Residents Seek To Halt Post Office Closing

By Nancy K. Crevier

Newtown resident Ann Marie Mitchell is spearheading a group to protest the imminent closing of the Hawleyville Post Office on Route 25. Ms Mitchell has been a customer of the facility for eight years, and is dismayed that the United States Postal Service (USPS) has decided to close the office as of February 14.

“I have had nothing but the best of service and care at Hawleyville Post Office over the years,” said Ms Mitchell. “I came back from a trip this past week and when I walked into the post office and Mark [Faval, postmaster] told me the bad news, I couldn’t believe it. This type of service and business is one of the things that attracts people to Connecticut and gives this area its small town feel,” said Ms Mitchell on Wednesday, January 21. “Something has to be done.”

Petitions requesting that the USPS maintain the Hawleyville Post Office facility on Route 25 have been posted in the nearby M&G Cleaners and in the Hawleyville Deli, said Ms Mitchell. Signatures will be collected through the end of January, when the petition will be mailed to the proper authorities in the USPS.

“I am encouraging people to continue to call Congressman Chris Murphy at 203-798-2072 and request his continued aid, or to call the USPS at 860-524-6398 to protest the closing of this post office,” Ms Mitchell said.

She is also forming a steering committee to formulate a plan of action to halt the plans by the USPS, and said that a small group has already decided to meet Friday evening, January 23, at 5:30 pm.

“We are looking for others to join us,” said Ms Mitchell. For more information, contact her at aeromitch1@aol.com. “I hope to get a good response. Time is of the essence,” she stressed.