Broad Run postal carrier brings joy

Laura Wojtecki, one of the office’s rural mail carriers, explained, “The volume at this time of the year is great. I love delivering on Christmas Eve. Even though the package isn’t from you, you are delivering Christmas cheer. There’s a feel-good sense to what you do.” She continued speaking with a touch of joy in her voice when she said, “If you deliver awhile, you know your customers and it gives you a bigger sense of camaraderie.”

Wojtecki’s first experience with Christmas Eve delivery wasn’t so joyous at least not as far as the delivery part was concerned. “I was near Bull Run Mountain,” she said, “and had been on the job for six months. As I was driving the snowy mountain, I was busy dodging the ruts and holes along the way, when suddenly the Jeep I was driving flipped over.” Now, when the weather is bad, she is careful not to let her vehicle slide into a ditch.

However, the day wasn’t a total loss. She met her current postmaster, Rick Pyle, that day. He was sent to rescue the mail carrier. So, the two of them unloaded the mail into a personal vehicle and continued the deliveries. Nothing stops the post office, or so it seems.

The change in post office transportation has also made a significant difference to Christmas deliveries. Wojtecki noted, “The new LLV (long-lived vehicle) the ones you now see painted patriotically red, white and blue can hold more mail and larger packages of all shapes and sizes.

Plus, more packages seem to be coming through the post offices, thanks to online shopping. Postal carriers deliver packages regularly, instead of leaving notices for area residents to pick them up at the post office.

Wojtecki quipped, “I have walked through two to three feet of snow to get package to the doorstep. I have also been delivering mail as late as 8 or 9 o’clock at night.” She added, “If it’s Christmas Eve, we have to make sure they get it.”

Read the full story in the print edition of the Bull Run Observer.