SHINGLE SPRINGS, CA—Diane Heard will follow a proud tradition dating back to 1775 when Benjamin Franklin was installed as the first Postmaster General under the Continental Congress. On Friday, October 9, 2009, 9 a.m., Heard will raise her right hand to take the official oath of office at the Shingle Springs Post Office, 4131 S. Shingle Rd, Shingle Springs CA 95682.

Heard, 53, started her postal career in 1976 as a city letter carrier in Ketchikan AK. She worked at post offices in Grand Forks, ND, and at Citrus Heights and Folsom. In 1999, she became a supervisor of customer services at the Folsom Post Office. Prior to her selection as Shingle Springs Postmaster, she served as the El Dorado Postmaster.

“I am honored and proud to serve the people of Shingle Springs and Cameron Park as their new Postmaster,” said Heard. “Never before in the history of the Postal Service have we faced the challenges that we face today. My commitment to my employees and my customers is to meet those challenges with the highest regard for customer service.”

Heard and her husband, Jeff, have two children, Lea, 25, and Jacob, 23. They reside in Folsom.

As Shingle Springs Postmaster, Heard oversees 42 employees who process and deliver a daily mail volume of 60,000 pieces to 11, 542 delivery points (addresses) within the communities of Shingle Springs and Cameron Park, plus 1, 801 Post Office boxes, and oversees the delivery to 1,619 addresses for the Rescue Post Office. Her delivery network includes 23 Rural Routes and four Highway Contract Routes.

Theresa Hartenstein, Manager Post Office Operations, will administer the oath of office.

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An independent federal agency, the U.S. Postal Service is the only delivery service that reaches every address in the nation, 149 million residences, businesses and Post Office Boxes, six days a week. It has 34,000 retail locations and relies on the sale of postage, products and services, not tax dollars, to pay for operating expenses. Named the Most Trusted Government Agency five consecutive years by the Ponemon Institute, the Postal Service has annual revenue of $75 billion and delivers nearly half the world’s mail.