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OHIO RURAL LETTER CARRIER OHIO RURAL LETTER CARRIER The Ohio Rural Letter Carr iers ’ Associat ion Of f i c ia l Publ icat ion

Volume 77, Issue Number 2 April /May 2010

OHRLCA STATE CONVENTION JULY 11-13, 2010

“KINGS ISLAND RESORT”, CINCINNATI OH

DEADLINE FOR GROUP RATE RESERVATIONS IS JUNE 18 DETAILS ON PAGE 3

SPRING DISTRICT MEETINGS Our Spring District Meetings are your source of information. It’s your opportunity to ask questions about your job and talk to a State or Assistant State Steward who is trained to answer your questions. PAC is a vital part of our union. Ray Nichols will be attending as many District Meetings as he can. Please continue to

contribute and support Ray in his efforts to help the Association lobby for our benefits, contracts, and the issues that only Congress can change. We

need to keep fighting to win the support of our Representatives and Senators on Capital Hill. You can make a difference.

The Mid States Conference will be held in Indianapolis, Indiana this year. If you cannot attend our National Convention in Aug. this is the perfect time to visit a mini convention May 7-9, 2010. The Conference will be held at the Embassy Suites Indian-apolis, IN. Room rates are $94.00 plus tax. This gives you a chance to meet several of our National Officers, and attend a Steward Seminar.

Vice President Tom Gamble and I will be traveling to Capi-tal Hill May 16-18, 2010 for the Presidents/Vice Presidents Legisla-tive Conference in Washington D.C. This is the time when all of the Presidents and Vice Presidents from all over the U.S. visit the offices of their Legislative Representatives and Senators. We will be voicing our concerns on issues that concern our jobs and health benefits and retirement, etc.

Dave King, Past State Steward has asked me to thank you for the many prayers, good wishes and cards that he has received. They are very uplifting and much appreciated. You can find his address on the announcement board section in this magazine to wish him well. continued on page 4

PRESIDENT GAYLE SWEET

In This Issue: President Sweet’s Report Page 2,3 Officer/Steward Info /State Convention Page 4,5 Committee Report/ Secretary’s Report Page 6,7 Ex. Committee Reports/Steward Training Page 8, State Steward Report/New Stewards Page 9,10 Rural Bidding Process Page 11 Member of the Year Form Page 12 VP Gamble Report/Update from Paul Swartz Page 13 Letter to Representative Page 14 Letter to Senator Page 15 Congressional Addresses Page 16,17 PAC Report/ Recent PAC Donors Page 18 Annual Food Drive/ Announcement Board Page 19 Auxiliary & Juniors/ Chaplain’s Report Page 20 “Six Day” Update/Upcoming Events/Baskets

SPECIAL ALERT 6 DAY DELIVERY IN

JEOPARDY

USPS PROPOSES 5 DAY DELIVERY CONGRESS TO DECIDE

“WHAT CAN YOU DO TO PROTECT

YOUR JOB ?”

#1 WRITE A LETTER TO YOUR SENATOR page –12 #2 WRITE A LETTER TO YOUR REPRESENTATIVE page—13

CONTACT INFORMATION page—14

#3 DONATE TO PAC TO HELP LOBBY CONGRESS TO PROTECT 6 DAY DELIVERY page—16

We have put a Legislative grassroots letter to your Repre-sentative and Senator with their address on a separate page so that you can voice your concerns about the Postmaster General John Potter asking lawmakers to change delivery of mail to five days. Please take the time to send them a letter opposing five day deliv-ery. See pages 12 –14 for more information.

The Ohio Rural Letter Carrier April/ May 2010

Established in 1929 by H. I. Carpenter. Published in Pickerington, Ohio, six times a year. Entered as Non-Profit mail at the Post Office in Columbus, Ohio 43219. Non-Profit Postage is paid in Columbus, Ohio. Subscription Price—$10.00 per year. Contributions are opinions expressed by the writers and do not reflect the opin-ions of the State Officers of the Ohio Rural Letter Carriers‘ Association or the Editor.

OHRLCA STATE BANQUET WILL BE Q MONDAY JULY 12, 2010 AT 6:30 PM,

SOCIAL TIME, PRESENTATION OF MEMBER OF THE YEAR AND A LIVE PAC AUCTION

DETAILS AND RESERVATION INFORMATION IN THE NEXT ISSUE.

2009-2010 ASSOCIATION OFFICERS

President, Gayle Sweet 1385 Russellville Road, Winchester, OH 45697 Ph/Fax 937-695-0282 [email protected] Vice President, Tom Gamble PO Box 9, New Middletown, OH 44442-0009 Ph 330-788-5948 [email protected] Secretary/Treasurer, John Aichholz 7303 S. Twp. Road 187, Attica, OH 44807-9424 Ph 419-426-6623 Fax 419-426-5609 [email protected] Executive Committee Michael D. Aitchison 7805 Lafeyette PC Rd., Plain City, OH 43064-8873 Ph 614-873-5502 [email protected] * Insurance Representative Floyd Edler 1060 Schrake Rd. Chillicothe, OH 45601 Ph 740-775-5679 Cell 740-703-7002 [email protected] Delbert Hutchisson 401 N. Union St., Fostoria, OH 44830-2767 Ph 419-435-3117 Fax 419-436-0376 [email protected] Janna Hirschfeld 00577 Southland Rd., New Bremen, OH 45869 Ph 419-629-1199 Fax 419-629-3626 [email protected] * Provident Guild Representative APPOINTED OFFICES Editor & Webmaster, Sandy Laramee 8914 Stonehenge Dr, Pickerington, OH 43147-9707 Ph/Fax 740-927-6767 [email protected] PAC Chairman Ray Nichols 20915 Nichols Lane, Freeport, OH 43973-9688 Ph 740-489-5016 Chaplain Ron Briggs 8436 State Route 235, Alger, OH 45812-9661 Ph 419-757-2025 OHRLCA STEWARD SYSTEM

All Areas: State Steward, Carla Dedden 742 Wards Corner Road, Loveland, OH 45140-8740 PH 513-683-6661 FX 513-683-6554 Email [email protected] Cincinnati District north of I-70 & Columbus District north of I-70 Senior Assistant State Steward, Erik Hirschfeld 00577 Southland Rd., New Bremen OH 45869 Ph 419-629-1199 Fax 419-629-3626 Email [email protected] Northern Ohio District Assistant State Steward, Delbert Hutchisson 401 N. Union St Fostoria, OH 44830-2767 Ph 419-435-3117 Fax 419-436-0376 Email [email protected]

