9°

For those of us with post office boxes in Douglas, it is always a pleasure to visit with the guys behind the counter, Lee and Dean. Not only do they do their jobs well, they are helpful and courteous, and they keep alive the small town flavor of the Douglas Post Office.

Though I grew up in Douglas, I live in downtown now. But I keep my mailbox in Douglas because of these guys.

Beyond the local office, I appreciate the importance of the entire postal service to our town and our economy. In many other nations, simply getting a p.o. box is a bureaucratic nightmare. Service is slow, unreliable and erratic.

Traveling in one such country last year, I heard horror stories from a small business owner about corruption, inefficiencies and the difficulties of running a business without a reliable postal service. This made me appreciative of our own post office, and especially Dean and Lee. Here in Alaska their work particularly helps us all with a much-needed connection to the outside world, to keep in touch with relatives and get important parts and supplies for our equipment and businesses.

Sure there may be too many bills and dubious credit card offers in the mail, and we've all heard a few jokes about postal workers. But we should all be grateful for the integrity of people like Lee and Dean and for their friendly and professional service.

Ian Fisk

Juneau