Tuesday, September 7, 1999

Neither snow nor Bret, nor gloom of night

   If nothing else, Hurricane Bret resurrected a few worthy debates.
   Like the practicality of designating hurricane shelters for those unable to evacuate. Or turning all Interstate 37 lanes northbound to San Antonio as a mass evacuation strategy.
   But what about this business of "neither snow nor rain," which surely crossed the minds of many when Mother Nature pulled a naughty one on the Coastal Bend?
   It just so happens that today marks a little known anniversary - the opening in 1914 of the New York General Post Office on Eighth Avenue in Manhattan. Why this matters is that one William M. Kendall (of the architectural firm that planned the building) took it upon himself to crown the facility's completion with an inscription that many today, including those in the postal business, mistakenly believe as the U.S. Postal Service's official motto.
   Words to live up to
   The inscription, translated from the works of Herodotus, reads: Neither snow nor rain nor heat nor gloom of night stays these couriers from the swift completion of their appointed rounds.
   The original sentence, according to the postal service, referenced the expedition of the Greeks against the Persians around 500 B.C., remarking specifically on the dedication with which the Persians continued their system of mounted postal couriers during that time.
   "You mean, that's not our motto?" asked Juan C. Marin Jr., Edroy's postmaster for the past six years.
   On Aug. 22, Marin and his family evacuated to San Antonio during Hurricane Bret. But with nagging thoughts about his customers back home, Marin dutifully called regional supervisors that night for an update and learned that, yes, mail would continue to be processed.
   Marin left his family behind in San Antonio and braved rough weather on the road to open his retail window at 8:30 a.m. the Monday after Hurricane Bret, just in case someone needed to mail a package or buy a stamp or money order.
   But the winds were whipping, he said, the rain kept coming and not a soul was seen in sight.
   Dedicated worker
   Meanwhile, in Robstown, Postmaster Mary Ann Broyles weighed her "neither snow nor rain" responsibilities and the safety of employees. She went outside to check for street flooding "and that's when I saw the building down the street losing its metal roof."
   Broyles decided then to have employees process mail, but hold delivery for the following day.
   "Nobody knows better than I what perils are out there," she said. "I was not about to send anyone out there to get hurt."
   In the mail delivery business, Broyles said, there are good days and bad. Customers compliment and customers complain. This week, Broyles is mulling over what kind of reward to give one carrier who went beyond the call of duty that Monday. Despite the fact that where he lives - Falfurrias - got the brunt of Bret's fury, he showed up for work on time.
   "I couldn't believe it," Broyles said. "He drove in from Falfurrias, didn't complain and went straight to work."
  
  
 

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  © 1999 Corpus Christi Caller Times, a Scripps Howard newspaper. All rights reserved.