Area Stewards: Cathy Funderburgh (937-605-5200) – Cincinnati District Offices Email [email protected] Bellbrook, Camden, Clayton, Eaton, Englewood, Enon, Franklin, Greenville, Jamestown, Medway, New Carlisle, New Paris, South Charleston, South Vienna, Spring Valley, Tipp City, West Manches-ter, West Milton, Xenia, Yellow Springs Miranda Rodgers (937-302-9956) – Cincinnati District Offices Email [email protected] Aberdeen, Amelia, Bethel, Blanchester, Fayetteville, Felicity, Greenfield, Hamersville, Leesburg, Lynchburg, Martinsville, Mount Orab, Moscow, New Richmond, New Vienna, Pleasant Plain, Ripley, Sabina, Williamsburg, Wilmington Susan Thayer (419-599-1855) – Cincinnati District Offices Email [email protected] Alvordton, Antwerp, Archbald, Cecil, Delta, Edgerton, Edon, Fayette, Grand Rapids, Hicksville, Lyons, Metamora, Montpelier, Napoleon, Paulding, Pioneer, Sherwood, Waterville, West Jefferson, Whitehouse Tana Humphrey (440-224-1276) – Northern Ohio District Offices Email [email protected] Andover, Austinburg, Bristolville, Brookfield, Burghill, Conneaut, Cortland, Dorset, Farmdale, Fowler, Hubbard, Kingsville, Kinsman, North Bloomfield, Pierpont, Rock Creek, Rome, Vienna, Williams-field, Windsor Michael Wallis (330-699-4691) – Northern Ohio District Offices Email [email protected] Alliance, Beach City, Canal Fulton, Canfield, Columbiana, East Pal-estine, East Sparta, Hanoverton, Hartville, Homeworth, Kensington, Lake Milton, Lisbon, Magnolia, Malvern, Minerva, Navarre, North Lawrence, Paris, Waynesburg Penny Koren (330-735-2535) – Northern Ohio/Columbus District Offices Email [email protected] Bellaire, Dundee, Glenmont, Gnadenhutten, Holmesville, Killbuck, Lakeville, Lore City, Millersburg, Mineral City, Newcomerstown, Pleasant City, Port Washington, Quaker City, Senecaville, Stone Creek, Strasburg, Sugarcreek, Ulrichville, Wintersville (Steubenville) Becky Lynn (330-832-2792) – Northern Ohio District Offices Email [email protected] Apple Creek, Bolivar, Canton, Clinton, Creston, Dalton, Fredericks-burg, Litchfield, Lodi, Mogadore, Nova, Orrville, Richfield, Rittman, Shreve, Smithville, Spencer, Sullivan, Wadsworth, West Salem Sharon Short (740-493-2160) – Columbus District Offices Email [email protected] Blue Creek, Crown City, Franklin Furnace, Friendship, Gallipolis, Ironton, Kingston, McDermottt, Millersport, Oak Hill, Otway, Patriot, Pedro, Piketon, Portsmouth, South Point, South Salem, South Web-ster, Vinton, West Union

Please note that the deadline for the next issue of the paper will be May 15th not May 20th in order to get the Convention information out in a timely manner.


Make Your Plans Now to Attend the “OHIO RURAL LETTER

CARRIERS’ ASSOCIATION”

2010 STATE CONVENTION JULY 11-13

STATE CONVENTION SPEAKER SUSAN KNAPP NRLCA EXECUTIVE COMMITTEE

Susan has served as a steward for over 20 years and was State Steward for the New York RLCA for 11 of those years.

In 2003, Susan was appointed by the National Rural Letter Carriers' Association as a Griev-ance Specialist, handling Step 3 appeals for the Northeast and New York Metro Areas as well as portions of the East-ern and Great Lake Areas. Susan was elected to the National Board of the Rural Letter Carrier Associa-tion as Executive Committeeman on August 8, 2008. Since her election, Susan has been assigned to the North-east Area as well as part of the Eastern Area.

Dear Ohio Rural Letter Carrier’s Association: Welcome to the Kings Island Resort & Conference Center! We want to ensure that your stay with us is as comfortable and enjoy-able as possible. The Resort has reserved a special rate for your group. When you call to make your reservation please made sure you mention you are with Ohio Rural Letter Carrier’s Association or code (ORLC) this will ensure you will receive the correct rate. Please make your reserva-tion by calling (800) 727-3050. The cut off date to place your reserva-tion will be JUNE Friday 18, 2010. I wanted to share with you a little bit of what the Resort has to offer we have an exercise facility, 2 game rooms, an indoor pool, out door pool, volleyball, basketball, tennis, fishing lake, corn hole, and horseshoes. We are excited to host Ohio Rural Letter Carrier’s Association and we thank you for choosing the Kings Island Resort & Conference Center – “where business and fun come together”.

2010 OHRLCA State Convention Advance Registration Form (You may also register upon arrival)

Mail completed form to: Sandra Armbruster , 123 Shaftbury Road , Troy 45373 Please Print Name _______________________________________________________________________________________________ Check one: ___ Association Delegate ___ Association Guest ___ Auxiliary Delegate ___ Auxiliary Guest Spouse’s Name________________________________________________________________________________________ Check one: ___ Association Delegate ___ Association Guest ___ Auxiliary Delegate ___ Auxiliary Guest Junior Name__________________________Check one: ___ Junior Delegate ___ Junior Guest Address______________________________________________________________________________________________ City, State, Zip ________________________________________________________________________________________ District ________ Phone Number_____________________Post Office________________County__________________________

2010 OHIO RURAL LETTER CARRIERS’ ANNUAL CONVENTION

July 11 Registration, Opening Session 1 PM Nominations, Speakers, Committee Meetings

July 12 Report of the Nat. Delegate Election Comm. Speakers, Report of Time and Place Comm., Selection of 2012 Convention city, Banquet in the evening, PAC Auction and drawings. Last day to file Delegate Credentialsy g

July 13 - Election of State Officers, Speakers, Report of Law and Resolutions Committees Unfinished Business.

A Complete Convention Program will be listed in the June/July issue of the paper.

KINGS ISLAND RESORT single/double/quad/flat rate $109 plus tax Please be aware that this hotel has no elevator to the second floor hotel rooms. If you cannot handle the stairs please ask to be assigned to a first floor room when you make your reservation. There is an elevator to the meeting rooms, just not to the second floor hotel rooms. Please make your reservations by calling (800) 727-3050. Make sure to mention you are with the OHRLCA or code (ORLC) to get the proper rate.

The cut off date to place your reservation will be June Friday 18, 2010.


PRESIDENTS REPORT, CONTINUED Our State Convention will be held at the Kings

Island Resort July 11-13, 2010 at the Kings Island Resort in Cincinnati OH. Information concerning our convention is located on page 3. Room rates are $109.00 plus tax. If you need a room on the first floor, please tell the Resort when making your reservations. There are stairs at this hotel and the elevators are located at the back of the Resort to take you to the level where our meetings will be held. For reservations call (800) 727-3050, mention the Ohio Rural Letter Carriers Association or code (ORLC). Our Banquet will be held on Monday evening July 12 with the Pac Auction to follow. The Resort will furnish transporta-tion around our convention site up to a mile away. There will be plenty for our Juniors to do and transportation will be provided for them also. If you wish to visit Kings Is-land, you will need to make this a family trip. Our Jun-iors will not be going to the park as one of their trips. The cut off date for your reservation will be June 18, 2010.

In our National Magazine, President NRLCA President Don Cantriel , addresses a new national role. The NRLCA will assist the NALC and other co-sponsors in promoting the volunteer collection of non-perishable food on the second Saturday in May. He encourages rural carriers to help deliver donations to local food banks, pan-tries and shelters. Participation in the drive is strictly vol-untary. If a rural carrier wishes not to participate and you are given a direct order, management must compensate the carrier in some way. Vice President Jeanette Dwyer is the contract for the NRLCA.

It seems that illness sometimes incapacitates a fellow rural carrier. If you want to help a fellow carrier there is a program for Donated Leave. Once a carrier has contacted HR Shared Service Center and their immediate supervisor to request the proper forms to request and be approved for donated leave, a regular rural carrier can do-nate earned annual leave to their fellow carrier by access-ing PS form 3970-D with parts I and II completed and mailed to Leave Share Coordinator. Request to Donate Leave is available at www.http://blue.usps.gov . If you wish to post the need for Donated Leave on our An-nouncement Board, please contact Sandy Laramee our State Editor. Think Safety

Black Gold!!! Texas T. Well not that good, and I won’t make you a millionaire, but I do have a program that pro-vides some cash for you. I have an extra spe-cial surprise for you this year at convention. The State Association has given me per-mission as the State Representative for the Provident Guild, to give away – yes, for FREE!!!!- 5 ten dollar memberships into the Provident Guild. Last fall I wrote a song to the tune of the theme from the “Beverly Hillbil-lies” to tell the story of the Provident Guild. Those who were at the Fall Booster meeting had the opportunity to hear it and I would like to share the story with you:

Come listen to the story of the Provident Guild It's a little source of money for when your life's fulfilled. It all began in O-HI-O in 1931 To leave behind some ready cash for that special one. EASY CASH, NO LAWYER, TAX FREE

To sign up is easy if you're less than 56 And there are 6 categories from which you have to pick. As long as you're a regular, RCA, or spouse Fill out the form and join us as a member of the house. REGULAR, RCA, SPOUSE

From the categories you need to make your pick From 10 to 50 dollars, you don't have to be rich. Watch your mailbox for the statement comes in early May Just a reminder that it's time to pay. STAY A MEMBER, PAY ANNUALLY

At that time in life when a member dies The funds can be used for those needs that arise. Just send in the blue claim form and death certificate It doesn't take a lawyer, a check will soon be cut. READY CASH, NO LAWYER, TAX FREE

Now you have the story of the Provident Guild. We would like to have you join us to see the numbers build. If you've any questions – come see me at the end I'll try to find the answers and maybe make a friend. YA'LL THINK ABOUT IT NOW, YA HEAR?

