Report of District II – Executive Board Member Joe Henschen

It certainly has been a busy couple of months since we were all together in St. Petersburg. With plans coming together for West Palm Beach in just a few weeks I look forward to the opportunity to share our successes and our failures in what we have attempted.

I attended the Committee of Presidents Meeting in San Juan, Puerto Rico. I took the advice of one of the Carriers here in St. Petersburg that had family in San Juan and hopped a cab to a bakery called La Bomenara for breakfast. Next we walked to Fort San Felipe del Morro like most of the tourists to the island. We stopped midday at a local restaurant named El Asador. Taking seats at the bar we waited while the bartender finished his conversation with a pretty girl in the street out front. It was no warmer than Florida for the time of year but having a Mojito seemed a must – when in Rome! It wasn’t long before we were joined by a couple from somewhere in Texas. The story went they had been on a cruise ship here years earlier and promised themselves they would return and spend more time and they wanted to share with us as much as we would tolerate. As if tolerance mattered to them in the first place, we were trapped in the slide show of how I spent my vacation. Conversation led to the usually "why" were we there? "Where" were we from? And finally the "What" did I do?

As inescapably as it could be, the suddenly proper woman looked at me and accused: "Does your Union take any responsibility at all for the condition of the Postal Office?" I hesitated as a smile came to my face. I noticed the eyes that at first looked at me pleading me to change the subject as they just rolled and turned to catch the passerby’s in the street.

It is disheartening enough that Carriers across the country are asked to endure longer routes, making more deliveries daily than ever before while having to share the forty five to eighty minutes in the office a day with the supervisors droning on about the plight of the Postal Service. Not only have we been tasked with taking the lead in the educating of America about the truth behind the Postal Services plight but we have to do so with little help.

Here I am though, hiding away in an all but empty open air bar with mosquito’s and mojito’s and the misinformation finds me. I wanted to begin as cautiously as I could but "Hell Yes we take it very serious" was the first thing out of my mouth, What followed was a surprisingly lucid dialogue highlighting everything not truthfully presented relating to pre-funding and our ongoing efforts. Our involvement in the right-sizing of routes, what office closures and five day delivery would do to the service and rural communities. I tried to put it into terms that even these Chamber of Commerce members could relate to. We talked taxes, living wages, and the internet. I did not give in until I heard those four words; "I had no idea"

The troubling part is with all the correct information available; through our Union either National or State, some of our brothers and sisters still have accepted the opinion that our efforts are in vain and a restructured Postal Service it is inevitable. Believe it only if you do not try to communicate the truth. I urge you all to convince your family, your friends the truth behind our crisis. This campaign needs to get personal. Take it one on one with your circle and when they say those words get them to help by contacting their Congressional Representative. The Rally’s across the state were very successful. They did as intended and raised awareness to the truth behind the Postal Services cash flow problems. The national conversation cannot stop after a single organized event, it needs to be ongoing and it continues with you as members of the State Association and your local Branch.

Thank You

Joe