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72 -- PORT PERRY STAR -- Tuesday, November 29, 1988 Grant Hunter says finally time to give up the rural mail route Nearly half a century delivering the mail After nearly half a century de- livering the rural mail, Grant Hunter will be calling it quits at the end of December. Grant, who tured 73 in No- vember, said he made up his mind last summer that it's time to re- tire, "let somebody else carry it on." It is actually 48 years since Grant first took over the RR 2, Port Perry route which takes in a wide-spread rural area south of Prince Albert. His official title is "rural mail courier," but to the more than 200 householders along the route, Grant is the mailman, and even though there have been a lot of changes over the past four decades, he still knows many of them per- sonally. When he first started, his route was about 24 miles with 80 rural mail boxes. Now, it is 40 miles in length with 235 boxes. And the nature of the mail he delivers each day has changed as well. Years ago, people actually wrote personal letters to friends and loved ones. Nowdays, there are fewer personal letters as people seem to keep in touch more by phone, and the mail is mostly bills or advertising flyers and cir- culars. In an interview with the Star last Friday morning as Grant zipped along the concession roads in his late model Ford handing the NEED PHOTOCOPIES? We can do them for you! Letter, Legal & Ledger. Reduced & Enlarged. PORT PERRY STAR 235 Queen Street 985-7383 pre-sorted mail to the reporter to place in the boxes, Grant recalled that back in the 1940's, he would do the route in winter with horse and cutter. It was mighty cold work, and Grant admits there were days "when I thought for sure I would freeze to death." He had no choice but to use the horse and cutter. Roads were often plugged with snow, and there were times when the blow- ing snow created drifts that would stop any motorized vehicle dead in its tracks. _ He especially remembers the winter of 44-45, when many of the roads were closed late in No- vember, re-opened the first week in December and then a severe storm hit about the 12th of that month, and it was not until early March when the roads were finally clear for vehicle traffic. Sorting and delivering the mail in those times was an all-day job with Grant finally getting home in the early evening, and then having to face the chores around the farm just south of Prince Albert. When he started, the pay was $83.33 per month, and the extra income helped. "I was keeping the horses on the farm and had to feed them, anyway, so in the winter I put them to work," he recalled. In the summer months, he de- livered the mail in a Model A Ford, and over the years he's had a number of different vehicles such as a '33 Ford, a half-ton truck, a '54 Dodge (the first new car he ever had) and several VW Bugs, which he says were the best vehi- cles for mail delivery. "It's too bad they stopped making those Bugs," he said with a smile, as they were dependable and easy on gasoline. In 48 years, he never had a se- rious accident, though there were several close calls on icy roads. And he had his share of flat tires, mechanical breakdowns and on a few occasions even ran out of gas. At one time, rural mailmen had to deliver stamps with the customers leaving a few pennies in the boxes to pay for them. It was a nuisance as the pen- nies would stick to the steel boxes in winter, or he'd have to fish around in the snow bank if he dropped one or two. rant wasn't sorry when the Post Office dis-continued that ser- vice many years ago. Up until 1972, Grant operated a farm south of Prince Albert, and during the busy times in spring and summer on the farm, his wife Eva would take over the mail route. She still works with him nearly every day, sitting on the passenger side to place the mail in the boxes. And at times over the years, their daughters have handled the route giving Grant and Eva a chance for a holiday. They enjoy spending time in Florida each winter, but the fact that it's getting more and more difficult to find someone to take over the route is one of the main reasons why Grant decided that this would be his last year. "Some people think it's an easy job when they see me on the road in the summer. But it wasn't so easy in the middle of winter," he smiles. Years ago, rural mail delivery was six days each week, now it is five. Grant's work day starts at 8:00 AM when he sorts the mail for the route in Port Perry Post Office building. Depending on the volume of mail, the sorting takes up to two hours, so he's usually on the road between 9 and 10 AM. The actual delivery time over the 40 miles also depends on the volume of mail, but most days Grant is finished by noon. As might be expected, he's be- come friends with many of the people who live along the route and they appreciate the work he does. Often, he'll find a basket of vegetables in the fall, or a box of candy at Christmas. fo over 48 years, he's had « +: ; some complaints. But they've been few and far between. His last run will be December 31, and he says he has mixed feel- ings. "I really felt it was time to give it up for a lot of reasons." And yes, he says, he will miss it, "for a week or two." For almost half a century, Grant Hunter has been delivering the mall on his route through the rural are- as south of Port Perry and Prince Albert. These days, he covers the route In a new car, but it wasn't always so comfortable. 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