That covers the details of the program, including the re-quirements for membership. If you would like your name in the drawing, fill out the coupon below and send it to: Janna Hirschfeld, Provident Guild, 00577 Southland Rd., New Bremen, Ohio 45869 OR, you can enter at the State Convention!

Name__________________________________________ Address________________________________________ Phone_____________________Birthdate_____________ Ya’ll send me your names

LOOK FOR THE OHIO NEWSLETTER IN FULL COLOR ON THE OHIO WEBSITE AT ohrlca.orgg

Committeeman Janna Hirschfeld

OHRLCA New Members Since 1/23/2010

NAME POST OFFICE MICHELLE L BURKETT NEW PHILADELPHIA BOBBIE A COOLEY BELLEFONTAINE DOMINIC J CROOKS MASON RALPH K GRIFFITH NEW VIENNA REBECCA A FOY LEESBURG


Membership Having just attended the National Secre-taries Conference in Alexandria the topic of discussion by the secretaries was how much their membership totals have dropped in the last year. From the comments from across the

country the USPS is not giving the test and hiring RCA’s. This certainly limits the possibility of enrolling new members. The membership at the time of this writing is

4,680. Since July 1, 2009 there has been 45 new members enrolled and 74 have quit or cancelled their membership for a loss of 29 members.

2010 Leave Replacement Health Plan Open Season There will be an open season from April 1st to April

21st for the Leave Replacement Health Plan at which time those relief members that have not enrolled in the past can now do so. Likewise current non-members can enroll upon becoming members of the Association. Plan information was mailed to both member and non-members and infor-mation can also be obtained at www.bja-associationbenefits.com or by call 1-877-817-4805

Planning to Retire? You should know that as a retired rural carrier, it is

important that you continue your NRLCA membership without interruption in order to maintain your enrollment in the Rural Carrier Benefit Plan (RCBP) or to maintain your eligibility for future enrollment. A lapse in member-ship may prohibit you from enrolling in any NRLCA sponsored insurance plan in the future. You never know when you might wish to change health benefits coverage. This year there were more than 1000 new enrollees in the

RCHB because of price increases in other Plans, National Delegate Nominees If you have submitted a nominating ballot to have your name placed on the ballot to elect the National dele-gates, you should have received a confirmation that your name has been nominated. IF YOU HAVE NOT RE-CEIVED A CONFIRMATION NOTICE, CONTACT ME.

On this year's National Delegate ballot the mem-bership will be voting for up to 48 people. The actual number of delegates the state will be entitled to have will be determined by the membership at the time of the Na-tional Convention. If it is greater than 4,751, we will have more than 48 votes, if less than 4,651, then 47 or less votes. Two members of the Election Committee will pull the nominee names and the order they are drawn is the order they will appear on the ballot. IF YOU WISH YOUR NAME ON THE NATIONAL DELEGATE BAL-LOT, HAVE YOUR NOMINATING BALLOT IN MY OFFICE BY JUNE 1, 2010

The aforementioned ballot draw will be June 3, 2010 at the Oak Harbor Public Library, 147 W. Main St,, Oak

Harbor OH 43449, at 6:00 PM.

District Secretaries Please get your District’s delegate credentials to my office as soon possible after the conclusion of your District meeting as the State President needs the names for State Convention committee assignments. If you are in need of credential forms, please contact me.

Secretary-Treasurer John Aichholz

OHRLCA SPRING DISTRICT MEETINGS ASSIGNMENTS

DISTRICT DATE OFFICER STEWARD AUXILIARY DIST 1 APRIL 24 GAYLE SWEET CARLA DEDDEN TILLIE OWEN DIST 2 APRIL 17 JOHN AICHHOLZ ERIK HIRSCHFELD FRANK SATTERFIELD DIST 3 APRIL 17 DELBERT HUTCHISSON DELBERT HUTCHISSON PAUL ORTZ DIST 4 APRIL 24 FLOYD EDLER ERIK HIRSCHFELD BUDDY WILSON DIST 5 APRIL 10 DELBERT HUTCHISSON DELBERT HUTCHISSON NONE DIST 6 APRIL 17 MIKE AITCHISON CARLA DEDDEN BUDDY WILSON DIST 7 APRIL 15 JOHN AICHHOLZ CARLA DEDDEN FRANK SATTERFIELD DIST 8 MARCH 24 TOM GAMBLE CARLA DEDDEN PAUL ORTZ DIST 9 APRIL 14 JOHN AICHHOLZ DELBERT HUTCHISSON SANDY SCHWARTZ DIST 10 APRIL 14 JANNA HIRSCHFELD CARLA DEDDEN PAUL ARMBRUSTER DIST 11 APRIL 22 TOM GAMBLE DELBERT HUTCHISSON PAUL ARMBRUSTER DIST 12 APRIL 22 JANNA HIRSCHFELD CARLA DEDDEN NONE DIST 13 APRIL 10 GAYLE SWEET CARLA DEDDEN SANDY SCHWARTZ DIST 14 APRIL 22 MIKE AITCHISON ERIK HIRSCHFELD SANDY SCHWARTZ

PLEASE NOTE* Full details about each meeting were included in the last issue and are currently on ohrlca.org. You should receive full details about your meeting from your District Secretary. Some of these meetings will already have been held when you get this paper, but we are including the full schedule here for your reference. Some assignments may have changed since the last issue.


LET’S COMMUNICATE……… It is my opinion that the members of the Ohio Rural Letter Carriers primarily want two things from their State Board. We

want the Board to influence and help the National Board to negotiate the best con-tract they can for us, and then we want the Board to enforce that negotiated contract.

While the State Board influences where it can, the carriers have always had the ability to express what was important to them through the passing of both binding and non bind-ing resolutions up to the national level. The following paragraphs refer to only the non binding resolutions.

While this has proven to be an effective method of communicating to the National Board in the past, I have concerns that have grown over the past few years. It’s becoming a pattern at the National Convention to gloss over these important issues that have worked their way up to the national level. There are several motions through the course of reviewing these resolutions that they be passed in mass. The argument that is used to support this motion is that these resolutions are only “advisory” in na-ture. That time could be saved by passing such a motion.

These resolutions need to be looked at and voted on individually. Carriers at the local and state levels have spent time and effort to move issues up. They have been thought about, argued over, and voted on. They are expres-sion of what is important to us, the carriers of the state of Ohio. We deserve to have these resolutions considered and acted on individually.

With the changes that are occurring to the United States Postal Service, and the changes that the Postal Ser-vice is seeking, it is as important as it has ever been for the Officers of the National Board to hear and understand what is important to us. If the resolution process is not as effective as it has been or should be, what is our alterna-tive? Personally, I would not hesitate to put pen to paper and mail my thoughts directly to the National Board. As carriers that are concerned, we need to communicate in whatever ways we can.

The enforcement of the negotiated contract is ac-complished through the steward program. The State Board, in conjunction with the State Seward, has built an excellent steward program here in Ohio.

There has been some movement by the National Board to “Nationalize” the steward program. A couple of plans to accomplish this are being released at the various regional conferences. While I am a proponent of the autonomy of the individual state associations, I will re-serve judgment on these plans until I hear and see them myself.

The postal service has many challenges ahead of it. As a craft, we too have many challenges ahead of us. We must influence the changes that we can. We must be prepared to adapt, to protect, and maximize our interests to those changes that we can’t.

