SAN FRANCISCO – All drivers could learn a thing or two about safe driving from 61 San Francisco Postal District employees. On Nov. 28 and 30, 61 letter carriers were honored for successfully navigating the streets, highways and byways in and around the San Francisco and North Bay areas for 30 years or more without a preventable accident.
The drivers were recognized for driving an estimated one million miles each and received a plague from the National Safety Council for their accomplishment and a lifetime membership in the prestigious National Safety Council “Million Mile Club.” In addition, District Manager Rosemarie Fernandez presented each recipient with a coveted San Francisco District Million Mile Club jacket.
To put the distance in perspective, imagine driving coast-to-coast 334 times without ever leaving the city limits or driving around the equator 40 times. That is the equivalent of what these drivers accomplished as they logged over a million miles on their appointed rounds.
The nation’s 32,000 Post Offices are linked by 221,000 vehicles — the world’s largest civilian fleet. As one of America’s last vestiges to make house calls, 340,000 letter carriers and truck drivers log more than 1.2 billion miles annually when delivering to America’s 150 million addresses.
Drivers should consider some advice from the U.S. Postal Service and its over 6,000 million mile drivers.
- Drive defensively — expect the unexpected.
- Maintain a distance of one car length for every 10 M.P.H. between you and the car in front of you.
- Keep your options open — have a “what do I do if I’m cut off” strategy.
- Turn off mobile devices when driving — no cell phones or texting.
The drivers that were honored are:
From the North Bay Area: Arcata: Alan J. Sekera, Dana R. Utman, Cloverdale: Phyllis E. Morse, Corte Madera: Keith W. Prior, Eureka: Michael R. Webb, David D. Hillegeist, Linda E. Byrd, Mill Valley: James R. Percy, Novato: Edith Robertson, James B. Long, Kenneth S. Schneider, Richard A. Silva, Petaluma: Michael T. Leonhardt, James M. Kelley, Kenneth Olson, Rio Dell: Henry G Anaya Jr., San Rafael: Ralph W. Mendonca, Santa Rosa: Ken Tsuchimoto, Judith L Fitch, Sausalito: William Fong, Sebastopol: James J Richter, Ukiah: Bryon Boyce.
From San Francisco Bay Area: San Francisco: Jack H. Chan, Alfred Jew, Lawrence J. Gerigk, Brisbane: Gil M. Eliares, Burlingame: Vernon K. Ishizaki, Daly City: Arnel M. Amper, Felicisimo M. Natividad, Hector P. Palada, Leilani Amores, Ray Tam, Renato B. Centinaje, Rhamcie D. Camacho, Ricardo Austria, Half Moon Bay: Ajay Diesh, Christopher Drilling, Los Altos: Jeffrey S. Osborne, Seung C. Chae, Menlo Park: David L. Wilson, George W. Yuen, Joan G. Kuntz, Rufino S. Valencia, Mountain View: David K. Tse, John C. Chagoya, Pacifica: Ramiro A. Apolonio Jr., Donna L. Langsjoen, Palo Alto: Calvin Cooper, Edgardo N. Velasquez, Gilbert Rodriguez, Roldolfo H. Sto Domingo, Redwood City: Francis K. Chow, Kin M. Wong, Michael G. Hom, San Carlos: David Chiang, San Mateo: Joseph D. Isidro, Keith S. Gee, Raoul C. Claret, Sunnyvale: Margaret M Tousseau, Sammy C. Martinez, Steven R. Simpson.
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A self-supporting government enterprise, the U.S. Postal Service is the only delivery service that reaches every address in the nation — 151 million residences, businesses and Post Office™ Boxes. The Postal Service™ receives no tax dollars for operating expenses, and relies on the sale of postage, products and services to fund its operations. With 32,000 retail locations and the most frequently visited website in the federal government, usps.com®, the Postal Service has annual revenue of more than $65 billion and delivers nearly 40 percent of the world’s mail. If it were a private sector company, the U.S. Postal Service would rank 35th in the 2011 Fortune 500. In 2011, Oxford Strategic Consulting ranked the U.S. Postal Service number one in overall service performance of the posts in the top 20 wealthiest nations in the world. Black Enterprise and Hispanic Business magazines ranked the Postal Service as a leader in workforce diversity. The Postal Service has been named the Most Trusted Government Agency for six years and the sixth Most Trusted Business in the nation by the Ponemon Institute.
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