitts 215

Catherine Funderburgh 214

John Thomas 201

Lori Todd 189

Joyce Bower 188

Name Votes received

Debara Satterfield 183

Robin Rowland 181

Susan Thayer 175

Tuwana Aitchison 175

Joe Butcher 171

Michael Wallis 171

Ronald Ellis Jr. 170

Norman Humphrey 168

Thomas Noble 167

Patsy Hickle 154

Carlton Riley 153

Diana Brown 151

Diane Cox 150

Roland Hausfeld 145

Matthew Burke 140

Floyd Tackett 138

Timothy Barker 134

Elaine Ferguson 134

Helen Cline 133

Name Votes received

Barbara Perkins 128

Peggy Ferneding 126

Ryan Campbell 125

Misty Gamerdinger 124

Robert Chapman 124

William Owen 121

Mildred Finkel 120

Lisa Heaton 117

Miranda Rodgers 116

Michael Crawford 115

Judith McIntire 112

Beci Morris 108

John Lehman 107

Mary Conti 99

Sheila Hattan 79

2012 OHRLCA National Delegates Election Results Valid Ballots Counted 516 Voided Ballots 19 Total Ballots Cast 535


FALL DISTRICT MEETINGS District 1 Saturday, September 14, 2013, Dinner - 5:30pm, Meeting 6:30pm. Callam’s Grille and Pub, 8491 Mayfield Rd, Chesterland

OH 44026 (Corner of State Route 306 and Mayfield Road). Questions contact Dawn Greene 440-759-2777.

District 2 Thursday, October 10, 2013 Louisville OH.

District 3 Thursday, October 17, 2013, 6:00 - 9:00 p.m. The Manor Restaurant, 753 S Wooster Ave, Strasburg OH 330-878-9809, Three

(3) Meat Meal with all the fixings $10.00. RSVP and your meal is $5.00 to Jody Schuler, 740-492-0608.

District 4 Saturday, September 14, 2013 6:00PM at Lori Restaurant, 17020 McConnelsville Rd., Caldwell, OH 43724. We will order

from the menu but in order to plan how many to expect please notify:

Judy McIntire 740-458-1464

District 5 Saturday, September 28, 2013 Ponderosa, 741 East State St (Athens Mall). Buffet 6:00pm Meeting 7:00pm. RSVP to Ron

Ellis 304-654-1938 or Elizabeth Altizer 740-245-5193.

District 6, Saturday, October 19, 2013. Zanes Bible Methodist Church 925 Grove Rd, Zanesville OH. Dinner at 5:00PM the meeting

will start at 6:00PM. Dinner will be $5.00 per person. RSVP to Sandy Heaton at 740-408-3958.

District 7 Thursday, September 12, 2013 Pizza Hut, Galion OH 740-965-2000. Meal at 6:00 PM, cost of $5.00 for members. Meeting

at 7:00 PM. Contact Darlene Rafferty 419-564-2796 or [email protected]

District 8 Thursday, October 10, 2013 at 5:00pm – 8:30pm, Ryan’s Restaurant, Wooster OH. RSVP to Barb Perkins 440-647-5341.

District 9 Wednesday, October 2, 2013 6:00 - 9:Berry’s Restaurant, 15 W Main St, Norwalk OH 44857. Door prizes and 50/50 Raffle.

Get involved in your future; Get involved in your Union. RSVP to Tim Barker 419-901-0900.

District 10 Wednesday, October 23, 2013 Dinner 6:00pm, Meeting 7:00pm, Der Dutchman , 445 S Jefferson Ave, Plain City OH. Cost

of meal $16.99 or RSVP by October 19th and the cost of the meal will be $15.00 each. RSVP to Diane Cox 4780 Stony Creek Rd, Ur-

bana OH 43078-9454 or call 937-869-4724.

District 11 Thursday, October 10, 2013 Dinner 6:00pm the meeting to follow. Golden Corral 1660 N Bridge St, Chillicothe OH 45601.

Contact Emilee Arthur 937-205-8642 or [email protected]

District 12 Tuesday, October 8, 2013 Dinner 5:30, Meeting 6:30 – 8:00pm, Golden Coral-Middletown, 3350 Village Dr Franklin OH

45005. Buffet dinner, pay at the door. Door prizes! RSVP to Christina Eubanks 502-216-6601 or [email protected]

District 13 Tuesday, October1, 2013, 6:00 p.m. dinner, meeting to follow. Marion’s Pizza,

1270 Expermint Farm Rd, Troy OH 45373. Pizza, salad and non-alcoholic beverage included in price $10.00 per person. Contact Pam

Brester at [email protected] or 937-845-2295.

District 14 Thursday, October 10, 2013 Dinner at 6:00 the meeting will follow. Chinese Buffet - North Clinton St, Defiance OH 43572.

