7QUESTIONS+PLUS

Bob Williams, the Somers postmaster since 1993. After serving four years of active duty in the United States Navy and 16 years of inactive duty in the United States Air Force Reserves, Williams joined the Postal Service in 1981as a Letter Carrier in Natchez, Miss. He transferred to Racine the next year and became a supervisor in 1988. An avid Green Bay Packers fan and a deacon in the New Omega Church in Racine, Williams has been married to his wife Martha for 25 years. He has one stepdaughter and three grandchildren.

Bob Williams will now take your questions ...

What are your duties as postmaster? Let me start by saying how proud I am to work for the United States Postal Service, an organization with a 200-plus-year tradition. I hold the position of postmaster which is both an honor and a blessing. My duties as postmaster here at the Somers Post Office, involve the sorting of incoming mail into the post office boxes, helping customers with their daily postal needs such as purchasing postage stamps, weighing and mailing of packages both national and international, and providing the best service to my customers — that is just to name a few of my duties.

What led you to a career with the Postal Service? Growing up, I have always had the greatest respect for the Postal Service. The letter carrier is seen every day and touches so many lives, and to me they always looked and performed their job in a professional manner. After leaving the Navy, I knew that I wanted to be a part of something special. And the Postal Service was just what I was looking for – a place where the public has rated our service as the most trusted federal government organization. As you may know, the Postal Service and the Letter Carriers hold the nations largest one-day food drive. What a great place to work!

What significant changes have you seen over the years? For example, the rise of internet e-mail as a form of communication? I feel the most significant change in the Postal Service is automation. We are a world leader in developing and using optical character recognition – our equipment reads more than 91 percent of the hand-written addresses on envelopes. We have also embraced the internet by having our products and services available online. The Postal Service Web site enables customers to conduct their postal business online from the comfort of their home or business. Check our site at www.usps.com you can buy stamps, ship packages, request carrier pickup, change your address and there is NetPost Card Store which lets you create high-quality, personalized greeting cards online. The five most utilized areas on usps.com are Track and Confirm, Zip Code Lookup, Rate Calculator, Post Office Locator, Click-N-Ship

Do you believe that some day all of our mail transactions will happen via the Internet? Are you offended by the term snail mail? The Post Office provides a variety of services. Not all transactions can be handled over the internet. We're proud that our customers take the excellent service we provide for granted. Across the nation, we deliver 95 percent of local mail overnight. Most people would consider this an example of fast service. My office is part of the Lakeland District and the Lakeland District ranks in the top third of on-time overnight delivery.
There's still nothing like receiving a personal letter, a postcard, a birthday card or a holiday card in the mail. I prefer to call our product — real mail.

What do you expect to happen during the holiday season when individuals are trying to send Christmas packaging? Especially, when they are surprised to find out that boat service is no longer a viable way to send presents overseas? We expect them to receive the same excellent service we provide every day. We do encourage customers to mail early to ensure their cards and packages are delivered on time for the holiday season.

How has automation changed the work force or the way mail is processed at your post office? We have a long, proud history of creating and using the most advanced technology available. Like most industry we must automate to be competitive. Since we process mail differently, our employee’s duties and assignments have also changed. The Postal Service has one of the world’s largest e-mail systems, delivering more than 9 million e-mails a day. The Postal Service has the largest intranet in the world. Today, nearly 340,000 employees use computers on a daily basis at work. Needless to say, 10 and 20 years ago computer usage was not a large part of our jobs.

If you weren’t working for the Postal Service, what other job might you be doing? It's really hard to say, since leaving active military duty, the Postal Service is all I have ever known. But I would probably feel comfortable doing something related to public service.

How do you spend holidays that mail is not delivered? Holidays for me are spent resting for the next day. The day after a holiday around here can prove to be very demanding. Although, it may be a holiday, in some areas throughout the Postal Service, in some capacity, mail is still being processed and moved. You sometimes get what seems like a double portion of incoming mail the next day.

What do you enjoy eating for lunch? I wish that I could tell you that I am a health food fanatic, but I’m not. I love all fast foods — like burgers, fries, pizza etc.

Who’s your favorite TV mailman? Do you relate to Cliff from “Cheers” ? I enjoy a good sitcom as much as anyone. But all kidding aside, delivering the mail is a lot harder than you think. It requires physical stamina, attention to detail, and sometimes working in extreme cold, heat, the pouring rain or snow up to your waist. I don’t have a favorite television mailman, but I do have a favorite movie mailman. It's Kevin Costner in the movie “The Postman.”

How has the rise in gas prices affected your deliveries? When fuel costs rise just one penny, the Postal Service costs increase $8 million.

What is the U.S. Postal Service doing about recycling? Has the federal government enforced any policies? The Postal Service is reducing the use of paper, supporting the use of recycled paper, and recycling waste paper have been goals for nearly two decades. New water-based inks used to print stamps are made from soybeans and contain no lead or other heavy metals. Stamps contain a gum-free pressure sensitive adhesive making them easier to recycle. These are just a few of the recycling and waste reduction measures. The Postal Service won the 2006 EPA Waste Wise Partner of the Year Award –for the seventh straight year – for reducing solid and industrial wastes. This voluntary program assists and challenges organization to reduce waste in innovative ways. Oh I need to mention we operate the world’s largest fleet of alternative fuel vehicles – more than 36,000 –that can use clean fuels such as ethanol, compressed natural gas, electricity and bio-diesel.

What factor(s) determine whether a post office offers home mail delivery or PO Box mail delivery only? I would think that in this day and age that home delivery should be available to residents of any zip code. Each area is unique in its development, regardless of its geographical location and because of the circumstances present during the different stages of development. The method of delivery is determined at that time. With growth or decrease in deliveries, the type of service may change. The Postal Service closely monitors communities to ensure we meet our customers’ needs.

What ever happen to the art of letter-writing? Do you still write letters? Letter writing is not a lost art. Ask anyone in the military and serving overseas – there is nothing better than to receive a letter that you can hold in your hands and reread as often you like.

What’s the most interesting or unique thing you’ve seen come through the mail? The arrival of two or three-day old precious baby chicks. There's nothing like being greeted by little chirps when you arrive in the morning. But, what is even more satisfying is regardless of the distance they may have traveled, they’re still alive. This is a testament to our service.

Why can’t a stamp just be 25 cents? Why must the price change so often? We certainly understand the impact that a rate increase imposes on our customers. However, it is important to remember that the Postal Services receives no tax dollar subsidies for operations and relies solely on the sale of our products and services to cover operating expenses. In moving the mail, we are subject to the same market forces and costs as any other business that must purchase gas or oil, air and ground transportation, business supplies and equipment, and all other items it takes to run a people-intensive delivery service.

Are concerns about anthrax and other hazardous materials coming through the post office still relevant? The United States Postal Service is committed to keeping its employees and customers safe. To help counter the threat of anthrax in the mail, the Postal Service has developed a Biohazard Detection System (BDS) that will detect anthrax in the mail. The system is designed for the highest possible level of detection.

What are your favorite movies? "Crimson Tide" with Gene Hackman and Denzel Washington. "A Few Good Men" with Cuba Gooding, Jr