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CONTENTS

The Postal Bulletin is also available on the World Wide Web at http://www.usps.com/cpim/ftp/bulletin/pb.htm for customers and at http://blue.usps.gov for employees.

Cover Letter: Mentoring a Child Stamp

Publicity Kit: Mentoring a Child Stamp

Customer Relations

Mail Alert

Domestic Mail

Reminder: Bound Printed Matter

APO/FPO Changes

Overseas Military Mail

Finance

Instructions: International Reply Coupons

International Mail

ICM Updates: International Customized
Mail

Fraud Alert

Withholding of Mail Orders

Domestic Orders

Invalid Express Mail Corporate Account
Numbers

Missing, Lost, or Stolen U.S. Money
Order Forms

Missing, Lost, or Stolen Canadian Money
Order Forms

Counterfeit Canadian Money Order
Forms

800 Number Available to Verify Canadian
Money Orders

International Mail (continued)

ICM Update: International Customized
Mail

Philately

Pictorial Cancellations Announcement

Special Cancellation Die Hubs

Post Offices

Post Office Changes

Publication 75 Notice: Post Offices Must
Not Give Large Quantities of Mover's
Guide to Organizations

Level 13 and Below Post Offices: Safety
and Health Inspections

Washington's Birthday Poster

Postal Employees

All Postal Employees: New Year Brings
"Goodyear" - Goodyear VIP Program

Thrift Savings Plan Fact Sheet

Purchasing and Materials

Boise Internet Ordering Site "i97" -
Deactivated

Retail

Handbook PO-102 Revision: Refund
Policies for Self Service Vending
Machines

Correction: PS Form 1094, Request for
Post Office Box Key or Lock Service

PS Form 2018 Revision: Vending Service Employees

Items Authorized for Sale in Self Service
Vending Machines

Postal Bulletin Distribution

Postal Bulletin Index

2001 Annual Index PB 22067 (1-10-02)

PUBLICITY KIT

Mentoring a Child Stamp

Publicity Ideas to Interest the Media

The Mentoring a Child stamp was issued January 10, 2002, in Annapolis, Maryland, and went on sale nationwide the next day. Local dedication ceremonies for the Mentoring a Child stamp can be held any time throughout the year.

Thousands of volunteers offer friendship, guidance, and support to young people through mentoring, and this stamp is expected to be of interest to many of them.

For information and links to mentoring organizations, visit the National Mentoring Partnership Web site at http://www.mentoring.org. Postal Service employees can find an electronic version of the Mentoring a Child stamp publicity kit on the intranet at http://blue.usps.gov. Click on References, then click on Postmaster Toolkits. That electronic version makes it easy to complete the fill-in-the-blank materials included in the kit.

Local and national publicity help increase commemorative stamp sales at Post Offices long after the date of issuance. There are many ways to interest local media in your Mentoring a Child event.

Here are some methods to capture a reporter's attention:

• Hold a stamp dedication ceremony and invite Congressional, community, and mentoring organization leaders; mentors; and those they mentor to participate. Present them with panes of the stamp or an enlarged image of the stamp.

• The Postal Service employs approximately 800,000 people; many are mentors, or their lives were changed by a caring adult mentor. Recognize local postal mentors at a Mentoring a Child stamp ceremony. Invite Congressional, community, and mentoring organization leaders to participate.

• Coordinate an essay-writing contest or art contest using the Mentoring a Child stamp theme. Ask local newspaper editors to judge essays and select winners. Have local art teachers judge art entries. And invite winners to your stamp ceremony to recognize their work and present them with a pane of stamps or other philatelic collectible.

• Hold an open house at your Post Office or plant. Ask postal employee mentors to be your honored guests and/or hosts. Invite Congressional, community, and mentoring organization leaders.

Implement any of these ideas, combine them, or brainstorm with your employees to come up with other ideas. Be sure to publicize each and every event to your local newspaper, radio, and television stations via press releases, media advisories, letters to the media, and follow-up phone calls.

Event Planning Checklist

When planning Mentoring a Child stamp events, keep the following suggestions in mind:

• Begin planning immediately.

