SOMERS, NY – Postmaster Judi Sullivan is supporting the Celebrate Somers community event on Saturday, September 9, by hosting  Bonnie Sue Rauch Day at the Somers Post Office, 110 Market Plaza. Local photographer Bonnie Sue Rauch will be in the Post Office lobby from 10 a.m. – 12 p.m. on Saturday to meet the public, sign autographs and discuss her photograph that was selected to appear on the Postal Service’s new Protect Pollinators Forever postage stamps.

Rauch, a Somers resident, is an adjunct Professor at Westchester County Community College and a private pilot. She has been taking photographs of nature for more than 45 years. Her work has been published in textbooks, magazines, calendars, websites, and now - a U.S. postage stamp.    

In addition to Bonnie Sue Rauch at the Post Office, Celebrate Somers Community Day at Somers Towne Center features food vendors, activities for the kids, businesses showcasing their services, entertainment, and opportunities to meet and greet local leaders, friends, and neighbors.   

The U.S. Postal Service recently paid tribute to the beauty and importance of pollinators with the August 3 nationwide release of stamps depicting two of North America’ s most iconic pollinators - the monarch butterfly and the western honeybee. The new Protect Pollinators stamps depict the insects pollinating a variety of North American plants, including the zinnia, coneflower, golden ragwort, New England aster and goldenrod.

Monarch butterflies and western honeybees are two species that help grow many of our continent’s agriculture through pollination. According to research by Cornell University, crop pollination by insects is valued at more than $15 billion to the U.S. economy each year.

Declines in pollinator populations from pesticides, land-use changes and agricultural practices are a reminder that these creatures need mindful human protection.

The Postal Service receives no tax dollars for operating expenses and relies on the sale of postage, products and services to fund operations.

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