Please bring your notice postcard to the meeting. RSVP to Deb Towers or Susan Thayer 567-264-4520.

2012 OHRLCA FALL DISTRICT MEETING ASSIGNMENT LIST

District Date City Officer Steward Auxiliary

1 September 14 Chesterland Barb Pitts Delbert Hutchisson Jodi Burke

2 October 10 Louisville Penny Koren Delbert Hutchisson Jodi Burke

3 October 17 Strasburg Barb Pitts Delbert Hutchisson Paul Ortz

4 September 14 Caldwell Floyd Edler Randy Anderson Paul Ortz

5 September 28 Athens Floyd Edler Cathy Funderburgh Paul Ortz

6 October 19 Zanesville Penny Koren Randy Anderson Diana Hausfeld

7 September 12 Galion Joyce Bower Susan Thayer Sandy Schwartz

8 October 10 Wooster Tom Gamble TBA Sandy Schwartz

9 October 2 Norwalk Tom Gamble Delbert Hutchisson Sandy Schwartz

10 October 23 Plain City Diane Cox Cathy Funderburgh Ed Cox

11 October 10 Chillicothe Diane Cox Mike Aitchison Ed Cox

12 October 8 Franklin Mark Funderburgh Mike Aitchison Ray Mull

13 October 1 Troy Mark Funderburgh Mike Aitchison Ray Mull

14 October 10 Defiance Joyce Bower Susan Thayer Diana Hausfeld


Constitution Changes

Article III Members Section 5 Dues Paragraph A – J Past Language: Section 5. Dues.

Annual State Per Capita dues shall be defined as follows per membership classifi-cation plus the National per capita dues as defined in the National Constitu-tion.

Regular Rural Carriers. The per capita tax shall be $240.00 annually, for the State Association. The State Association per capita tax shall be applied as follows: $235.00 will

remain in the State General Fund and $5.00 per regular carrier member to the appropriate District Secretary, at the time of closing the books (June 30th) based on the final report of the current year's membership. To qualify for this remittance, the District must hold at least one meet-ing during the year to elect Officers and transact business. The District must submit the required reports to the State Secretary-Treasurer. Dis-tricts who do not meet the requirements forfeit the right to any money due them.

Part-Time Flexible Rural Carriers. The per capita tax shall be $240.00 annually for the State Association, plus National per capita tax.

Substitute Rural Carriers. The per capita tax shall be $87.00 annually for the State Association, plus National per capita tax.

Rural Carrier Associates. The per capita tax shall be $87.00 annually for the State Association, plus National per capita tax.

Rural Carrier Reliefs. The per capita tax shall be $87.00 annually for the State Association, plus National per capita tax.

Auxiliary Rural Carriers. The per capita tax shall be $87.00 annually for the State Association, plus National per capita tax.

Retired Members. The per capita tax shall be $25.00 annually for the State Asso-ciation, plus National per capita tax.

Associate Members. The per capita tax shall be $240.00 annually for the State Association, plus National per capita tax.

Retired Associate Members. The per capita tax shall be $25.00 annually or the State Association, plus National per capita tax.

Adopted New Language: Article III Members Section 5 Dues Paragraph A – J Section 5. Dues.

A. Annual State Per Capita dues shall be defined as follows per membership classification plus the National per capita dues as defined in the National Constitution. B. Regular Rural Carriers.

1. The per capita tax shall be $216.00 annually, for the State Associa-tion. 2. The State Association per capita tax shall be applied as follows: $211.00 will remain in the State General Fund and $5.00 per regular carrier member to the appropriate District Secretary, at the time of clos-ing the books (June 30th) based on the final report of the current year's membership. To qualify for this remittance, the District must hold at least one meeting during the year to elect Officers and transact business. The District must submit the required reports to the State Secretary-Treasurer. Districts who do not meet the requirements forfeit the right to any money due them.

C. Part-Time Flexible Rural Carriers. The per capita tax shall be $240.00 annually for the State Association, plus National per capita tax.

D. Substitute Rural Carriers. The per capita tax shall be $79.00 annually for the State Association, plus National per capita tax.

1. The per capita tax shall be $79.00 annually for the state association. 2. The state association per capita tax shall be applied as follows: $78.00 will remain in the state general fund and $1.00 per relief carrier member to the appropriate district secretary, at the time of closing the books (June 30th) based on the final report of the current year's mem-bership. To qualify for this remittance, the District must hold at least one meeting during the year to elect Officers and transact business. The District must submit the required reports to the State Secretary-Treasurer. Districts who do not meet the requirements forfeit the right to any money due them.

E. Rural Carrier Associates. The per capita tax shall be $79.00 annually for the State Association, plus National per capita tax.


F. Rural Carrier Reliefs. The per capita tax shall be $79.00 annually for the State Association, plus National per capita tax.