POSTAL UPDATES Here we are again, time to attend our

District Meetings, prepare our resolutions and get ready for State Convention. It’s very important that you as carriers and retirees understand the Constitution and how changes or additions to it can affect you and your finances. You as a carrier can make a difference by simply going to your District Meeting, getting informed, signing up to be a delegate at State Convention and on July 11-13, 2010 make the effort to be there and vote. YOU can become an integral part of the running of this Association. Next I would like to share the following information released by Postal News on March 8, 2010.

Today, the U.S. Postal Service and the U.S. Postal In-spection Service join with federal, state and local govern-ment agencies and consumer protection organizations to announce the 12th annual National Consumer Protection Week, March 7-13. This coordinated consumer education campaign highlights the importance of protecting privacy and steering clear of fraud and scams.

This year’s theme – Dollars & Sense: Rated “A” for all ages – encourages individuals to exercise good con-sumer sense at every stage of life – from grade school to retirement

“It’s never too early or too late to become a more in-formed consumer,” said Delores J. Killette, U.S. Postal Service vice president and Consumer Advocate. “This year, NCPW’s goal is to educate consumers of all ages on how they can prevent becoming a victim of fraud and scams.”

In recognition of NCPW 2010, the Postal Service and the Postal Inspection Service are calling attention to free resources to help people protect their privacy and avoid identify theft and other fraud schemes. Consumers can visit www.deliveringtrust.com for free fraud education and prevention videos about identity theft, work-at-home-scams, internet fraud, foreign lotteries, investment scams and more. Viewers can follow the Chief Postal Inspector and postal Service Consumer Advocate as they walk through the top ten scams to watch for. The website also offers tips on recognizing scams and instructions on re-porting scammers to the appropriate authorities.

In addition, the Postal Inspection Service offers the following tips for consumers to avoid becoming a victim of fraud: Know the warning signs: If it sounds too good to be true,

it probably is. Watch out for offers that apply pressure to act “right away,” guarantee success, promise unusu-ally high returns, require an upfront investment, don’t have the look of a real business or just don’t feel right.

Know the facts: Banks will never e-mail or call for ac- count numbers. There are no legitimate jobs that involve re-shipping items or financial investments from home. Foreign lotteries are illegal in the U.S. If in

Committeeman Floyd Edler

Committeeman Mike Aitchison


doubt, check the company out with the Better Business Bureau. Play it safe: Never click on a link inside an e-mail to visit

a web site; instead, type the address in a web browser. Retain receipts, statements and packing slips, and re-view them for accuracy. Place outgoing mail in the secure blue collection boxes, or deposit it in the col-lection slots on the inside of a local Post Office. Shred confidential documents instead of simply discarding them in the trash.

Get involved: Point out “too good to be true” offers to kids and teach them to be skeptical. Take an active interest in the financial activities of aging parents, es-pecially if they’re facing an illness that could make them more vulnerable. Share information about scams with friends and family.

“We’re out to stop fraud – and you can help,” said William R. Gilligan, Jr Chief Postal Inspector. “Many fraudulent offers can be identified and prevented before they cause any damage. Together we can help protect our families and ourselves from these crimes. ——————————————————————— FUZZY MATH AND FSS The Postal Services position is stan-dard flats (mostly catalogs) and periodicals mail (magazines and newspapers) have be-come increasingly unprofitable for the Postal Service in the past decade despite rate hikes and increased mailer work sharing. After the year 2000, there's only one year in which periodicals appeared to have covered their costs, and that was in 2003. The USPS-retained Boston Consulting Group forecasts that the total annual mail volume will shrink from 177 billion pieces in fiscal year 2009 to 150 billion pieces by fiscal year 2020, a 15% decline. If the USPS does not believe mail volume will increase in the next decade, why is it spending 1.5 billion dollars on FSS automation? At present there are eleven fully functional FSS machines and two of them are in Columbus. There will be fifty FSS machines up and running by the end of July 2010. Folks don't believe the gloom and doom. During this last mail count we seen mail volume increase in some areas and level off in others. This is proof that mail vol-ume has stopped falling and is showing signs of an eco-nomic recovery. Forty three percent of direct marketers expect to see profit improvements in quarter one, and 51.2% said they'll increase their total marketing spend in 2010, ac-cording to the Direct Marketing Association's Quarterly Business Review, released earlier this month.

Zenith Optimedia's Advertising Expenditure Fore-cast says direct mail marketing will grow 2.5% in 2010 and 3.1% in 2011. Let us not forget that standard flats and periodical flats are 93% of total flat volume. Why the fuzzy math? It's a contract negotiations year and the USPS is in a full court press to drive down wages and benefits.

2010 ENHANCEMENT TRAINING

FOR STEWARDS

Yearly all Stewards MUST be re-certified by attending the Enhancement Training to remain a Steward (Local, Area, or Assistant) in the National Steward Sys-tem. If you do not attend one of the six trainings, con-tractually you will have to be decertified. If you became a Local Steward through training in July 2009, Novem-ber 2009, or March 2010, you still MUST attend the 2010 Enhancement Training. At this training, all Stewards will receive the 2010 Steward materials. Please bring a black ink pen and a notepad. Lunch will be provided. You will be paid $100.00 once you have completed the training and taken the written test.

CLASSES -- SUNDAYS FROM 10:00 AM TO 5:00 PM TO

ACCOMMODATE RCA’S May 2, 2010 – Holiday Inn, 4073 Medina Road, Akron (330) 666-4131 May 16, 2010 – Comfort Inn, 20 North Plaza Blvd, Chillicothe (740) 775-3500 May 23, 2010 – Country Inn Suites, 3661 Maxton Rd, Dayton (937) 890-1221 June 6, 2010 – Cambridge Inn, 2248 Southgate Pkwy, Cambridge (740) 432-7313 June 13, 2010 – Country Inn Suites, 903 Interstate Dr, Findlay (419) 422-4200 June 27, 2010 – Fort Rapids, 4560 Hilton Corporate Dr, Columbus (614) 868-1380

Committeeman Delbert Hutchisson


MAIL COUNT --- FEBRUARY-MARCH 2010 WHOO!!! We made it through another mail count. Carriers across the state (except in the new FSS site of-fices) on an average either lost one hour, stayed the same, or gained one hour. Your Stewards are now in the process of handling mail count disagreements or redlining that the carriers are grieving. In the FSS site offices, management is

in the process of rebuilding routes with most if not all of the vacant routes and the aux routes in an office. These rebuilds will not be effective until after April 24, 2010 (date of new evaluations from count results). If you do not want your route to be rebuilt, you must discuss this with management. They may agree to not rebuild your route. If the process of the scheduling of mail counts fol-lows past practice, the next count in February-March 2011 will be a four-week count. HIRING OF LEAVE REPLACEMENTS If you do not have a primary leave replacement assigned to your route, please put a note in to management that you are requesting a sub be hired for your route. Make yourself a copy of this request. Under Article 30.2.A.2, the Union Agreement (EL-902) between the USPS and the NRLCA states that “The Employer shall make every effort to expeditiously fill leave replacement vacancies when they occur. Regular rural carriers shall have the right to require that a leave replacement be as-signed to their route.” Local management needs to contact the “Generalist” in their respective District that a primary leave replacement is being requested for a rural route in their office. The Generalist will post this position on line. Most Districts will only post this position for two weeks to one month. Management can also post an announcement in the lobby of their post office and/or a small ad in the local paper. By doing the above, the Union will recognize management’s efforts in the hiring process. TRC’S are the only people being hired at the present time. The RCA test is not scheduled in any District in the near future. Also, remember an RCA can transfer in to another post office with the acceptance of the receiving Postmaster with only a 30-day hold from the releasing Postmaster. As an RCA, your seniority does not transfer with you to your new of-fice. You would be the lowest RCA in the seniority ranks in your new office. Local management has 120 days to get you a primary leave replacement. FILE a grievance if you do not receive a leave replacement after 120 days. STEWARDS Please note the Enhancement Training Schedule in this issue. ALL Stewards must attend this yearly refresher training to stay a Certified Union Steward.

