The USPS is dropping a popular national program begun in 1954 at its office in North Pole, Alaska. volunteers would open and respond to thousands of letters addressed to Santa each year. Replies come complete with North Pole postmarks.
You might assume it's because the USPS is losing money, and the program is expensive. While that might be true, you'd be wrong.
However, an incident in Maryland, far away from Alaska, is ending that program. Last year, a Maryland postal worker recognized an Operation Santa volunteer as a registered sex offender. The postal worker stopped the volunteer before he could answer a child's letter, but the USPS has tightened rules in such programs nationwide.
The instituted changes include the following: volunteers are prohibited from having direct access to children's last names and addresses, which are instead redacted from each letter and replaced with codes that match computerized addresses known only to the USPS. It is up to individual post offices to determine if they want to participate in the program, due to the extra expense and time.
Due to all of this, letters which formerly were generically addressed to Santa Claus, North Pole and were delivered to North Pole, Alaska, will go to Anchorage instead. Citizens of North Pole are understandably upset.
Mayor Doug Isaacson says the USPS didn't bother to inform the city of North Pole of the changes, just instituted them. North Pole considers the letter processing program and all aspects of Christmas a big part of the city's identity. Included in the city's highlights are an everything-Christmas store, Santa Claus House, and the post office. Visitors there can get a hand-stamped postmark on their postcards and packages if they ask for it.
“This is the Grinch loading Christmas on his sleigh, stealing it from the kids, and unless something will melt his heart, the postal service’s heart, and open it up to the spirit of Christmas again, it's going to be devastating to many people,” said Isaacson.
A letter from Alaska's Congressional representatives protesting the move is already being prepared. It will be sent to the USPS, so it's possible the decision can be reversed. Until then, kids can expect to see Anchorage instead of North Pole on some postmarks, along with some coal, this holiday season.
Written by Michael Santo
HULIQ.com
Posted November 19th, 2009 by Michael Santo