G. Auxiliary Rural Carriers. The per capita tax shall be $79.00 annually for the State Association, plus National per capita tax.


H. Retired Members. The per capita tax shall be $25.00 annually for the State Association, plus National per capita tax. I. Associate Members. The per capita tax shall be $240.00 annually for the State Association, plus National per capita tax. J. Retired Associate Members. The per capita tax shall be $25.00 annually or the State Association, plus National per capita tax.

Article V Officers and Appointees Section 4 Salaries Paragraph F Past Language: F. A retired rural carrier craft member who is serving as the Secretary-Treasurer shall receive an annual salary of a 46-hour evaluated route in Step 12. The salary shall be payable on a monthly basis. Annual and Sick Leave benefits and payment of expenses shall be payable in the same manner as that of a state steward, as de-scribed in Article X Section 5 A paragraph 1,2,3,4 of the Constitution. No pay-ments are payable for fringe benefits such as retirement, health insurance, life insur-ance etc. as are payable for an active rural carrier on a full time basis. Adopted New Language: Article V Officers and Appointees Section 4 Salaries Paragraph F F. A retired rural carrier craft member who is serving as the Secretary-Treasurer shall receive an annual salary of a 46-hour evaluated route in Step 12. The salary shall be payable on a monthly basis. 1) Annual leave: 26 days per Association fiscal year. All annual leave requires the approval of the State President. Any unused annual leave shall be payable at the current cash equivalent at the end of each fiscal year (June 30). 2) Sick Leave: 13 days per Association fiscal year. Sick leave days will be carried over from year to year. Any unused sick leave at end of the employee’s tenure as Secretary-Treasurer will be handled in accordance with the method used by the retirement system in which the employee was enrolled. No payments are payable for fringe benefits such as retirement, health insurance, life insurance etc. As are payable for an active rural carrier on a full time basis. The State Board shall set aside annually an amount equal to the value of any unused sick leave at the end of the fiscal year. Article V Officers and Appointees Section 2 Duties C paragraph 1 Past Language:

The Secretary-Treasurer shall be a full time position. The Secretary-Treasurer shall keep a correct journal of all the proceedings of this Association and of the Executive Board; read, or cause to be read, the journal of all Ex-ecutive Board meetings; file and preserve all books, papers, and docu-ments belonging to said Association and conduct its correspondence under the direction of the President. The Secretary-Treasurer shall keep a record of the name, number, and location of each Subordinate Asso-ciation and shall require the secretary of each county or other subordi-nate association, to furnish such information as is necessary to maintain an accurate and complete roster of all regular and retired carriers in Ohio, together with their mail addresses and such other information as may be advisable for a complete record. The Secretary-Treasurer shall keep a correct financial account between this Association and the Subor-dinate Associations; receive all moneys due this Association and receipt for the same, depositing them promptly, have printed such official sta-tionery and blanks as may be necessary and issue checks for payments of such printing, for Social Security Tax and for expense of printing the "Ohio Rural Carrier" without the approval of the Executive Board. At each annual meeting the Secretary-Treasurer shall furnish a full report, in writing, of all business transactions during the year and at the expira-tion of the term of office, or when called upon by the Executive Board, deliver to this Association or successor in office, all property belonging to this Association. The Secretary-Treasurer may, with the President’s approval, select an assistant to aid during the annual meeting. Also the Secretary-Treasurer shall send a lapel pin to each new regular member;



send a Retired Carrier pin and certificate to each retired carrier member upon notification; have custody of the seal of the State Association and shall attach and affix the same to all warrants and charters issued by the authority of the President of the Executive Board of this Association. The Secretary-Treasurer shall have the Constitution and By-laws printed and shall furnish them to all members; shall close the books and make a final report to the Association before the final adjournment each year; keep a complete list of all members of this Association; furnish a com-plete financial and membership statement to the Official Organ for publication not later than thirty days after each annual meeting. Before entering upon the duties of office, the officer shall furnish, at the ex-pense of the Association, a satisfactory bond in the sum of $1,000.00 and shall be protected by an indemnity bond sufficient to secure the Association against any loss caused by theft or bank failure. The Secre-tary-Treasurer, with the approval of the Executive Board, shall employ an accounting firm for a quarterly review of the Association financial records. This firm may also be employed to complete the required gov-ernment reports.

