WHAT:
The official dedication of the Postal Service 2010 social awareness stamp: Animal Recue: Adopt a Shelter Pet. The stamps go on sale nationwide.

WHO:
Joseph Corbett
Chief Financial Officer and Executive Vice President, U.S. Postal Service

Ellen DeGeneres
Talk show host, animal advocate and co-owner, HALO, Purely for Pets

Wayne Pacelle
President and CEO, Humane Society of the United States

Betsy Saul
Co-Founder of petfinder.com

Jone Bouman
Director of Communications, Film & TV Unit, American Humane Association

WHEN:
Friday, April 30 at 2:00 p.m. PT. Doors open for the public at 1:15 p.m.

WHERE:
The Academy of Television Arts & Sciences
5220 Lankershim Boulevard
North Hollywood, CA

BACKGROUND:
The 44-cent stamps feature photographs of five cats and five dogs from animal shelters — seven from the New Milford Animal Shelter in Connecticut.

The stamps were introduced to the public on The Ellen DeGeneres Show last month. The Postal Service has been working with DeGeneres and HALO, a holistic pet care company she co-owns, to promote the stamps and the Stamps to the Rescue campaign. The campaign was created by the Postal Service to provide additional information about the stamps and pet adoption and includes posters featuring DeGeneres in post offices nationwide and an internet presence at www.stampstotherescue.com.

Although estimates vary, most sources agree that animal shelters take in millions of dogs and cats every year in the United States. Sadly, nearly half are euthanized. Adoption could save more shelter pets from this fate. With this pane of 10 stamp designs, the U.S. Postal Service hopes to raise awareness of the need to adopt shelter pets.

ADDITIONAL:
A table will be set up for all media to sign in. Credentials are not required. On-site and on-street parking will be available for media. Garages are available near the Academy for attendees to park for a small fee.

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Please Note: For broadcast quality video and audio, photo stills and other media resources, visit the USPS Newsroom at www.usps.com/communications/newsroom/welcome.htm.

A self-supporting government enterprise, the U.S. Postal Service is the only delivery service that reaches every address in the nation, 150 million residences, businesses and Post Office Boxes. The Postal Service receives no direct support from taxpayers. With 36,000 retail locations and the most frequently visited website in the federal government, the Postal Service relies on the sale of postage, products and services to pay for operating expenses. Named the Most Trusted Government Agency five consecutive years and the sixth Most Trusted Business in the nation by the Ponemon Institute, the Postal Service has annual revenue of more than $68 billion and delivers nearly half the world’s mail. If it were a private sector company, the U.S. Postal Service would rank 28th in the 2009 Fortune 500.