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For the past seventeen years, Still Pond (21667) has been our mailing address. Not only is this our personal address, but it has also been the officially recognized address for my business, Uncle Jim’s Painting and Paperhanging Co. My customers and vendors have recognized this as my address and I do not want to have to change this information. We have been extremely pleased by the service at our post office here in Still Pond and have come to trust and depend on Joyce, our postmaster to run an efficient and professional office. We are in strong support of the post office reopening here in downtown Still Pond.
WE HAVE PICKED OUR MAIL UP AT THE POST OFFICE ( P.O. BOX 48 ) FOR OVER 40 YEARS.
THERE SHOULD BE A MOBIL OFFICE PUT THERE UNTIL WE GET OUR POST OFFICE UP AND RUNNING AGAIN. THIS RUNNING TO ANOTHER TOWN TO PICK UP THE MAIL IS REALLY GETTING OLD. DON’T WANT TO PUT UP A MAIL BOX ,BECAUSE IT IS NOT SAFE ANY MORE . WE PAY FOR OUR BOXES AND SHOULD BE ABLE TO GO TO THE CORNER AND GET OUR MAIL, LIKE WE ALWAYS DID.
THIS LITTLE TOWN DON’T ASK FOR MUCH , AND THE MAIL TRUCK GOES RIGHT IN FRONT OF THE POST OFFICE ANY WAY, SO IT DON’T COST THAT MUCH TO HAVE THE POST OFFICE HERE. DON’T KNOW WHAT THE RENT IS ON THE OFFICE,BUT IT CAN-NOT BE MUCH. THEY DON’T EVEN HAVE CLEANERS COME IN TO CLEAN, SO THEY DON’T HAVE TO PAY FOR THAT.
OUR POST LADY TAKES VERY GOOD CARE OF THE OFFICE HERSELF. WE ALSO KNOW OUR MAIL IS SAFE WITH HER.
THANK YOU
THE LIPSCOMB’S
I agree. Well said. We have come to depend on the security of our post office box and sorely miss Joyce’s service that she provided. I think the U.S. Postal Service could move along and make arrangements for a temporary or permanent solution in downtown Still Pond.
The loss of our post office/store in Stillpond, Md. has been a devastating one to all of the wonderful people who live, work and play here. Like the other comments we too have to drive to get our mail; within the guidelines of hours of operation. This is most difficult for all of the working people as well as the elderly.
I hope that all mailings, emails, etc. prove to be helpful in determining how important the above establishments mean to this historic community.
Please help our community to stay in tact.
Thanking you in advance.
Paul/Sharon/Ashleigh
I miss the Still Pond Post Office. I often mail packages there to my son in College and pick up stamps. This is a great loss. We have several buildings in Still Pond that can be used as a post office. In the mean time bring us a mobile unit and our Postmaster back. Isn’t the Goverment suppose to serve the people. Where is the service???
The folks in Neavitt, Talbot County, lost their little post office to Hurricane Isabel. Not sure if they have won their battle with USPS. Maybe worth checking into?
The absence of our post office is causing our community to fray around the edges. News and friendly greetings which occurred on a regular basis when visiting to buy stamps or pick up mail from our P.O. boxes has stopped. We seldom see each other and are becoming strangers. How many times have I felt like running down to the store to pick up an item or two and that’s been lost as well. I wish we knew what was going to happen next, because not knowing leads to hopelessness. Driving to Worton is like going to another world–one which smells peculiar–not like the good smells of bacon cooking drifting into Joyce’s part of the store and the cheerful sounds of folks catching up with each other and talking about the latest Ravens’ game. We had a lot to lose and now that it’s gone, we really can appreciate how precious it was.
Just wondering here, but has the community been in consultation with the owner of the building to ascertain what her plans and wishes are? That piece of the puzzle seems to be completely absent from everything written on this website — the owner’s interest in a community involvement; whether she is interested in having volunteers go into the building and attempt to perform the labor and/or provide materials to restore the building has not been expressed. After all, she is the owner of the property, and has certain inalienable rights — including those as to who would be permitted to go in there to perform work, and whether she is willing to accept responsibility for their safety, etc.
I can comprehend the community interest in having the U.S. Postal Service continue a money-losing Post Office there, but there are ways to accomplish that without intruding on that property owner’s private interest to contemplate rebuilding the existing structure. That building has absolutely nothing to do with there being a post office in Still Pond. They are separate issues.