Adopted New Language: Article V Officers and Appointees Section 2 Duties C paragraph 1

The Secretary-Treasurer shall be a full time position. The Secretary-Treasurer shall keep a correct journal of all the proceedings of this Association and of the Executive Board; read, or cause to be read, the journal of all Ex-ecutive Board meetings; file and preserve all books, papers, and docu-ments belonging to said Association and conduct its correspondence under the direction of the President. The Secretary-Treasurer shall keep a record of the name, number, and location of each Subordinate Asso-ciation and shall require the secretary of each county or other subordi-nate association, to furnish such information as is necessary to maintain an accurate and complete roster of all regular and retired carriers in Ohio, together with their mail addresses and such other information as may be advisable for a complete record. The Secretary-Treasurer shall keep a correct financial account between this Association and the Subor-dinate Associations; receive all moneys due this Association and receipt for the same, depositing them promptly, have printed such official sta-tionery and blanks as may be necessary and issue checks for payments of such printing, for Social Security Tax and for expense of printing the "Ohio Rural Carrier" without the approval of the Executive Board. At each annual meeting the Secretary-Treasurer shall furnish a full report, in writing, of all business transactions during the year and at the expira-tion of the term of office, or when called upon by the Executive Board, deliver to this Association or successor in office, all property belonging to this Association. The Secretary-Treasurer may, with the President’s approval, select an assistant to aid during the annual meeting. Also the Secretary-Treasurer shall have custody of the seal of the State Associa-tion and shall attach and affix the same to all warrants and charters issued by the authority of the President of the Executive Board of this Association. The Secretary-Treasurer shall have the Constitution and By-laws printed and shall furnish them to all members; shall close the books and make a final report to the Association before the final ad-journment each year; keep a complete list of all members of this Asso-ciation; furnish a complete financial and membership statement to the Official Organ for publication not later than thirty days after each annual meeting. Before entering upon the duties of office, the officer shall furnish, at the expense of the Association, a satisfactory bond in the sum of $1,000.00 and shall be protected by an indemnity bond sufficient to secure the Association against any loss caused by theft or bank failure. The Secretary-Treasurer, with the approval of the Executive Board, shall employ an accounting firm for a quarterly review of the Association financial records. This firm may also be employed to complete the re-quired government reports.

Article V Officers and Appointees Section 5. Expenses A. Past Language:

All elected State Officers, with the exception of the full time secretary-treasurer, who are required to be absent from their duty station with the U.S. Postal Service or who use any unscheduled day of work to fulfill the duties of their office, shall be paid an Association Day of Pay (ADOP). (An ADOP is generally considered to be equivalent to their daily or hourly rate of pay less statutory required deductions). This to be on an as needed basis, subject to the approval of the Executive Board. No ADOP will be paid for attendance at statewide meetings. In the event the State Officer is retired, he shall receive pay for 8 hours at the current rate for Schedule I RCA carriers. The Editor shall receive the same consideration subject to the approval of the President with review by the Executive Board.

Adopted New Language: Article V Officers and Appointees Section 5. Expenses A.

All elected State Officers, with the exception of the full time secretary-treasurer, who are required to be absent from their duty station with the

U.S. Postal Service to fulfill the duties of their office, shall be paid an Association Day of Pay (ADOP). All elected State Officers who use any unscheduled day of work to fulfill the duties of their office, shall be paid an Association Day of Pay (ADOP). (An ADOP is generally considered to be equivalent to their daily or hourly rate of pay less statutory re-quired deductions). This is to be on an as needed basis, subject to the approval of the Executive Board. No ADOP will be paid for attendance at statewide meetings. In the event the State Officer is retired, he shall receive pay for 8 hours at the current rate for Schedule I RCA carriers. The Editor shall receive the same consideration subject to the approval of the President with review by the Executive Board.

Article V Officers and Appointees Section 5. Expenses B. Past Language:

The President, Vice President, Secretary-Treasurer, Executive Committeeper-sons, Editor of the "Ohio Rural Carrier", Auto Insurance Representative, and the PAC Chairman shall receive a mileage allowance of the IRS allowed rate per mile each way over the most direct route, hotel room expenses, and $25.00 per day allowance while on authorized Associa-tion business or attending the State Convention. In cases where one person holds more than one state office, whether elective or appointive, remuneration for per diem, mileage, and office allowance shall be lim-ited to one office.

Adopted New Language: Article V Officers and Appointees Section 5. Expenses B.

The President, Vice President, Secretary-Treasurer, Executive Committeeper-sons, Editor of the "Ohio Rural Carrier", Auto Insurance Representative, and the PAC Chairman shall receive a mileage allowance of the IRS allowed rate per mile each way over the most direct route, hotel room expenses and per diem to cover the cost of meals not otherwise provided for in the amount of $25.00 per day for an overnight stay or attending the State Convention, $12.50 per day for association business that re-quires travel of at least 100 miles. In cases where one person holds more than one state office, whether elective or appointive, remuneration for per diem, mileage, and office allowance shall be limited to one of-fice. The per diem will not exceed $25.00 per day.

