WHAT:
For nearly 100 years, the Postal Service’s “Letters to Santa” program has made holiday dreams come true for children in need. This year, the Postal Service and the Muppets have partnered to celebrate how postal employees, charitable organizations and businesses have made a difference in the lives of children coast to coast.

WHO:
John E. Potter, Postmaster General and CEO of the U.S. Postal Service
Kermit the Frog
Fozzie Bear

WHEN:
Tuesday, Dec. 1, 11 a.m. Media sign-in at 10:15 a.m.

WHERE:
James A. Farley Post Office, 421 Eighth Ave. New York City Enter Front Entrance on Eighth Avenue at 33rd St.

BACKGROUND:
Letters to Santa is a letter adoption program enabling members of the public and charitable organizations to respond to children’s letters addressed to Santa Claus, the North Pole and other seasonal characters. New York City’s program is the largest in the country, with tens of thousands of people adopting letters each year.

The Postal Service expects to deliver more than 16 billion cards, letters and packages between now and Christmas Eve. A postmark of Kermit the Frog will appear in the upper right-hand corner of holiday cards and letters across the nation throughout the month of December.

For a limited time, select Post Offices across the country are selling a holiday-themed Letters to Santa CD. The CD includes the song “Delivering Christmas” from the holiday special, A Muppets Christmas: Letters to Santa.

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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/news.

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 tax dollars. 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 26th in the 2008 Fortune 500.