Ways To Care For Your Postal Carrier When It's Cold

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After writing Ways to Care For Your Postal Carrier When It's Hot it only seemed fitting to offer creative ideas for encouraging and remembering our postal carriers in the colder months. As I shared in my previous post

We rely upon them daily without even realizing it most of the time. Without them bills would not be paid, no newspapers / magazines / sale & coupon circulars would wait for us in our mailboxes, and birthday cards, letters {some containing money} and other gifts would not arrive. A lot goes in to getting our daily stack of mail to us. No matter the weather or the temperature postal carriers work hard at their jobs and we reap the benefits. Postal carriers are often forgotten, especially in extreme weather.

Where I live postal carriers often walk their routes, going door-to-door and delivering mail in mailboxes on porches. You may or may not have a walking postal carrier, but these ideas can be adapted to any situation.

Here are some ways to care for your postal carrier and thank him/her for all the hard work they do during cold days or inclement weather:

• if you are home when your mail carrier delivers your mail, offer him/her a hot beverage {cocoa, tea, coffee, etc)
• if you are won't be home when your mail is delivered leave a color or insulated bag near your mailbox along with a note alerting them to the beverage
• give them some hand warmers, gloves/mittens and/or scarves as a warm-me-up surprise
• if you have a carrier who walks their route and you are home when your carrier arrives offer them a place to sit and rest their feet
• grab your coat and engage in some friendly conversation - it makes for a nice break from the solitude of the mail route
• leave a note {or tell your carrier in person } how much you appreciate the hard work they do, especially in cold or inclement weather
• keep your sidewalk, walkway and/or porch clean, shoveled or salted to minimize the risk of slips, falls, and potential injury. Also make sure your mailbox can be opened {not frozen shut }
• give your carrier a gift card as a way to say "thank you" for all they do
• give them an ice scraper to carry on their routes {helpful tool for those frozen mailboxes}

What are some other ways you have encouraged your postal carrier when the weather is cold or inclement?