Article VI Meetings Section 3 Delegates Paragraph E Past Language: E. Election. (1) District Associations shall elect their delegates to the State Con-vention not later than May 10th of each year. The Secretaries shall report the names of all delegates and alternates, on blanks furnished by the State, to the State Secre-tary/Treasurer not later than May 15th, and the State Secretary-Treasurer shall report the names to the State President not later than May 20th, so the President may select the various committees. These committees, together with a tentative program, shall be published in the State paper. Adopted New Language: Article VI Meetings Section 3 Delegates Paragraph E E. Election. (1) District Associations shall elect their delegates to the State Con-vention no later than 60 days prior to the State Convention. The Secretaries shall report the names of all delegates and alternates, on blanks furnished by the State, to the State Secretary/Treasurer immediately. The State Secretary/treasurer shall report the names to the State President so the President may select the various com-mittees. The committees, together with a tentative program, shall be published in the State paper. Article VII National Convention Delegates Section 1 Delegates C Election Paragraph 10 Past Language: 10. The number of candidates to be voted upon by each member shall not be more than the total number of delegates to which the State Association was entitled to the previous year. Appropriate instructions shall be on each ballot stating the number of delegates to be elected and the name and mailing address of the designated post office box at which is must be received prior to the cut-off date. In reporting the results of the vote tabulation, the candidates shall be placed on a roster in accor-dance with the number of votes received. The required number of delegates for the State Association in accordance with Article VI, Section 3, Paragraph A Eligibility, of the National Constitution, shall be declared regular delegates and the remaining candidates shall be declared alternates in the order of their finish. In the case of a tie vote for any candidates which may be used to fill delegate position(s), the order of finish shall be determined by the delegate’s name placement on the ballot by the Election Committee before they are relieved of their duties. Adopted Language: Article VII National Convention Delegates Section 1 Delegates C Election 10. The number of candidates to be voted upon by each member shall not be more than the total number of delegates to which the State Association was entitled to the previous year. Appropriate instructions shall be on each ballot stating the number of delegates to be elected and the name and mailing address of the designated post office box at which the ballot must be received prior to the cut-off date Delegates and alternates shall be declared in the order of their finish. In the case of a tie vote for any candidates which may be used to fill delegate position(s), the order of finish shall be determined by the delegate’s name placement on the ballot by the Election

Constitution Changes Continued from Page 19



Committee before they are relieved of their duties. Article VII Section 2 Compensation of State Paid National Delegates Para-graph 1 Past Language: This State Association at each annual meeting shall determine the number of Na-tional Delegates, within its quota, for that year and shall make provisions for their expenses as follows: Delegates (not including Delegate-at-large and National paid) attending the National Convention shall be paid mileage from Columbus, Ohio to the National Convention city, not to exceed 750 miles, at the rate twice the current IRS allowed rate for one way travel by the most direct route over Federal State Highways, as determined by the State Board. Per Diem shall also be paid at the rate of $150.00 per day for five (5) days. A delegate may be excused by the chairperson of the delegation to attend committee meetings or other business pertaining to the National Convention to which they may be assigned. Those delegates determined to be alternates at the State Convention who are changed to regular delegates, shall receive a pro-rated allowance for each half day they attend the National Convention session, provided they are in attendance at the Tuesday afternoon session. Adopted New Language: Article VII Section 2 Compensation of State Paid National Delegates Para-graph 1 This State Association at each annual meeting shall determine the number of Na-tional Delegates, within its quota, for that year and shall make provisions for their expenses as follows: Delegates (not including Delegate-at-large and National paid) attending the National Convention shall be paid mileage from Columbus, Ohio to the National Convention city, not to exceed 1000 miles, at the rate twice the current IRS allowed rate for one way travel by the most direct route over Federal State Highways, as determined by the State Board. Per Diem shall also be paid at the rate of $180.00 per day for five (5) days. A delegate may be excused by the chairperson of the delegation to attend committee meetings or other business pertaining to the National Convention to which they may be assigned. Those delegates determined to be alternates at the State Convention who are changed to regular delegates, shall receive a pro-rated allowance for each half day they attend the National Convention session, provided they are in attendance at the Tuesday afternoon session. Article VIII Section 3. Meetings paragraph Past Language: A. The President shall direct the Editor of the "Ohio Rural Carrier" to publish in the paper not less than thirty days in advance of any scheduled ORLCA Executive Board meeting with time and dates and places of such meeting. B. The President shall direct the Editor of the "Ohio Rural Carrier" to publish a condensed version of the minutes of all ORLCA Executive Board meetings within sixty days of such meetings. Adopted Language: Article VIII Section 3. Meetings paragraph A. The President shall direct the Editor of the "Ohio Rural Carrier" to publish in the paper not less than thirty days in advance of any scheduled OHRLCA Executive Board meeting with time and dates and places of such meeting. B. The President shall direct the Editor of the "Ohio Rural Carrier" to publish a condensed version of the minutes of all OHRLCA Executive Board meetings within sixty days of such meetings. Article IX Committees Section l paragraph B Past Language: The Law Committee shall be composed of five members appointed in advance from the list of regular delegates in the hands of the President. They shall carefully consider all signed and dated matters or recommendations pertaining to the laws of this Association that are received by mail, at the Secretary-Treasurer’s office five (5) days prior to the opening session of the Convention. All proposed changes have to be in the possession of the Committee by the close of the first day’s session. These recommendations shall be read at two sessions of the Convention. The Law Committee shall have at least two carry over members from the immediate previous year. If these carry over members are not present on the first day of the Convention, the President shall appoint, first a past committee chairman, or second a past State or National Officer to the committee. Adopted Language: Article IX Committees Section 1 B. The Law Committee shall be composed of five members appointed in advance from the list of regular delegates in the hands of the President. They shall carefully consider all signed and dated matters or recommendations pertaining to the laws of this Association that are received by mail, at the Secretary-Treasurer’s office five (5) days prior to the opening session of the Convention. All proposed changes have to be in the possession of the Committee prior to the meeting of the committee. These recommendations shall be read at one session of the Convention. The Law Committee shall have at least two carry over members from the immediate previous year. If these carry over members are not present on the first day of the Convention, the President shall appoint, first a past committee chairman, or second a past State or National Officer to the committee.