SICK LEAVE CREDIT FOR FERS EMPLOYEES Postal employees who retire under the Federal Employees Retirement System (FERS) will receive credit for their unused sick leave when they retire. The new pro-vision – which became effective October 28, 2009 with the President’s signing of the fiscal year 2010 National De-fense Authorization act – will be phased in over four years. FERS employees who retire between now and De-cember 31, 2013, will receive 50 per cent credit for their unused sick leave. FERS employees who retire on or after January 1, 2014 will receive a full credit for their unused sick leave. The National Retirement Counseling Systems, an annuity calculator that provides employees with an esti-mate of their retirement benefits, will be programmed to show unused FERS sick leave. Once the Office of Person-nel Management (OPM) issues guidance and implement-ing regulations, the USPS will then be able to provide ad-vice to employees who inquire about the effect these changes will have on their individual retirement situation.

WELCOME STEWARDS

Carla Dedden, State Steward, trained eight newly-elected Local Stewards on Saturday and Sun-day,March 20th and 21st at Cherry Valley Lodge in Newark, Ohio. The Stewards are pictured as follows: Back Row: Carla Dedden, State Steward; Gary Bailey, Chesapeake; Lewis Kovach, Crestline; Marcia Massie, Washington Court House. Front Row: Mary (Maggi) Gifford, Athens; Tuwana Aitchison, Plain City; Mindy Brinker, Pomeroy; Candy Diltz, Minford; Pat Eynon, Jackson. The next newly-elected Local Steward train-ing will be held at Cherry Valley Lodge, Newark, Ohio on July 24th and 25th. If you would like to become a Local Steward in your office, please fill out PS Form 10 (located on the Ohio website), post the form for 15 days, and return the election form to State Steward, Carla Ded-den. Your election would have to be held prior to July 15, 2010 to be scheduled for the training. SEE YOU AT THE NEXT NEWLY-ELECTED LO-CAL STEWARD TRAINING!!!!!!!!!!

State Steward Carla Dedden


“Member of the Year” The OHIO RURAL LETTER CARRIERS’ ASSOCIATION will honor one of our rural carriers again this year. The Mem-ber of the Year Committee is Chaired and comprised of the last five (5) past honorees. This committee will review all entries and announce the name of the selected individual at State Convention. This individual will also be recog-nized at the National Convention. Please submit this form to the 2010 Committee Chairman Gayle Sweet (see address below) prior to the 2010 Ohio Rural Letter Carriers’ State Convention in Cincinnati on July 11-13th. I/WE, ______________________________(INDIVIDUAL/DISTRICT) WOULD LIKE TO PLACE THE NAME OF __________________________________________________TO BE CONSIDERED AS “MEMBER OF THE YEAR”. Give a brief history of the nominee’s personal and postal life as the basis for this nomination. _______________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________ (If more space is needed, please attach additional sheets) MAIL TO: Chairman, Member of the Year Gayle Sweet, 1385 Russellville Rd Winchester OH 45697.


DISTRICT 1 43 8 277 15 149 2 317 9 148 16 292 3 166 10 8 17 203 4 410 11 12 18 589 5 534 12 220 6 554 13 68 TOTAL 7 302 14 210 4595 MEMBERS

Excerpts from a letter to PMG Potter... Dear Mr. Potter, Thank You for the opportunity to respond to your testimony before the Appropriations Subcommittee On General Government. In your testimony you outlined a plan to save 3.8 billion dollars from the USPS budget in fiscal year 2010. Your plan included : Restructuring Retire-ment Funding. Adjusting the number of de-

livery days, Enhance alternate access to Postal Products and services, Establish a more flexible workforce, Apply a new price structure based on the more dominant products as opposed to strictly by class, and produce more products and services consistent with the USPS mission. I whole heartily agree with you that retirement funding must be adjusted to a more rational formula and I will lobby congressional leaders to make this change. Your plan to enhance alternate access to postal products and services stemmed around access through ex-isting retail outlets such as supermarkets and drugstores. This might be a viable plan if it included closing post of-fice retail window operations, but strangely this was not part of the plan. It was not that long ago that we were told the plan was to attract more patrons to our retail lobbies. Then the stamp vending machines and self service kiosks were removed. Might I suggest that Rural Carriers are sup-posed to be "the Post Office on Wheels". Why not let us be just that and advertise it to the public. We could easily expand our sales and service just by implementing the workforce you have in place. It would involve, however, giving carriers access to equipment, stamp stock and the time required to complete these tasks. All too often I hear of managers who do not want to be bothered supplying carriers with what they need. Recently I saw a photo of a USPS logo incorporated into the storefront sign of a "pawn shop"; I really don't think this is an image enhancer! As for a new price structure, all I have seen is fa-vorable discounts going to large mailers. Where are the discounts and incentives for the general public {the first class mailers}? Stamps .com has found a way to do it and almost every major retailer has some type of rewards pro-gram. I cannot find the logic in giving discounts to mailers who advertise on their mail-pieces to "save a stamp, visit us on-line" and yet charge little Johnny a $1.09 to mail grandma a birthday card. Not to mention charging people a "statement fee" if they prefer to conduct business through the mail. You might want to try tapping your employee creativity since I believe one of the most successful prod-ucts the post office offers ( "Priority Mail" ) came from just such a source. You testified that a public opinion poll showed that the public favored five day delivery. However, further testimony brought out that those polled were told that if they did not prefer 5 day delivery they would have to go to a centralized NDCBU to retrieve their mail. No more curb-line delivery. By the way, where would rural customers

go? Senator Collins suggested that 5 day delivery would have a devastating impact on mailers and customers alike. Your answer was that everyone could not be satisfied and losses in volume were an "acceptable risk". When pressed about the complaints that would arise from box customers, your answer was that any post office that is open on Satur-day now, would be open after 5 day delivery was insti-tuted. Box customers would receive Saturday delivery. What didn't take three independent consulting firms to figure out was that you have no plan to increase profits. Your plan to save 3 billion dollars is centered solely on cutting 53000 plus non career employee posi-tions in the carrier ranks and giving career carriers "an after Holiday Monday every week" and further exacerbat-ing the leave problems we already have. Not to mention opening the door to outside entities and further eroding our universal service mandate. With all due respect Mr. Potter I believe that your plan will take the Postal Service in the wrong direction. I believe it will create a workplace environment reminiscent of the days that spawned the phrase "going postal". I real-ize that I am not a high priced outside consultant, but what I am is a 22 year veteran of the Postal Service who talks to allot of employees on a regular basis, that agree with my assessment. I sincerely hope that you can find a plan that focuses on expanding the Postal Service and allows your employees to serve their customers with the Service and Respect they deserve. Respectfully, Thomas J. Gamble VP Ohio Rural Letter Carriers

Vice President Tom Gamble

DISTRICT1 43 8 277 15 1492 317 9 148 16 2923 166 10 8 17 2034 410 11 12 18 5895 534 12 220 6 554 13 68 TOTAL 7 302 14 210 4595 MEMBERS

ATTENTION

VP Tom Gamble has taken the time to write this let-ter (excerpts above) to the PMG to voice his opinion. Please take some time out of your day to send a letter to your Repre-sentatives. They will ultimately be the ones to decide your fu-ture. Invest a small amount of time to copy and send the fol-lowing letters. If you do not invest in your future, who will.