Thanks for your comment! I, and others, have tried to contact the owners without success. The issues aren’t totally seperate because they may still hold the lease with the USPS. It’s hard to know what the facts are. In the meantime, I have tried to be careful not to spread misinformation on this site, and that is why the owners are not mentioned; I photocopied the letter I received so that nothing could be misconstrued, and that is the only solid information that I have at this time (Jan 31). I am hoping that volunteering to help will give them more options. I would never advocate trespassing on someone’s property, and obviously anything done would have to be with their cooperation. That is why I am urging people to come to the meeting tonight at 7 PM, and to pledge volunteer support to save the building.
admin: Maybe I read materials too literally, which I thought was the primary purpose in reducing matters to writing — so that no misunderstanding is possible. The mere fact that the owner has made application for permit to demolish the building speaks volumes to me. That your failed efforts to make contact with the owners also speaks volumes — they don’t have a desire to be engaged by members of the community in discussion about their private business affairs, such as that building. It seems to me that no interpretation whatsoever is required.
I beg to differ with you about the Post Office. If the U.S. Postal Service desired to continue to operate a Post Office in Still Pond, it would find an alternative manner or site on which to do that. The simple fact of the matter is that being the monopoly it is, the Postal Service doesn’t care what the community wants. It writes its P & L Statement every year with red ink, losing billions of dollars. I can think of no plausible reason why why an administrator would desire or agree to be criticized by the management of that organization for making a decision to continue an unprofitable Post Office in the village, when an opportunity presents itself to terminate that service and its expense. They would decline promptly. It is my opinion that since the Postal Service has done nothing to restore a Post Office in Still Pond, you can pretty much take it on faith that it isn’t going to happen.
I lived in Stillpond from 2000 to 2003, untill my work schudle changed. I still come back and visit, as I did on 6/12/2011. I just think that after the sale the new people could only make a profit with a fire , how lucky or not. Now where will Mr. Perry go ?
Where do the residents of Still Pond purchase their groceries, hardware etc? There is not even enough business activity to warrant a McDonalds. Why should the government be forced to conduct business there at a loss?
Thanks for your comment! Actually, according to the postal service’s own closure document, the revenue of the Still Pond Post office was rising every year for the last three years. 2008: $41,112 , 2009: $42,370 , 2010: $39,163 (for only 9 months because of the fire; averaging out to $52,217 for 12 months) , meaning the Still Pond Post Office would have had a profit of $3648 for 2010 had it not been for the fire.
By the way, the deli sandwiches at the Still Pond Store were way better than anything at McDonalds.
Walter, I agree that the math is lacking and even fuzzy on the closure document. However, what I also see that is lacking is the cost of electricity, water, phone service, internet service and transportation just to name a few. It is a bit naive to assume that these expenses are not incurred no matter what the closure document states. If you add these costs in I see no profit. The bottom line is that they are losing tons of money mainly because of the regulations making them a cash cow for the treasury dept. Read up on the situation they are in. If not for the mandated pre-funding they would be solvent and I would bet that all of these closures would not be happening. Why not address your representatives to fix the underlying problem and just maybe there would be funds available to restore service in Still Pond.
Paul, I would agree with you that the closure document is lacking in depth, but my math is still much closer to the truth than what the Postal Service is saying. The Postal Service did not pay for electricity, water, or heating and cooling; they were not metered separately at the Still Pond Store, and were included in the lease. As to transportation, they have to still haul mail here and pick it up for rural delivery, regardless of whether the Post Office is open or not, and have increased their mileage, not reduced it, because people used to come pick it up at the office. I don’t know what their costs for phone and internet were, but I’m sure they wouldn’t be anywhere close to $3648. It is ridiculous to assume that they would not lose any revenue at the retail window when the window no longer exists, yet I didn’t even take that into account. Even if there were zero profit, they are way ahead of the rest of the Postal Service as a whole. The point is, they argue that the Still Pond branch is losing money, but provide us with facts that say otherwise, which makes their assertion totally without merit.
I would also agree that the source of their problems is the mandated pre-funding of their retiree health benefits, which I have been aware of since the beginning, and which I brought up with Mr. Landry at the closure hearing in March. I said “Why don’t you try to solicit our help in solving your budget problems through our representatives instead of alienating us by closing our branch?”. He responded with “I have no answer to that question. I am here to take your questions and pass them on.”
