Postal Service manages mail rush before holidays hit
With time running out to send mail and have it arrive before Christmas, the Andrew Gomer Williams Post Office Building is seeing its usual uptick in letters and packages to deliver last-minute.
Victoria Bowser, postmaster at the Butler post office, said there are only a few days left to ship mail and have it arrive before Christmas. The last opportunity will be the Priority Mail Express service, which can get packages to their destination if dropped off by Saturday, Dec. 20.
“I know we’re projected to deliver 11.5 billion packages,” she said. “So, the Postal Service is doing really well with packaging and delivery this year and we’re still the most affordable delivery service.”
The holiday season, especially the week before Christmas, marks the busiest time of the year for the Postal Service. While Bowser estimated the office sees anywhere from 35,000 to 40,000 letters on any given day, the number received on Tuesday was over 60,000.
“We call it DPS, it stands for digital point sequencing. So every letter goes in order of the route and (carriers) take the tray out with them and don’t even have to touch it,” she said.
Bowser said the Postal Service website, usps.com, provides additional services such as a ZIP code lookup and service comparison that make mailing year-round easier. She reminded patrons items should be packaged securely and include complete and legible addresses.
She also said some other ways people can help their carrier is by salting and clearing their sidewalks, as well as cleaning off their mailbox. Another concern with the weather is when drivers pass carriers on the road.
“You try to keep everything visible with flashing lights and we talk to them everyday about safety, but there’s only so much they can do,” she said. “It takes other people to be aware as well, especially when passing a carrier, as that’s our biggest accident rate.”
Over her 25 years working for the Postal Service, Bowser said she’s watched the type of mail people send dramatically shift away from letters and toward packages. As a result, some of the ways the Postal Service operates day by day has changed just as much.
“Our packages have increased double while our number of letters has dropped. So the work’s harder. It’s more physical but it pans out,” she said.
Regardless of the weather or the weight of your package, Bowser is confident the Postal Service is one of the most affordable options for delivering gifts to the special people in your life this holiday season.
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Ed Schreiber sorts through holiday mail at the main Butler Post Office on South Main Street on Friday, Dec. 19, 2025. Rob McGraw/Butler Eagle
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Bill Gahagan sorts through mail at the main Butler Post Office on South Main Street on Friday, Dec. 19, 2025. Rob McGraw/Butler Eagle
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Christmas packages fill the downstairs mail room at the main Butler Post Office on South Main Street on Friday, Dec. 19, 2025. Rob McGraw/Butler Eagle
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Casey Watterson, middle, sorts through mail at the main Butler Post Office on South Main Street on Friday, Dec. 19, 2025. Rob McGraw/Butler Eagle
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Jenna Holden, middle, sorts through mail at the main Butler Post Office on South Main Street on Friday, Dec. 19, 2025. Rob McGraw/Butler Eagle
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Ed Schreiber sorts through holiday mail at the main Butler Post Office on South Main Street on Friday, Dec. 19, 2025. Rob McGraw/Butler Eagle
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Ed Schreiber sorts through holiday mail at the main Butler Post Office on South Main Street on Friday, Dec. 19, 2025. Rob McGraw/Butler Eagle
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Ed Schreiber sorts through holiday mail at the main Butler Post Office on South Main Street on Friday, Dec. 19, 2025. Rob McGraw/Butler Eagle
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Ed Schreiber sorts through holiday mail at the main Butler Post Office on South Main Street on Friday, Dec. 19, 2025. Rob McGraw/Butler Eagle
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Ed Schreiber sorts through holiday mail at the main Butler Post Office on South Main Street on Friday, Dec. 19, 2025. Rob McGraw/Butler Eagle
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Joel Zanicky grabs one of the bins full of holiday packages at the main Butler Post Office on South Main Street on Friday, Dec. 19, 2025. Rob McGraw/Butler Eagle
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Victoria Bowser and Zack Wills do computer work at the main Butler Post Office on South Main Street on Friday, Dec. 19, 2025. Rob McGraw/Butler Eagle
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Anne Barnhart grabs one of the carts full of packages at the main Butler Post Office on South Main Street on Friday, Dec. 19, 2025. Rob McGraw/Butler Eagle
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Nicole Wolford marks packages at the main Butler Post Office on South Main Street on Friday, Dec. 19, 2025. Rob McGraw/Butler Eagle
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Cecilia Ornelas sorts through mail at the main Butler Post Office on South Main Street on Friday, Dec. 19, 2025. Rob McGraw/Butler Eagle
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Cecilia Ornelas sorts through mail at the main Butler Post Office on South Main Street on Friday, Dec. 19, 2025. Rob McGraw/Butler Eagle
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Anne Barnhart looks through packages at the main Butler Post Office on South Main Street on Friday, Dec. 19, 2025. Rob McGraw/Butler Eagle
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Nicole Wolford pushes one of the bins full of Christmas packages at the main Butler Post Office on South Main Street on Friday, Dec. 19, 2025. Rob McGraw/Butler Eagle
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Eric Day sorts through mail at the main Butler Post Office on South Main Street on Friday, Dec. 19, 2025. Rob McGraw/Butler Eagle
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Jim Osche sorts through mail at the main Butler Post Office on South Main Street on Friday, Dec. 19, 2025. Rob McGraw/Butler Eagle
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Demetrius Lockley marks packages that will be delivered at the main Butler Post Office on South Main Street on Friday, Dec. 19, 2025. Rob McGraw/Butler Eagle
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Bill Gahagan pushes one of the bins full of Christmas packages at the main Butler Post Office on South Main Street on Friday, Dec. 19, 2025. Rob McGraw/Butler Eagle
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Bill Gahagan loads one of the newer mail trucks at the main Butler Post Office on South Main Street on Friday, Dec. 19, 2025. Rob McGraw/Butler Eagle
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Bill Gahagan loads one of the newer mail trucks at the main Butler Post Office on South Main Street on Friday, Dec. 19, 2025. Rob McGraw/Butler Eagle
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Bill Gahagan loads one of the newer mail trucks at the main Butler Post Office on South Main Street on Friday, Dec. 19, 2025. Rob McGraw/Butler Eagle
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Bill Gahagan loads one of the newer mail trucks at the main Butler Post Office on South Main Street on Friday, Dec. 19, 2025. Rob McGraw/Butler Eagle
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Bill Gahagan loads one of the newer mail trucks at the main Butler Post Office on South Main Street on Friday, Dec. 19, 2025. Rob McGraw/Butler Eagle
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Bill Gahagan loads one of the newer mail trucks at the main Butler Post Office on South Main Street on Friday, Dec. 19, 2025. Rob McGraw/Butler Eagle
