USPSNEWS@WORK
There's no place like USPS for the
holidays — Holiday guide helps
customers decide
 Busy shoppers have
fewer shipping worries this
holiday season - thanks
to USPS. The Postal
Service's Holiday Shipping and Mailing Guide
was delivered to more
than 110 million customers in November. It's filled
with customer-friendly information on the Postal
Service's most popular
products, services and
time-saving features. The
six-panel guide is designed to resemble the popular hobby
of scrap-booking, with borders of holiday ornaments and
tree lights, ribbons and bows, and snowmen and snowflake
cutouts.
"Everyone can use a little extra help around the holidays. We know that customers want more choices and
convenience to help manage their time, especially this time
of year," said Chief Marketing Officer Anita Bizzotto. "The
holiday guide is one more way for us to help families enjoy
the best the season has to offer."
The Postal Service issued its first holiday mailing guide
in 2004. All of the information contained in the Holiday
Shipping and Mailing Guide also can be found at
www.usps.com/holiday.
FSA — don't forget to pay yourself back
Employees considering 2007 flexible spending accounts
(FSAs) during this year's open season, which runs through
Dec. 31, might want to review their 2006 health receipts as
well.
For several years, FSA participants have been able to
claim reimbursement for many of the products and services
they purchase routinely. Costs for items like allergy medicines, baby care products, first aid kits, motion sickness
remedies and over-the-counter pain relievers are eligible
for FSA reimbursement.
Out-of-pocket fees for prescriptions, orthodontia and
dentist visits, vision exams, medical deductibles, doctor
visit co-pays - even summer camps and day care for
dependent children and parents - also are reimbursable.
So, there are lots of reasons for postal employees with dollars in their FSA accounts to check the list one more time.
For more information, you can go to liteblue.usps.gov, call 800-842-2026 or use an Employee Self-Service Kiosk.
Potter's world — magazine charts
PMG's career
 PMG Jack Potter is the cover story in
the current issue of Government
Leader magazine.
"Balance, respect, and
compromise."
These are the words Government Leader ma-
gazine uses in its current
issue to describe Postmaster General Jack
Potter's leadership style.
The article traces
Potter's career at the
Postal Service, focusing
on his accomplishments
as PMG and the improved performance of
USPS in recent years. It reports in depth on Potter's management style, forged as he rose through the ranks and
crystallized in a conversation with basketball hall of famer
Bill Russell.
To read the article, go to www.governmentleader.com/issues/1_10/features/239-1.html.
Fresno, CA, postmaster hosts special
dedication for holiday stamps
 Kamal Abu-Shamsieh, left, Director of
the Fresno, CA, Islamic Cultural Center;
Fresno Postmaster Ramona Frankfort
and Customer Relations Coordinator
Ben Romero attended the special
dedication event.
Fresno Postmaster
Ramona Frankfort recently celebrated this
year's Holiday Celebrations stamps by inviting
attendees representing
the diverse elements of
her community. Featured
at the event were the EID, Hanukkah, Christmas, Kwanzaa and Snowflakes stamps.
Frankfort's goal was straightforward. "The concept was
to gather members of all cultures, faiths and backgrounds
in one common ceremony," she said.
Frankfort held the event at the Islamic Cultural Center in
Fresno. A captain from the city's fire department opened
the ceremony, reciting the Pledge of Allegiance. Representatives from Fresno's Muslim, Jewish, Christian and Afro-
American communities spoke to an audience of 250.
Anderson wins Dot Sharpe Lifetime
Achievement Award
 Venedocia, OH, Postmaster and
Nominator Janette Degen, left; District
Manager Lori Wigley and Eastern Area
Vice President Alexander Lazaroff
admire the Dot Sharpe award won by
Billy Anderson, right.
Billy Anderson, the
Senior Post Office Operations Manager for the
Cincinnati District, has
won the USPS Dot
Sharpe Lifetime Achievement Award.
Anderson has been a
role model throughout
his career, mentoring
and opening doors for
others. He is a founder of the African-American Postal
League United for Success (A-PLUS), a USPS-based
organization and an important partner in working toward an
inclusive workforce.
The long list of other organizations and projects
Anderson supports includes the USPS Bone Marrow Drive,
mentoring of students at Dayton, OH, area schools and the
Prime Example Association, a community organization providing support to underprivileged children.
The Dot Sharpe Lifetime Achievement Award is part of
the National Diversity Awards program and honors Postal
Service employees who have made extraordinary
contributions during their careers to promote the basic principles of diversity.
Supply Management manages nearly $1
million in cost avoidance
When flat-rate Priority Mail was introduced, customers
loved the service. So much so that it wasn't long before envelopes filled to capacity were causing processing problems when the adhesive sealing the envelope failed to hold.
Enter the Supply Management Expedited Package
Services Package and Container team.
Under an incentive clause negotiated with packaging
supplier Bell, Inc., the company added a "primer" to the envelope that allows the adhesive strip to bond more quickly
and aggressively when it's sealed. The primer also has
been added to regular Priority Mail, Express Mail and Global Mail envelopes.
The result - no spills, no messes and more than
$869,000 in cost avoidance.
Santa letters — guidelines for good
deeds
Operation Santa, Letters to Santa and similar programs
raise concern among some employees about our ability to
give away "Dear Santa" letters. What about the sanctity of
the mail and the promise we make to protect the contents of
letters entrusted to our care?
As a general rule, employees aren't allowed to access
the cover or contents of mail. However, to support the
Santa programs, Administrative Support Manual 274.5k
reads:
"the Postal Service or authorized third party may
open, read, and respond to mail, or contact the sender, regarding correspondence that is addressed to
"Santa Claus," "the North Pole," or similar seasonal
characters or destinations and which would otherwise
be undeliverable as addressed."
Guidelines for how to handle these letters have been
distributed to the field. If your office is distributing Santa letters, make sure you follow the guidelines.
And if you create a name and address list - whether it's
employees, benefactors or recipients - you need to follow
the requirements of the Privacy Act.
For more information or a copy of the guidelines, contact
Public Affairs and Communications at letterstosanta@usps.gov.
USPS National Emergency Hotline
Is your facility operating?
Call 888-363-7462
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