MESSAGE FROM NRLCA DIRECTOR OF

GOVERNMENTAL AFFAIRS PAUL SWARTZ

For the grassroots letters, I wanted you to have the break down of the NRLCA membership by Congressional dis-trict. I think this is very good information to include, especially when writing your Representatives to let them know how many rural carrier families will be affected in their District by elimi-nating Saturday delivery. The following are the numbers of rural carrier families per Congressional district:


Dear Representative _________________________ I am writing as a rural carrier and constituent of your district to voice my strong support for maintaining 6-day mail delivery. Recently, the Postmaster General of the U.S. Postal Ser-vice unveiled a plan to eliminate Saturday mail delivery. While the Postmaster General argues the elimination of Saturday mail delivery will save money, the detrimental impact it would have on customers who utilize the USPS for Saturday delivery would be much worse. In my view, this would only further exacerbate the Postal Service’s problems by pushing much needed busi-ness out the door which could be replaced by private enterprise. Saturday mail delivery is an important communication and marketing tool utilized by millions of citizens and mailers across the country. Many customers rely on the USPS to de-liver prescription medications on Saturday for the simple reason that they know they will be home to sign for the package. If the USPS eliminates Saturday delivery, the customers are left with two options; the first is to possibly pay a higher price and a surcharge to have another car-rier deliver their medications on Saturday, or in some rural areas to drive 40 miles round trip to the Post Office to pick up their medications. I urge you to co-sponsor H.Res 173, introduced by Rep. Sam Graves, which expresses “…the sense of the House of Representatives that the United States Postal Service should take all appropriate measures to ensure the continuation of its 6-day mail delivery service.” By sup-porting this legislation, you will help to save over 50,000 Rural Carrier jobs. By supporting the continuation of 6-day mail delivery, you will also help preserve the level of service the American public and businesses have come to expect. Citizens and busi-nesses will not pay to use a Postal Service with inconsistent Saturday mail delivery. In my opin-ion, reducing delivery from six to five days goes against the principal of the very foundation of the Postal Service, “To give universal service to the American people”. I strongly believe that reducing the requirement for six day delivery will only add to the problem. Thank you for your continued dedication and attention to this issue. Please feel free to contact me if you have any questions or concerns about my request.

Sincerely,

_______________________________________________


Dear Senator _____________________________ I am writing today as a rural letter carrier and constituent to voice my strong support for maintaining 6-day mail delivery. Recently, the Postmaster General of the U.S. Postal Service unveiled a plan to eliminate Saturday mail delivery. While the Postmaster General argues the elimination of Saturday mail delivery will save money, the detrimental impact it would have on customers who utilize the USPS for Saturday delivery would be much worse. In my view, this would only further exacerbate the Postal Service’s problems by pushing much needed business away from the USPS and have it be replaced by private en-terprise. Saturday mail delivery is an important communication and marketing tool utilized by millions of citizens and mailers across the country. Many customers rely on the USPS to deliver prescription medications on Saturday for the simple reason that they know they will be home to sign for the package. If the USPS eliminates Saturday delivery, the customers are left with two options; the first is to possibly pay a higher price and a surcharge to have another carrier deliver their medications on Saturday, or in some rural areas to drive 40 miles round trip to the Post Office to pick up their medications. By supporting the continuation of 6-day mail delivery, you will help preserve the level of service the American public and businesses have come to expect while helping to save over 50,000 Rural Carrier jobs. Citizens and businesses will not pay to use a Postal Service with inconsistent Saturday mail delivery. In my opinion, reducing delivery from six to five days goes against the principal of the very foundation of the Postal Service, “To give universal service to the American people”. I strongly believe that reducing the requirement for six day delivery will only add to the problem. Thank you for your continued dedication and attention to this issue. Please feel free to contact me if you have any questions or concerns about my request.

Sincerely,

________________________________________________


OHIO CONGRESSIONAL DELEGATION

E-MAIL CONTACT INFORMATION If you wish to contact any Senator by e-mail use the following e-mail address. senate.gov

For all of the Representatives use writerep.house.gov and just put in your zip code to get connected.

VISIT www.nrlca.org for an electronic copy of the letters on pages 13 & 14.


Tomorrow is the day! What does tomorrow hold in store for you? This question has many answers and we each one have to make our own decisions. We must plan for the unknown as we cannot pre-dict what is ahead. We must prepare for the unusual and seek the best path for one to fol-low.

This all leads up to our jobs as rural carriers and the job we have and to protect. We must be active and do all we can to cut costs

and strive to make the job better for all. One way you can help to insure your job is to support our PAC fund which will work hard for you. Through PAC Funds we care able to work with our Congress people to maintain and improve our working con-dition. We need to maintain 6 day delivery, our health insurance and retirement benefits do not drop in value. There are so many items not connected to the contract but are in the hands of Con-gress. Therefore we must keep in touch and work with Con-gress.

The PAC letters we sent out are bringing good re-sponse but there are still over 4000 carrier members who have not responded. We need your help now..

As an incentive we have offered some nice prizes that some Ohio member will win at our State Convention in July. Look at the ticket and see what is possible to win. If you have already donated we encourage you to continue giving as the need is great. Let me know if you gave before and I can verify your donation and add them together to put you inline for more tickets.

Remember the “Buckeye Bonus Drawing” for those in the $100.00 club. The Bonus Drawing is only for those who donated $100.00 or more. The drawing will be for the 1 carat diamond ear ring set ($900 value), 2nd prize will be for a GPS Tom Tom 4.3”size ($200 value), 3rd will be a nice OSU Lon-gaberger basket ($100 value.) This will be in addition to the regular drawing. You can add to your present donation and join the $100 Club. This will be in effect until drawing time. All prizes are either donated or purchased with non PAC money. All donations will be put to work for you.

We have just ordered the 2nd batch of Longaberger Baskets for 2010. If you want the same numberd basket as be-

fore , I need to know soon. At this present time I can give you the same number. Cost is $93 and includes the postage. The basket and mail box lid are in color and includes a lid protector. Order soon. Make your check to Raymond Nichols. You will receive credit for $20 to the PAC Fund.

I really do want to thank all who have donated to the PAC Fund. This year we are getting donations from many who have not donated before. Please keep up the good work. My goal for Ohio was to raise $70,000 dollars for PAC. Ohio has long been recognized for their support of the PAC drive. My privilege has been to serve you in this MUCH NEEDED FUND. Thank you, thank you, thank you, Raymond Nichols

2010 NRLCA

Longaberger® Baskets Now Available

A Longaberger® Round Keeping Basket with the lid engraved with a rural mail box dated 2010 is now available. The lid has the “National Rural Letter Carrier’s Association”, “Service With A Smile” engraved on it. The mail box is blue with the flag up and the lid open and mounted on the post. The basket is 7” in diameter and 2-7/8” in height. The basket is warm brown in color with a primary trim strip of white and a secondary trim strip of royal blue. The trim strips are accented star tack covers. The baskets will be numbered and hopefully signed. A protec-tor is included. The cost of the basket will be $93.00 and shipped by priority mail. The profit per basket will be $20 and goes to the PAC Fund. Make checks payable to: Raymond Nichols and mail to: Raymond Nichols, 20915 Nichols Lane Freeport, Ohio 43973 I would like to order: _____ Baskets @ $93.00 each = $__________

PAC Chair Ray Nichols

1 John Deere LA145 Tractor W/48” Mower 2 LG 42” Plasma HD TV 3 15.6 Acer Laptop, 4GB Memory 4 2600 PSI Husky Power Washer 5 Ladies Crystal Bezel Watch & Bracelet 6 Craftsman 10 Drawer BB Chest & Top 7 Craftsman 16” Gas Chain Saw

8 Ladies Diamond Bracelet-1 CT. total WT. 9 American Tourister 7 pc Luggage Set 10 Craftsman 154 pc Mechanics Tool Set 11$100 Wal-Mart Gift Card 12 Colman Grill with Storage Tote 13 Black & Decker Cordless Hedge Hog 14 Craftsman Die Hard Battery Charger

Ticket Donation: 1 for $25 3 for $50 8for $100 Each Additional $100 Gets 10 Additional Tickets

OHRLCA DRAWING—PROCEEDS FOR PAC SAMPLE ONLY DRAWING-JULY 12, 2010 AT THE STATE CONVENTION BANQUET

Make your donation check payable to:

NRLCA PAC Send to: NRLCA PAC % RAYMOND NICHOLS 20915 NICHOLS LN FREEPORT OH 43973

INVEST IN YOUR FUTURE —-DONATE TO PAC

The Ohio

RECENT OHIO PAC DONORS GOLD CAPITOL DIAMOND $1000 +

AICHHOLZ, JOHN ATTICA

GOLD CAPITOL $500 $999FUNDERBURGH, CATHY SPRINGFIELD

MILLHONE, CONNIE CUMBERLAND

PERKINS, BARB WELLINGTON

ELITE CIRCLE $250 $499

THOMAS, JOHN CHESAPEAKE

EXECUTIVE CIRCLE $100 $249

BARTON, ARLENE TROY

BOWERS, MIKE GLENFORD

BUTCHER, JOE SOUTH POINT

CAMPBELL, JANET WEST UNION

CHIDSEY, LYMAN MEDINA

CHOUDHARY, CAROL UNION CITY

CLINE, HELEN LEWISVILLE

DUNFEE, DAVE GUYSVILLE

DURAY, FELICIA MIDDLEBURGH HEIGHT

FARVER, JEAN MILLERSBURGH

GAMERDINGER, MISTY CHILLICOTHE

GARLITZ, RODERICK BROOKVILLE

GARLITZ, CHARLOTTE BROOKVILLE

GEREN, JOHN EAST LIVERPOOL

GOODLIVE, JAMES LOGAN

GREENE, DAWN CHESTERLAND

HIGBEA, JOHN DEFIANCE

KAWA, THOMAS FREEPORT

KINSLER, SANDRA COLE AREANUM

LARAMEE, SANDY PICKERINGTON

LENHART, JEFFREY ALGER

MADDEN, CATHERINE COLLEGE CORNER

MCINTIRE, JUDITH CLARINGTON

MORTENSEN, JUNE WILLOUGHBY

ORTZ, SHIRLEY NEWMIDDLETOWN

PIATT, EILEEN GRAYSVILLE

PLOTTS, ORVAL FREEPORT

ROBINSON, ROBERT NEWARK

STARLIN, ELDORA WOOSTER

STRICKLAND, DENNIS OAK HILL

VONSTEIN, JOYCE SHILOH

WATTS, CHARLES PARIS

WHITE, KELSEY CALDWELL

WHITE, LEONARD JACOBSBURGH

YODER, GARY MASSILLON

ANDERSON, DIXIE CUMBERLAND

BEMAN, LUTHER RAVENNABENNETT, EARL CHILLICOTHE

BERNARD JR, ROBERT CONNEAUT

BOYER, DONALD WADSWORTH

BRIGGS, RON ALGER

BROWN, JAMES BETHEL

BUCK, DELBERT GUYSVILLE

BURDETTE, MICHELLE GREEN SPRINGS

BURRER, CHARLENE SHILOH

CHAFFEE, JOYCE SOUTHINGTON

DEWEY, HOMER BURTON

ENNEY, JOHN PERRY

EUBANK, WILLIAM WHEELERSBURGH

EVANGELISTA, VIRGIE SUNBURY

FORGRAVE, DAWN DUNCAN FALLS

FRANKART, LAWRENCE REPUBLIC

GREEN, PEGGY CHILLICOTHE

GUK, CHRISTINA VALLEY CITY

HARMS, LLOYD NAPOLEON

HELLER, CYNTHIA XENIA

HOUSTON, MARGERY COLUMBIA STATION

HRINKO, MARY CAMBRIDGE

HUGHES, BRENDA SAINT LOUISVILLE

JASNOCH, GARRY SUNBURY

KELLY, JUDY SEVILLE

KEMPTON, DONALD LAURELVILLE

KOMER, MICHELLE NORWALK

MASON, JOHN BETHESDA

MAYERS, HAROLD HOWARD

MCCOY, DANNY & JOY XENIA

MILLER, LESTER SAINT MARYS

PENDERGRAST, ELAINE ANTWERP

POTTMEYER, LARRY LOWELL

RIGGS, MARY ANN FREEPORT

ROE, RALPH SALESVILLE

ROWLAND, ROBIN WELLINGTON

SATTERFIELD, DEBRA EAST PAALESTINE

SCHULTZ, FRED GENOA

SHELLHOUSE, SHARON TIFFIN

SMITH, DIANE DEGRAFF

SOMMER, RAYMOND WHEELERSBURGH

SPEARS, GEORGE NEW LONDON

STEWART, LARRY KENT

STIDD, DORIS ST CLAIRSVILLE

TACKETT, JAMES WAVERLYVAHALIK, ROBERT AMSTERDAM

WHARTON, WHITNEY WOOSTERWHITEMAN, GALEN MILLBURY

LEADERSHIP CIRCLE $50 $99

ADAMS, DON OAKWOOD

ADDINGTON, TAMMY HOLGATE

DUE TO LIMITED SPACE -ADDITIONAL RECENT PAC DONORS WILL BE LISTED IN THE NEXT PAPER.


THE ANNOUNCEMENT BOARD Welcome to: THE ANNOUNCEMENT BOARD This page can be used by any OHRLCA member for notices or announcements relating to the mem-bership. Just remember to have all postings to me by the next paper deadline. We reserve the right to edit as needed. Also this will be posted on the web site. ohrlca.org CONTACT INFORMATION: Sandy Laramee Editor/Webmaster [email protected]

"STAMP OUT HUNGER" FOOD DRIVE MAY 8, 2010 Every May, the National Association of Letter Carriers (NALC) holds its national food drive in more than 10,000 cities and towns across America. Rural carri-ers have always been firm supporters of the event, working side by side with city car-riers to collect food and directly contributing to the event’s success. This year, the NRLCA will assume a new national role in the drive as a full

national partner in the event alongside co-sponsors such as the U.S. Postal Service, Campbell Soup Company, Valpak, the AFL-CIO, United Way Worldwide and its local United Ways, and Feeding America, the nation’s food bank net-work. In its new national role, the NRLCA will assist NALC and the drive’s other co-sponsors in promoting the vol-unteer collection of non-perishable food on the second Saturday in May, encourage increased participation by rural carriers in the effort, and help deliver donations to local food banks, pantries and shelters. In connection with our new partnership the NRLCA logo will appear on all national publications and other promotional materials of the drive. With millions of Americans out of work and facing hunger, it is more important than ever to do our part to help out. We look forward to becoming a more active partner in the whole event and working closely with our brothers and sisters of the NALC for a very worthy cause. As always, participation in the drive is strictly voluntary. All rural carriers have a right not to participate unless given a direct order. If required to participate involuntarily, management must compensate the carrier in some way. I encourage each of you to consider the good that occurs through this en-deavor and participate if possible. This is from the NRLCA website under “What’s New”.

CONGRATULATIONS ALL THE BEST !!

William Hatcher retired June 2009 with 30 plus years. He was a “Million Miler” from the Bidwell Post Office.

THINKING OF YOU SHARON EDLER

Floyd Edler’s wife Sharon has been undergoing can-

cer treatment in Florida. She will be able to return to Ohio soon. We wish her all the best. Our thoughts and prayers are with you both. Sharon Edler 1060 Schrake Rd. Chillicothe, OH 45601

THINKING OF YOU DAVE KING Past Ohio State Steward Dave King has been going through a difficult journey for some time now. Several years of very serious health issues are still unresolved. Dave currently now faces even

more challenges. At the present time, Dave is undergoing many days of chemo and radiation. He will be going through this daily schedule for many weeks. He would greatly appreciate your prayers. Dave spent countless hours for many years serving the carriers of this state and retired in 2009. We can now send a little support his

way by sending a card, or prayer his way. Dave’s Address is : 61 Naples Valley Drive ,Ashland KY 41102-8371 We wish Dave the very best and pray for him as he goes through these trying times.