Indeed, if their budget problems are underlying, how is closing the Still Pond branch, or any branch for that matter, going to help them?
I, and a number of people, have been very aggressive about contacting our representatives and voicing our perspective, including the problem of mandated pre-funding, without success so far. If you would like to express your views to them, just go to the Contacts page on this site for their addresses.
I believe the closing of Still Pond Market could be a good thing for those lazy residents. Only in a town of backwards bumpkins would someone complain about driving less then 5 minutes away. And why should we save the general store that charges 10$ for marshmallows and never has any gasoline?
I’m not sure what demographic you think you are representing, given that you are from the obviously more sophisticated urban metropolis of Worton, but I am sure you must have jumped for joy when Cat’s Corner closed down, putting several people out of work. To complete your country bumpkin stereotype, I’ll quote from a Taylor Swift song, “Why you gotta be so mean?”
guy needs to go to roller derby…man.
I suggest we hold roller derby night at the CHESTERTOWN ARMORY (another dying dinorsaur) with a match between OUR Charm City Roller Girls and whatever Philly has to offer in that. We can use the proceeds to continue this effort, be it worthy or not and have some fun in the process.
I feel for the people who have to change their addresses, but when you consider how much money the USPS is losing all over the country…..I frankly would rather see a UPS office there.
You obviously have two issues here. Saving a store…and saving a post office. I do think that the new Molly’s complex is very impressive…and those folks ARE to be congratulated on their new operation….but, if it were ME going down to the Eas’ Sho’ for a real hunting/fishing/etc. trip…I’d be looking to pop into a REAL store with the pot belly stove, cold beer, Slim Jims, pickeled eggs in jar, a real nice balogna sandwich (I liked the liver worst), some turkey trophies on the wall…you know. Having said all that, this is largely a private issue of property ownership that nobody else should have too much say in…unless you CAN get the Park Service to adopt the place.
I have the letter that might facilitate that….AND, I have pointed out a number of times that Shepherd’s DEElight is ready to hold a neighborhood bull roast (1/3 goes to y’all,. 1/3 to Kennedyville VFC, 1/3 to Big Woods Church.)….but nobody takes me up on it. Look my dawg don’t bite. We are talking PARTAY…..but, I’d rather NOT have to host this…I’d rather be talking to Margo about getting OUR Charm City Roller Girls in a HOME match against Philly, man! For real…gotta think outside the box, you know.
Walter has done a great job. I don’t know why he bothers to tackle a monstrosity like the US Postal Service….holy cow..where is Walter Harris when you need him, mna. I do agree with that Worton person, but they should like “come out” and tell us thar name, yo.
Ken Hepburn Noble
Good effort on the cleanup. Stillpond is now slightly less of an eyesore.
Our historic Post Office is about to close. We are trying to save it. We are sorry to hear of your troubles in Stillpond, and we applaud Mr. Bowie’s work. We are reaching out to your community, and to others, in an effort to work together. We ask for your help to save our post office, and to help your community if possible.
You may know about the bad 2006 law. You may know about the new law can help. It may not pass soon enough. Meanwhile, over 3,700 post offices that don’t have to close are in danger. You know the results so far.
We know about nearby closures. We know about rural closures. We are organized. We hold rallies, we write letters and we speak out. Last week, we filed a lawsuit in DC Circuit Court to challenge the closure of our post office. We are challenging the Postal Regulatory Commission’s approval of the decision to close our post office.
This is the first time the PRC has been challenged for such a decision. A win could be historic.
We received a letter of support from the Canadian Union of Postal Workers. We will meet thsi week and next with our US Senators and Congressman. They can help us break the deadlock.
Please consider signing our petition: http://www.change.org/petitions/rep-henry-waxman-save-the-venice-post-office.
Here is our Facebook site: http://www.facebook.com/savethevenicepostoffice.
Feel free to learn more at a local resource page: http://venicenc.org/savethevmpo and a national web site: http://savethepostoffice.com.
Feel free to contact us at . Let’s help each other. Let’s work together to save this most valuable public service and the heart of every community.
Thank you.
The Coalition to Save Venice Post Office
PS – We also avoid McDonalds