• Using the list of mentoring organizations available at http://www.mentoring.org, check with mentoring organizations in your community to see if they will participate in a Mentoring a Child stamp event in your city.

• Set a date.

• Secure participants (postal employee mentors, community leaders, etc.).

• Order enlargements of the stamp image, flyers, and other supplies for the event.

• Prepare a pictorial cancellation from the approved design included in this kit.

• Secure staging and sound equipment, if applicable.

• Plan signage, including a podium sign and banners.

• Launch a local publicity campaign using the materials in this kit.

• Draft an agenda and remarks for speakers.

• Plan retail opportunities (booths, bag stuffers, etc.).

• Prepare ceremony programs and invitations.

Note: To help coordinate these activities, or if you have questions, please contact your Area Public Affairs and Communications (PA&C) representative.

Speech Segment

The following suggested speech segment is for use at local ceremonies and events. Feel free to customize it to fit your local event and community.

Good [INSERT "MORNING" / "AFTERNOON"].

It is a tremendous honor for me to represent the United States Postal Service today as we dedicate the Mentoring a Child stamp, and it's a wonderful opportunity to recognize and thank the thousands of mentors serving the youth of our country.

With this stamp the Postal Service continues its tradition of raising public awareness of social issues and recognizes the vital role mentoring plays in helping our young people develop into successful, happy adults.

Many postal employees volunteer and work with young people in their local communities.

We are extremely proud of postal employees who volunteer, and it is my hope that the Mentoring a Child stamp will help Americans focus on the friendship, guidance, and support of these people, many of whom are our neighbors, friends, and family members. They work "behind the scenes" to ensure that young people from any background have the opportunity to benefit from relationships with committed adults outside their families.

And, now, if [INSERT NAMES OF CEREMONY PARTICIPANTS] would join me in unveiling the Mentoring a Child stamp...

I appreciate this opportunity to introduce this stamp to our customers and friends in this community. Thank you again for taking the time to join us here today for this important occasion.

# # #

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE Contact: [INSERT YOUR NAME]
[INSERT DATE] [INSERT YOUR PHONE NUMBER]
Internet: www.usps.com

For Event Calendar/Weekend Advisory Editor

Mentors to Be Honored With Unveiling of New Postage Stamp

[INSERT YOUR CITY, STATE] - Mentors from [INSERT YOUR CITY] will be honored [INSERT DATE] by the U.S. Postal Service with the dedication of a new commemorative postage stamp at a ceremony at [INSERT LOCATION].

[INSERT CITY] Postmaster [INSERT NAME] will host a [INSERT TIME] ceremony to honor the mentors and mentoring organizations of this community. Also participating in the ceremony will be [INSERT NAMES AND TITLES OF PARTICIPANTS]. The 34-cent Mentoring a Child stamp will be available at the ceremony and is available at Post Offices nationwide.

"The Mentoring a Child stamp pays tribute to the thousands of volunteers who offer friendship, guidance, and support to young people through mentoring," said [INSERT POSTMASTER'S LAST NAME], who will unveil the stamp.

With the Mentoring a Child stamp, the Postal Service continues its tradition of raising public awareness of social issues.

The 34-cent self-adhesive stamp, designed and illustrated by Lance Hidy, features a striking, computer-generated design depicting an adult offering guidance to a child. The type on the stamp reads "Mentoring a Child" at the top, and "Values * Goals * Skills" at the bottom.

To see the Mentoring a Child stamp and other 2002 stamps and stationery, visit the Postal Store at http://shop.usps.com; click on Release Schedule. To see previous releases, click on Stamp Issues.

# # #

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE Contact: [INSERT YOUR NAME]
[INSERT DATE] [INSERT YOUR PHONE NUMBER]
Internet: www.usps.com

Public Service Announcement for Radio

PUBLIC INVITED TO HONOR MENTORS

Mentoring a Child postage stamp will be unveiled
in [INSERT CITY] on [INSERT DATE]

[INSERT YOUR CITY, STATE] - Mentors from [INSERT YOUR CITY] will be honored [INSERT DATE] by the U.S. Postal Service with the dedication of a new commemorative postage stamp at a ceremony at [INSERT LOCATION].

