W’boro postman Randy Smith retires after 40 years

The Whitesboro Post Office celebrated two major milestones at a cupcake-and-punch reception Tuesday morning. Rural carrier Randy Smith retired after a 40-year career with the United States Postal Service (USPS) and rural carrier Sheila Johnson retired after 20 years (nearly all of which was devoted to Whitesboro).

Smith first applied for the USPS in 1980 at the age of 20. A lifelong resident of Whitesboro, he had been working construction with his uncle, building houses and doing concrete work, but work was slow in the winter. Looking for something different, he took the postal office test and waited for a response.

Five years later, the Denton post office reached out and offered Smith a job. He commuted two hours a day, driving from Whitesboro to Denton, for 28 years. When the one full-time position in Whitesboro (then held by John Walker) became available, Smith jumped at the chance. Although he was disappointed to lose seniority, his commute went from two hours a day to five minutes.

For the past 12 years, Smith has been delivering mail to his friends and neighbors. He has especially enjoyed delivering mail to the businesses in town, where he really gets to meet people.

“Growing up here, I thought I knew a lot of people – until I started working for the post office,” Smith said. “I’ve met so many new friends.”

A lot has changed in the postal service over the course of 40 years. Across the industry, Smith has seen a shift from handwritten documents to the automation of computers, scanners, barcodes and machines. In Whitesboro specifically, the growth of the town has brought more houses (thus more stops) along his route.

“The job involved a lot of walking at first, but now about 90% of my route is spent driving and delivering mail curbside,” Smith said. “I used to walk 13 to 14 miles a day to complete my route. Now it’s more like two miles a day.”

While the job has had its challenges, from bad weather (“We don’t get very many pretty days here,” he said) and being tasked with delivering live animals and insects to stepping on snakes along his route, it’s also been a blessing.

“The post office has been real good to my family,” Smith said. “My wife was able to stay home with our son and daughter while I worked. I’ve really enjoyed it. But 40 years is enough.”

Now retired, Smith plans to spend more time with his family (especially his 12-year-old granddaughter) and working his cattle. 

Johnson had just finished 12 years in the Army and was looking for a job. She signed on with the Collinsville Post Office, delivering mail for them for about a year before transferring to Whitesboro.

“There were more hours and more opportunities there, so I moved,” Johnson said.

For the past 20 years, Johnson has most enjoyed her customers, her co-workers and the variety of her job with the USPS.

“It wasn’t monotonous,” she said.

Like Smith, Johnson has seen a lot of changes in the postal service. 

“Everything used to be manual, but now it’s all automated,” she said. “We can track items better and provide more information to our customers than before. It’s a big plus for the carriers and the customers.”

She has also noticed the growth coming to Whitesboro.

“Whitesboro is a good community,” she said. “It’s definitely growing, but the new people seem to want to fit in and not change it. That’s a real blessing.”

Johnson was eligible for retirement three years ago, but she enjoys her job and opted to stay on for a little while longer. Now that she’s officially retired, she plans to spend more time doing the things she loves – riding her dirt bike and motorcycle, riding her horses and spending more time with her grandkids.

“I have more to do now than I did when I was working,” she laughed.

At Tuesday morning’s reception, Postmaster Steven Barnes presented Smith and Johnson with a certificate of retirement and kind words about the carriers’ years of service. Both employees have been invaluable to the Whitesboro Post Office and they will truly be missed.