OUR DEEPEST SYMPATHY TO YOU AND YOUR

FAMILIES

FLOYD EDLER lost his mother Rosa Parker Edler this past month. Her service was held on March13 in Kingston. Floyd Edler, 1060 Schrake Rd. Chillicothe, OH 45601

ROBIN ROWLAND’S mother San-dra L. Flanagan recently passed away . Her funeral was held on March 2 in Tallmadge. Robin Rowland, 49945 Bursley Road Wellington, OH 44090-9270


AUXILIARY MEMBERS Get ready for the 2010 OHRLCA State Convention in Cincinnati !

July 11-13, 2010 (Hotel deadline June 18) Start making plans to attend the 2010 Ohio Rural Letter Carriers’ State Convention at the “Kings Island Resort” this summer! There will be many meetings and activities for the Auxiliary and the Juniors. National Auxiliary President Rick Fox will be your guest speaker. More details will be listed in the June/July Ohio Ru-ral Letter Carrier. There is still time to get in your Scholarships for the State. Contact any Aux-iliary Officer for details, or you can download a copy on ohrlca.org (Auxiliary page). I would like to take this time to invite all the State Delegates to bring there spouses to the Convention, we need their participation in our meetings.

ATTENTION IF YOU WISH YOUR NAME ON THE NATIONAL DELE-GATE BALLOT, HAVE YOUR NOMINATING BALLOT IN THE OFFICE OF : JOHN AICHHOLZ BY JUNE 1, 2010. The ballot draw for the place-ment on the election form will be June 3, 2010 at the Oak Harbor Public Library, 147 W. Main St,, Oak Harbor OH 43449, at 6:00 PM. This event is open to all members.

Auxiliary Officers President Paul Armbruster 123 Shaftsbury Road Troy, OH 45373 Phone 937-339-5966 Cell 937-308-0922 [email protected] Vice President Sandy Schwartz 10 Eastmoor Court New Bremen, OH 45869 Phone 419-629-3116 [email protected] Secretary/Treasurer Tillie Owen 10192 St. Rt. 88 Garrettsville, OH 44231 Phone 330-527-2456 Executive Committee Frank Satterfield 253 W. North Ave. East Palestine, OH 44413 Phone 330-426-1019 [email protected] Buddy Wilson 240 Township Rd 431 Toronto OH 43964-7719 Phone 740 537-4330 Paul Ortz 11696 Yngtwn Pitts New Middeltown OH 44442 Phone 330-542-9496 [email protected]

Junior Sponsor Pat Singelyn 18991 Munn Rd. Chagrin Falls, OH 44023 Phone 330-562-8886 [email protected]

The 2009-2010 Ohio Rural Letter Carriers’ Association Auxiliary

“A ‘Wake-Up Call’ at Rehab”

Following a hip replacement in mid February I was privi-leged to spend a couple weeks in rehab at a nursing home in Lima. That experience was helpful to my physical recovery and also served to remind me of simple blessings that are easily over looked by those of us who live ’normal, active lives’. Following a morning exercise routine led by a man who is also a high school boys’ basketball coach, I would push my walker to the dining hall for lunch.

Shortly, into that eating area an assortment of folks of various ages and conditions in wheel chairs would begin to arrive. Some able to slowly wheel themselves and others without the use of hands or feet were pushed in so they could be fed by one of the compassionate workers at the home. I formed a friendship with one of these people who appeared to be about 40 years old. Due to a terrible vehicle acci-dent, he will probably spend his remaining years completely dependent on others for his daily needs. We were both involved with riding horses in the past, so we shared memories of the ‘good old days’ when we thought we were cowboys.

Now I wake each morning thankful to God for the many uncounted blessings that enable me to participate in a productive and joy filled life…

P.S. Thanks rural carrier family for your prayers, cards and calls that are another reason for happiness!

Chaplain Ron Briggs

Auxiliary President Paul Armbruster

Veterans/Veterans’ Facilities In an effort to continue support for our National Auxiliary Americanism Project, we are includ-ing an ALWAYS NEEDED list that you can bring to the Spring District Meetings and also to the State Convention: White socks Tee Shirts in sizes L, XL, and 2X Shaving Cream Tooth brushes Tooth paste Deodorant Dominos Playing Cards Small Craft items Thank you for your support of Veterans!

WELCOME JUNIORS Notice to Parents of Juniors attending State Convention near King's Island! As usual, the Juniors will be doing a fun, recreational event and an educational event at the State Convention. However, due to the huge re-sponsibility in the King's Island Park and the Beach Water Park, these events will be parents only events if you so wish.

Thanks for your under-standing in advance. Pat Singlyn, Juniors & Paul Armbruster, Auxiliary

The Juniors from the 2009 Convention in-vite you to join them this year for lots of fun at the “King’s Island Resort” July 11-13.

OHIO JUNIORS

President Kendra Hausfeld [email protected]

Vice President Josh Jordon

Secretary Kelly Devine

Treasurer Kelsey Lacer


OHRLCA John Aichholz 7303 S. Twp Rd. 187 Attica, Ohio 44807-9424

Non-Profit U. S. Postage

PAID Permit # 8755

Columbus, OH

UPCOMING EVENTS

Spring District Meetings See last issue for details /ohrlca.org also page 5

Spring Board Meeting April 27-30 Kings Island Resort, Cincinnati

Mid States Conference Indianapolis ID May 7-9

Presidents/VP Legislative Conference Washington DC, May 16-18

State Convention Kings Island Resort Cincinnati ,July 11-13

National Convention Spokane WA, August 17-20

JULY 11-13

“KINGS ISLAND

RESORT”

2010 OHRLCA STATE CONVENTION

THE CONVENTION STARTS AT 1PM SUNDAY, JULY 11, AND ENDS TUESDAY AFTERNOON JULY 13

ROOMS $109.00

LOOK FOR DETAILS on page 3

Deadline for the June/July issue is

May 15, 2010.

Please have all articles to Editor Sandy Laramee by that date. [email protected] PLEASE NOTE: The last edition of the paper arrived later than usual since it was tar-geted for mail count.

NRLCA URGES CONGRESS TO MAINTAIN 6-DAY DELIVERY In response to the recent announcement by the Postmaster General that the USPS is asking Congress to remove appropriations language man-dating 6-day delivery by 2011, the NRLCA has stepped up its efforts to educate Congress about the dangers of such a proposal. In fact, moving to 5-day delivery would not only push much needed business away from the Postal Service, but it would also cost over 50,000 Rural Carrier jobs.

The National Board and Legislative De-partment urges you to contact your Member of Congress and voice your opposition to moving to 5-day delivery. You can also urge your Member to co-sponsor H. Res 173 which "expresses the sense of Congress to maintain 6-day mail delivery..."

Let your voice be heard and contact your Representatives and Senators today! Please feel free to contact the Legislative Department at the National Office for more information.

(See pages 12-15 in this issue for details.) Taken from nrlca.org DONATE TO PAC TO HELP

LOBBY CONGRESS ————————————————————-

2010 NRLCA Longaberger® Baskets Now Available

A Longaberger® Round Keeping Basket with the lid engraved with a rural mail box dated 2010 is now available. The lid has the “National Rural Let-ter Carrier’s Association”, “Service With A Smile” engraved on it. The mail box is blue with the flag up and the lid open and mounted on the post. The basket is 7” in diameter and 2-7/8” in height. The basket is warm brown in color with a primary trim strip of white and a secondary trim strip of royal blue. The trim strips are accented star tack covers. The baskets will be numbered and hopefully signed. A protector is included. The cost of the basket will be $93.00 and shipped by priority mail. The profit per basket will be $20 and goes to the PAC Fund. Make checks payable to: Raymond Nichols and mail to: Raymond Nichols, 20915 Nichols Lane Freeport, Ohio 43973 I would like to order: _____ Baskets @ $93.00 each = $__________

MAY 8 STAMP OUT

HUNGER JOINT FOOD

DRIVE Details page 18

PAC Chair Ray Nichols

The Ohio Rural Letter Carriers’ Association Official ... 2010.pdf · the Association lobby for...

Documents

Transcript of The Ohio Rural Letter Carriers’ Association Official ... 2010.pdf · the Association lobby for...