Mandy Neidhardt has been working for the Postal Service since January 2001.
This is her first assignment as a postmaster.
She started as a carrier in Defiance before moving up the ladder. She has been an acting supervisor and then a supervisor in Defiance. She became an Officer in Charge at Montpelier from February to November 2016 before taking the helm at Bryan.
When she started out, she had no inkling of becoming a postmaster.
“It’s something that developed over time,” Neidhardt said. “It was either surgery or go into the office.”
Neidhardt enjoys her job as it allows her to act on her love of numbers. She also likes to interact with people, so the job gives her plenty of opportunities to do both.
“I like the financial aspect,” Neidhardt said. “I am never bored.”
A lifer in the Postal Service, she has undergone a lot of instruction to become a postmaster.
“When I got the supervisor job, there was twelve to sixteen weeks of training,” Neidhardt said. “I spent two weeks in Cleveland.”
Her training has taken her to Columbus to see a mail processing plant to see the various aspects of the delivery system.
At Bryan, she oversees six city routes and eight rural routes. In addition see manages the rural post offices in Farmer and Ney, Neidhardt said. The rest of the staff includes four clerks and a maintenance worker.
The crew works hard to clear the mail every day. First and second class mail goes out the same day it comes in and once in a while Third class mail may linger for no more than a day.
“Outgoing mail is shipped every night,” Neidhardt said. “The mail does not stay here.”
Letters mailed from Bryan, even their destination is across town, goes to Detroit to be canceled, Neidhardt said.
“Letters come in order, ready to go,” Neidhardt said.
For people wondering where their mail went, she advises that without a tracking number there is nothing she can do about lost mail. The service cannot track mail by a last name, she said.
Born and raised in Hicksville, where she currently resides, small town life agrees with her. She likes Bryan because it is closer than Montpelier. Her goal is to be the postmaster in town until she retires, which is only 17 years away.
“I’m halfway there,” Neidhardt said.
James Pruitt may be reached at publisher@thevillagereporter.com