When local mailman Jon Kolesar started his route on Monday — his final day of work as a mail carrier before his retirement — he wasn’t expecting to come across a surprise that would leave him in tears.
When the 35-year U.S. Postal Service veteran drove his mail truck into the Clover Highlands neighborhood in Houserville, he found that almost every house had a decorated mailbox, with cards inside to help celebrate his retirement and express how grateful they were to have him as their mail carrier for the last nine years.
Jean Ireland and Melinda Stearns, residents who chose to decorate their mailboxes for Kolesar, also decided to invite him to Ireland’s residence after his shift ended so that the pair, and some other neighborhood residents, could thank him one last time for the work he’s done.
It’s more than just being prompt with mail delivery and going the extra mile, they said.
“He deserves all of these decorations simply because he’s the best at what he does,” Stearns said. “He always does the little things. He brings treats every single day for the dogs along his route, he’ll take the mail up to the house if the weather is bad or if he knows we’re sick, and on top of all that he’s such a personable guy. You could sit and talk with him for hours if his schedule allowed it.”
Ireland also commended Kolesar’s work and said that on his last day, he didn’t just bring one treat for the dogs on his route, he brought them each a plastic bag filled with treats — a task that took him until 1 a.m. Sunday to prepare.
When Kolesar arrived at Ireland’s household in a car chock-full of gifts, decorations and cards, he was greeted with warm smiles and congratulations from a full living room. It came at the end of an emotional day, he said.
“When I drove down to (Clover Highlands) I had saw the first house with a decorated mailbox, then another, then another — I had started to realize there was a theme, and when I came up to a mailbox with a handwritten thank-you sign, I just started to break down and cry,” Kolesar said. “It just meant the world to me to be honest. I started on this postal route nine years ago, although now I wish I had started on it 35 years ago. I’m going to miss all of these wonderful, lovely people.”
Before coming to Centre County to deliver mail, Kolesar spent 26 years delivering mail in Clearfield and Curwensville boroughs in Clearfield County, before moving to Centre County and starting his next chapter.
Now that the chapter has closed and he’s retired, Kolesar is looking forward to a number of things with his newfound time including hiking, spending time with his family and eventually taking his dream vacation to Hawaii, but not before he undergoes an important surgery to repair a perforated bowel.
“I’m really not much of a winter person, so that’s why I always tell people that I’d love to go to Hawaii someday, although I apparently promised my granddaughter she could come with me too,” Kolesar said. “Now that I’m retired, I suppose that I can make that dream happen, but I’ve got to get this surgery out of the way first. Once I do that, I told my family that next fall, I’m going to Hawaii and taking them all with me, granddaughter included.”
After his surgery, Kolesar is also looking to keep busy in his retirement and intends on working part time at Trader Joe’s to fill some time.
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