COURTESY RESOLUTIONS Be It Resolved: That we thank our Savior for allowing us to assemble and transact the business of our craft.

Be It Resolved: We thank Districts 1, 2, and 8 for their wonderful hospi-tality they have extended to the body today. Be It Resolved: We thank NRLCA President, Dwyer. Be It Resolved: We thank Westlake Holiday Inn personnel for their hos-pitality. Be It Resolved: We thank Association members for attending this con-vention.

NON BINDING RESOLUTIONS Whereas: Route consolidations are not re-bid when territory changes on a route in excess of 50%. Be it Resolved: Whenever a route’s territory changes more than 50% to align an office that all affected carriers have to re-bid on the routes that were affected by the alignment. If carriers do not change territory, there is no reason to bid on routes. Whereas: FSS flats arrive at the Post Office for delivery in trays inverted just like for DPS letters. Be it Resolved: That the NRLCA file a Step (4) Four to correct this. Intent for/reason for change: FSS flats are to be processed correctly to deliver them without having to turn them right side up on the street. Whereas: Management does not want to hire leave replacements. Be it Resolved: When management denies annual leave to Rural Carriers, said Rural Car-riers be allowed to carry over 110 days of annual leave per year. Intent of/reason for Change: Rural Carriers can only carry over 55 days of annual leave per year and management denies carriers annual leave and they lose anything over 55 days. Whereas: PS Form 3971 to be returned to carriers in a timely manner. Be it Resolved: If management does not return 3971’s to the carrier within (5) five calen-dar days that they are automatically approved. Intent of/reason for Change: Management wants to wait until the week before multiple carriers wanting to use annual leave to try and cover routes for the week. Whereas: Mail count has an OPT-IN/OUT Form Be it Resolved: When local management and the Rural Carrier agree to OPT out of Na-tional Mail Counts, then higher management can NOT OPT carrier(s) into the mail count. Local management being that of the carrier’s office. Intent Of/Reason for Change: Local management and carrier did not want to count and opted out of mail count and District management opted carrier into mail count. Whereas: Rural Carriers need relief carriers. Be it Resolved: When management fails to hire relief carriers on the first job posting on line, that USPS utilize that prospective state’s Bureau of Employment Services. Intent of/reason for Change: Management misleads Rural Carriers that they are trying to hire leave replacements. Whereas: State Convention seems to be getting later each year. Be it resolved: That the first day of state convention begin in the month of June. Intent of/reason for Change: To avoid any conflicts with the Independence Day Holiday, and to allow more time for delegates to National Convention to make travel arrange-ments. Proviso: Effective 2014 (if possible). Whereas: There are Rural Carriers who have reached the milestone to

Constitution Changes Continued from Page 20



WELLINGTON - Mildred Jean "Mickey" Finkel, age 78, of Wellington, passed away Sunday at University Hospital, Cleveland, following a short illness. She was born January 22, 1935 in North Ridgeville to the late Clarence and Catherine (nee Taylor) Hamker. She married Alvin B. Finkel on June 11, 1954 and he preceded her in death in 1992. One son, Alvin Jr.; son-in-law, Larry Brown, brother, Clarence Hamker; and sisters, Lola Clark and Helen Carey also preceded her in death. Mrs. Finkel was a Rural Postal Carrier for 32 years retiring in 2005 and had previously worked as a School Bus Driver for Black River School

District for 10 years. She also assisted her husband in his business, Al Finkel Construction. Her hobbies included quilting, sewing, watching horse races and her grandchildren's

sporting events. She also enjoyed mowing and gardening in her yard. Mildred was a 1953 graduate of North Ridgeville High School and a member of the District 8 Association Rural Carriers where she served as Secretary, Treasurer and President. In 1999, she was awarded Ohio Rural Mail Carrier of the year. Mickey will be remembered for her selfless, giving nature and for her positive energy.

