United States Postal Service
Enjoying an American Summer [Postal Life magazine]
by Hope Katz Gibbs
Postal Life magazine
June 1999
WHILE PRESIDENT CLINTON WAS ON a diplomatic mission in Beijing in June, postal employees entertained eight delegates from the China Organizing Committee of the 22nd Universal Postal Union (UPU) Congress were in Washington, DC on a mission of their own.
For five weeks, the delegates from Beijing polished up their grammar skills so they can better communicate with their English-speaking counterparts who will arrive in Beijing this August for the 22nd UPU conference.
“If the hosts of the UPU Congress can fluently speak English, French and Spanish, they will be able to communicate with more than 90 percent of the visiting postal delegates,” says James P. Wade, manager of International Marketing and Sales at the Postal Service. “I understand that while the eight Chinese delegates were in Washington studying English, some of their Chinese Secretariat colleagues were in Paris studying French. UPU members are really one big family worldwide and always glad to help each other,” Wade says.
The Chinese delegates were eager to make the most of their learning opportunity.
Clarence Lewis: A Man of His Word [Postal Life magazine]
by Hope Katz Gibbs
Postal Life magazine
November / December 1998
Photo by Kelley Sullivan
WHEN CLARENCE E. LEWIS JR. took over as the new chief operating officer and executive vice president on June 2, he made a promise to himself. It is the same promise made the day he joined the Postal Service in 1966.
“I have always said that when I leave this organization, I
want it to be better than when I came in,” says Lewis.
High on his list of priorities is to ensure the Postal Service continues to be a place where future generations of employees will be treated fairly and have the ability to advance.
Lewis, a 33-year postal veteran, knows about advancement. After attending Norfolk State and Virginia State Universities, he started working as a letter carrier in his hometown of Norfolk, VA. For nine years, Lewis delivered mail to more than 800 families.
“I loved being a letter carrier because I could interact with my customers, and that was rewarding,” he says. “It was one of my favorite times of my career.”