Jerry Gilbert, who has worked for the post office since 1981, is retiring this week after 32 years of service. HIs dad, Russell, also worked for the Irvine Post Office.
To say that Jerry Gilbert understands the workings of the Irvine Post Office would be an understatement considering he’s worked there since June 13, 1981.
That’s the year the price of a stamp rose twice—from 15 to 18 cents, then to 20.
But the amiable man whose face is so familiar to many decided to retire on June 3, just ten days shy of 32 years of service.
Jerry’s done it all, from letter carrier to clerk to working in distribution. Since 2008, he’s been supervisor. He’s also served as postmaster on a fill-in basis.
His favorite position, he says, is probably that of clerk, who does a variety of jobs, plus they get to interact more with the public.
“The majority of people are good,” he said. “You have to like to talk to people.”
Service to the post office is something of a family tradition. Jerry’s dad, Russell Gilbert, officially retired from there in 1977. He served as postmaster for the Irvine Post Office since 1964.
“Dad was drafted to serve in WWII, and when he got out of the military, he had a job here,” Jerry said.
His dad also worked multiple positions. He carried the mail, worked as a clerk and was postmaster for a total of about 33 years.
Although Jerry’s career track was similar, he didn’t do the military stint. He worked a couple of factory jobs as a young married man, then he earned a bachelor’s degree in history and a minor in business administration from Eastern Kentucky University.
He says he considered a teaching career, but admits, “I always wanted to work for the post office.”
Jerry has noted a lot of changes since he began working there more than 30 years ago.
For one, there’s more automation. “We used to have to do everything by hand,” he said.
Now machines do a lot of the sorting, and some of the mail comes to them pre-sorted.
Jerry has seen the number of magazine subscriptions drop a lot over the years, as well as the number of catalogs that are mailed each month, which he attributes to changes in consumer habits.
“A lot of shopping gets done online these days,” he said.
Although the number of flats (magazines and catalogs) has declined, the post office still ships a lot of parcels. They also have sub-contracts with UPS and Fed-ex and do some deliveries for them.
During his tenure at the Irvine Post Office, he has seen all the rural post offices close down as their postmasters retired. The last four were Crystal, Pryse, Cobhill, and finally, Winston.
Jerry says he doesn’t have a lot planned for his upcoming retirement years but says he’ll probably catch up on some things around the house, and he and his wife will take the time to visit some relatives who live out of state.
Jerry is married to Phyllis, and they have two adult children, Kristy Poynter and Timothy Gilbert.
They also have three granddaughters.
Jerry is a self-proclaimed movie buff, and he plays piano at his church, Sand Hill Christian.
“I was always proud to say I worked for the post office,” Jerry said.