Survivors include her children, Darlene (Kenneth "Jeff") Icenhour of Ashland, Den-nis (Lyn) Finkel of Wellington, Colleen (Dan) Dull of Greensboro, N.C., Dean (Deanne) Finkel of Wellington, Dwayne (Ramona) Finkel of Wellington, and Diana Finkel-Brown of Sullivan; brothers, Harris Hamker of Eaton Twp., Paul (Jean) Hamker of Grafton, Roy (Pat) Hamker of LaGrange, and Ray (Karen) Hamker of Kipton; sisters, Marie Fitz of Canton, Pauline (Alan) Pachinger of Kipton and Margaret Tappe of Strongsville.

Memorials are suggested to the Scleroderma Foundation, 300 Rosewood Drive, Suite 105, Danvers, MA 01923.

Online condolences can be expressed at bognerfamilyfuneralhome.com.

IN MEMORIAM: MILDRED FINKEL

IN MEMORIAM: BRADLEY A. OEN

Bradley A. Oen, 63, of Wapakoneta, died Thursday, June 6, 2013, at his residence. He was born Sept. 26, 1949, in Lima, the son of Anna Eileen (Anthony) and James Oen, who preceded him in death.

Surviving are his step-mother, Nancy Oen, of Wapakoneta; four siblings, Kevin (Cecilia) Oen, Eric (Kimberle) Oen, and Becky (Larry) Curtis, all of Wapakoneta, and Amy (Eric) Eichner, of Beavercreek; and numerous nieces, nephews, aunts and uncles. Brad retired in 2012 after 28 years service as a rural mail carrier with the U.S. Postal Service. Prior to that, he had been employed at the family business, Oen Pontiac & Buick, Wapako-neta. A 1967 graduate of St. Joseph High School, he received a bachelor’s degree in 1972 from Walsh College in Canton. Brad served in the U.S. Army and was a member of St. Joseph Catholic Church in Wapakoneta. Burial of the cremated remains will follow in the St. Joseph Catholic Cemetery, in Wapakoneta, where military rites will be conducted by the Wapakoneta V.F.W. Post 8445.

Memorial contributions may be directed to the American Diabetes Assn. or the American Heart Association.

Condolences may be expressed at bayliffandeleyfh.com.

HEBRON: David Morrow November 28, 1917 - June 12, 2013 Born November 28,

1917 in Hebron, OH to the late Paul D. and Ruth (Pence) Morrow. He is preceded in death by

his wife of 63 years, Mildred (Hamilton) Morrow, January 5, 2003 and by his son-in-law John

A. Spellman, Jr., February 13, 2002.

Mr. Morrow is survived by two daughters Virginia Spellman, Heath, OH and Marjorie

Morrow (Alan Freedman), New York City, and by his son William Morrow (Carol Seymour

Morrow), Bellville, OH.

He retired in 1979 as a Rural Mail Carrier for the Hebron Post Office after 28 years.

In lieu of flowers, the family requests that donations be made to the Hebron Historical

Society, C/O PO Box 542, Hebron, Ohio 43025-0542.

IN MEMORIAM: PAUL DAVID “DAVE” MORROW

qualify for the million-mile award. Be It Resolved: The USPS recognizes the Rural Carriers who have reached the mill ion-mile qualification. Fur-thermore, the USPS will notify the NRLCA of the carriers who are to receive the million-mile award. Be it Further Resolved: That the NRLCA notify the State President of the carriers to be rec-ognized for the award. Intent of/reason for Change: Mile-stones of this extent need to be recognized Whereas: There are a shortage of leave re-placement carriers and USPS does not seem to want to hire any subs. Be it Resolved: Any regular carrier that has not had a sub for at least 120 days, that carrier be elevated to step 12 on the rural carrier salary chart. If the carrier is already at step 12, then a monetary bonus of $5,000 be paid to the carrier, in addition any applicable overtime that the carrier has worked. Intent of/reason for Change: To compensate those carriers that cannot get approved leave and/or work many relief days. Whereas: Rural carriers can currently serve in management capacity indefi-nitely; i.e. 204B. Be it Resolved: That when a regular rural carrier serves in management capacity for two years, that the carrier is to be placed on a phantom route. Upon their desire or compelling to re-turn to serve as a regular rural carrier, they will be subject to the provisions set forth in Article 12. Intent of/reason for Change: Regular rural carriers can cur-rently serve indefinitely in man-agement capacity. Their route is being served by a relief carrier working the same as a regular ru-ral carrier without benefits be-stowed on a regular carrier.