[INSERT CITY] Postmaster [INSERT NAME] invites everyone to [INSERT LOCATION] to honor local mentors and mentoring organizations on [INSERT DATE] from [INSERT TIME] to [INSERT TIME].

On that day, the United States Postal Service will dedicate the new Mentoring a Child postage stamp, which pays tribute to the thousands of men and women who generously volunteer as mentors within our nation and community.

Come take a moment to say "thank you" for a job well done. For more information about the Mentoring a Child stamp, go to the Postal Service Web site at www.usps.com.

- end -

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE Contact: [INSERT YOUR NAME]
[INSERT DATE] [INSERT YOUR PHONE NUMBER]
Internet: www.usps.com

Media Advisory

LOCAL MENTORS TO BE HONORED IN [INSERT CITY] WITH UNVEILING OF
NEW POSTAGE STAMP

EVENT: Dedication and unveiling of the Mentoring a Child commemorative postage stamp.

WHO: [INSERT LIST OF CEREMONY PARTICIPANTS AND NOTABLE GUESTS OR KEY OFFICIALS]

WHAT: [INSERT DETAILS OF EVENT]

WHEN: [INSERT HOUR, DAY, AND DATE]

WHERE: [INSERT EXACT LOCATION OF EVENT]

BACKGROUND: The Mentoring a Child commemorative stamp pays tribute to those who volunteer as mentors, offering friendship, guidance, and support to young people through mentoring organizations that include Communities in Schools, Girl Scouts of the USA, 100 Black Men of America, Everybody Wins!, Big Brothers Big Sisters of America, and Boys & Girls Clubs of America, as well as schools, religious communities, and corporations.

CONTACT: [INSERT NAME(S) AND PHONE NUMBER(S) OF POSTMASTER OR OTHER CONTACTS]

# # #

Mentoring a Child Pictorial Cancellation

The Postal Service has authorized a pictorial cancellation design for field use to help spread awareness about the Mentoring a Child commemorative stamp. Post Offices planning events are encouraged to use the design depicted below. Offices can offer this cancellation through mail-back service for 60 days.

As a reminder, the Postal Service must endeavor to make all unusual postmarking services widely known to collectors through advance publicity to avoid limiting the availability of these postmarks. Therefore, all pictorial cancellations must be reported to Stamp Development 3 weeks prior to local events. Please use the announcement form on the following page to report your use of the cancellation.

Guidelines for Finalizing Mentoring a Child Stamp Pictorial Cancellation Art

To finalize the Mentoring a Child Station pictorial cancellation art, insert the date, city, state, and ZIP Code of the physical location of your event in the cancellation design. Refer to the original/unfinished and finished art below. Overall dimensions of the pictorial cancellation must not exceed 4 inches horizontally by 2 inches vertically. Collectors prefer 3 1/2 inches by 1 inch.

Mentoring a Child Products and Licensing

Mentoring a Child Stamp Products

First Day Cover - $0.55

Licensing and Use of Mentoring a Child Stamp Image

• Organizations outside the Postal Service desiring products featuring the Mentoring a Child stamp image will be directed to authorized Postal Service licensees. Available products may include T-shirts, mugs, key rings, lapel pins, and so on. Such products may be resold by organizations for fundraising efforts.

• The Postal Service will consider waiving licensing fees for IRS-qualified nonprofit organizations that want to use the Mentoring a Child stamp image for products or uses not addressed by Postal Service licensees. Nonprofit organizations must submit their requests in writing to the following address:

EILENE KENT
EQUITY MANAGEMENT INC.
3 PARK AVENUE 31ST FLOOR
NEW YORK NY 10016-5902

• Written requests must reference the Mentoring a Child stamp and must include the name of the nonprofit organization or association, complete address, contact name, telephone number, IRS federal tax exempt number, and a brief description of the proposed use.

• Upon approval, nonprofit organizations will receive a transparency of the Mentoring a Child stamp image, along with further approval procedures and reproduction specifications.

• Any use of the Mentoring a Child stamp image by for- profit entities will require application for a license. Applications are available through Equity Management at the address above or by calling (212) 725-9066.

Postal Service Licensees

- Community Relations Public Affairs and Communications, 1-24-02