Constitution

Changes Continued from Page 21

http://bognerfamilyfuneralhome.com/


AUXILIARY NEWS Greetings: It was so nice to see everyone at our State

Convention at the Holiday Inn in Westlake. It's always nice to

renew friendships and talk about old times and make new

friends.

We had a very good convention and we took a trip to

the I Max theater and saw the movie Titanic.

The results of the elections were, President, Paul Ortz,

Vice President, Ed Cox, Secretary Treasurer, Diana Hausfeld.

Chairman of the board, Jodi Burke, Secretay of the board, Ray

Mull, and Jr Board Member, Sandy Schwartz. With everyones

help I will do my best for the Association, Auxiliary and Jun-

iors.

Please come to the National Convention in St Louis and don't forget to bring

your children and grandchildren with you. The posters going to National Convention are

from Tyson Wayne Anderson, Daniel Hingosa, Stetson Joeseph Cyrus and Shaelyn

Blair Anderson. Good luck to these chil-

dren and thanks for entering the poster

contest.

Hope to see you in St Louis.

Yours truly,

Paul Ortz

Auxiliary Officers PRESIDENT

PAUL ORTZ

11696 Youngstown Pitts Rd.

New Middletown OH 44442

Phone 330-542-9496

[email protected]

VICE PRESIDENT

ED COX

4780 Stony Creek

Urbana OH 43078

Phone 937-206-2537

[email protected]

SECRETARY/TREASURER

DIANA HAUSFELD

P. O. Box 105

Minster, OH 45865-0105

Phone 419-628-2433

[email protected]

EXECUTIVE COMMITTEEMAN

Jodie Burke, Chairman

4822 Delevan Dr.

Lyndhurst OH, 44124

Phone 216–382-3031

[email protected]

Ray Mull, Secretary

9235 Wayne Trace Rd.

Camden OH, 45311

Phone 513-543-3766

[email protected]

Sandy Schwartz, Board Member

10 Eastmoor Court

New Bremen, OH 45869-1101

Phone 419-305-3800

[email protected]

JUNIOR SPONSOR

Pat Singelyn

18991 Munn Rd.

Chagrin Falls, OH 44023

Phone 330-562-8886

[email protected]

JUNIORS 2013-2014

President: Abby Hausfeld

733 Oakwood Drive, Minster, OH 45865

VP: Riley Hausfeld


Secretary : Samantha Fernandez,

Defiance, OH 43512

Treasurer: Nate Hausfeld,


The 2013-2014 Ohio Rural Letter Carriers’ Association Auxiliary

New Auxiliary Board (left

to right): President Paul

Ortz, Executive Board

Members Sandy Schwartz,

Ray Mull, Jodi Burke, Sec-

retary/Treasurer Diana

Hausfeld, Vice President Ed

Cox.

New Junior Board (left to right): Secretary Samantha

Fernandez, President Abby Hausfeld, Vice President

Riley Hausfeld, Treasurer Nate Hausfeld.

Junior Royalty (left to right): Prince Isaac

Gamerdinger, Princess Morgan Todd, Queen Zoe

Eubanks, King Isaac Hinojosa.

Paul Ortz, President


Non-Profit

U. S. Postage

PAID

Permit # 225

Youngstown, OH

Members

Send Address Changes to:

Ohio Rural Letter Carriers Association

104 Clay Road SW

Dellroy OH 44620-9757

UPCOMING EVENTS

National Convention

August 13-16, 2013 St. Louis, Missouri

Board Meeting

October 20-21, 2013 Location TBA

Fall District Meetings See Page 18

Spring Booster Meeting TBA

All dates and times are subject to change due

to unexpected events. Please check our web-

site OHRLCA.org for changes to this schedule

and the most current date information.

DEADLINE for the October/November issue is Sept. 12, 2013.

Please have all articles to Editor Lori Todd by that date.

[email protected]

You May Have

Won A Prize

Please See Page 15 for Details!

Jennie Vonderhuevel found her name in the

last issue. Congratulations Jennie!

ATTENTION

Please note that if you have

news of the death of any

member let Secretary/

Treasurer Penny Koren

know. She can then put it on

the web site and send it on to

the paper.

Secretary/Treasurer,

Penny Koren

104 Clay Road SW,

Dellroy OH 44620-9757

Ph 330 735-2727

Fax 330-735-2535

[email protected]

SPOTLIGHT PAGE

In every issue we would like to have a Spotlight Page. Anyone knowing of a person or post office they feel

should be spotlighted please send information to: Editor Lori Todd at [email protected].

COA Change of Address can now be done on the National

Web Site at nrlca.org

OHRLCA Requests Your Help We are organizing our Grasstops campaign in Ohio. Who do you know that has

political influence or clout? Call me and lets talk about how you and your friends can

help us with our plans to Save The Post Office! (Grasstops Coordinator Info here).

http://nrlca.org/

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