nov/dec 2019 vol. 3 no. 6 · 2019. 11. 11. · ga upma had a great 2019 but let’s all work to...

Vol. 3 No. 6 Nov/Dec 2019

Ola Mae Ross celebrates 90th Birthday and becomes Lifetime

member of UPMA. Pictured with Becky Manley GA UPMA chapter

president

Peaches & Print

A Publication of the Georgia Chapter of

UPMA

Editor: James Terrell

*The views expressed in this publication are the

opinions of the writer and not necessarily the opinion

or the position of the United Postmasters and

Managers of America.

*NEVER use postal stationary, telephone or computer

for UPMA business.

Peaches & Print (USPS 0013-6440) is published bi-

monthly by the Georgia Chapter of United

Postmasters and Managers of America (UPMA), 579

Ridgeview CT Monroe GA 30655. Members of the

Georgia Chapter receive the publication as part of

their annual dues. Others - Subscription price $10

annually. Periodical Postage paid at Lexington GA

30648.

Postmaster: Send address changes to Peaches &

Print, 579 Ridgeview Ct Monroe GA 30655

Articles for the Jan/Feb publication of Peaches & Print are due

December 27th

Inside this issue:

Executive Board 3

President /Editor 4

Ramblings of an old man/Treasurers

Report/Retiree President

5

Executive VP 6

Fall Conference Pictures 7-9

Ola Mae Ross 10

National Convention 9-11

Legislative Summit registration 12

National Conference Registration 13

Form 1187 14

In Loving Memory/Scholarship Dona-

tions/Prayer requests/promotions &

Details

15

Forms in this publication:

Legislative Summit Registration

National Conference Registration

Form 1187

Georgia Chapter UPMA Executive Board

President

Becky Manley

PO Box 474

Dahlonega GA 30533

O: (706) 864-2517

H: (706) 453-4258

C: (706) 318-1562

[email protected]

Executive Vice President/

Membership Chair

Wendy Spears

PO Box 144

Ashburn GA 31714

O:(229) 567-4804

C: (229) 392-2122

[email protected]

2nd Vice President/

convention chair

Scarlet Middleton

45 River Bend Dr

Saint Marys, GA 31558

O: (912) 729-2797

C: (912) 288-4978

[email protected]

Secretary/Treasurer

Tammy Cantrell

116 ABB Helton Rd

Cleveland, GA 30528

O: (706) 865-6146

C: (706) 878-6017

[email protected]

Editor

James Terrell

579 Ridgeview Ct

Monroe GA 30655

O:(770) 554-0435

C: (678) 283-9240

[email protected]

Legislative/Pac Chairman

Robin Bugg

311 Lone Oak Rd

Grantville, GA 30220

O: (770) 252-1580

C: (770) 550-4978

[email protected]

Webmaster

Roy Shaffer

162 Poplar Way

Winder, GA 30680

C: (404) 357-9596

[email protected]

Retiree President

Theresa Pulliam

184 Hale Crossing Rd

Royston GA 30662-3818

C:(706-498-3663)

[email protected]

Retiree Secretary/Treasurer

Nancy Chapman

1041 Thornwood Dr.

Watkinsville, GA 30677

H: (706) 769-6876

C: (706) 296-4052

[email protected]

National Adverse Action

Counselor

David Disharoon

PO Box 1322

Dawsonville, GA 30534

C: (404) 217-2482

[email protected]

Chapter Member

Representative-North

Roy Shaffer

162 Poplar Way

Winder, GA 30680

C: (404) 357-9596

[email protected]

Chapter Member

Representative -South

Joe Griggers

284 Rebecca Cir

Griffin, GA 30224

C: (770) 584-0391

[email protected]

Southern

Area Coordinator

Ron Davis

O: (334) 756-3268

C: (334) 744-3033

[email protected]

Constitution and Bylaws

Louise Nix

88 Rodney Nix Rd

Cleveland, GA 30528

H: (706) 865-4391

C: (706) 878-6173

[email protected]

Parliamentarian

Sammie Reese

5 Pine Grove Cr

Newnan, GA 30263

H: (770) 251-8729

C: (678) 526-3471

[email protected]

4 Peaches & Print Nov/Dec 2019

President - Becky Manley

“Fall conference and Beyond”

Editor - James Terrell

“Veterans recognition”

As veteran’s day approaches, I think of all the recognition that we receive as veterans. Restaurants offering free meals. Small

tokens of appreciation given by our employer. We get called out at our churches and organizational meetings. Some hail us as heroes. Well, I don’t consider my self a hero. I joined the U.S.

Navy as an 18-year-old that new nothing about what he was doing. The Movie Top Gun piqued my interest and I wanted to give it a try. I had graduated High School and it was a way to get

out and see the world. It was not until I was there that I realized how important it was and what an honor it was to wear the uni-form of the United States Navy. They taught me honor and re-

spect for my country and fellow service members. They taught me how to work as a team to make a ship run smoothly. They

taught me to do my best no matter what the task. Yes, there were sacrifices that had to be made to serve. Those sacrifices were made willingly. I served both during peace time and war

time. I never had to make the ultimate sacrifice as some of my brothers in uniform did. I willingly would have for God and coun-try. So, thank you all for the generous gestures of appreciation

and thanks to all my fellow service members that served. It was an honor and a privilege to serve you and my country.

B . I’d like to begin by thanking Janie for another job well done. Our Fall Conference this year was in Columbus, and I believe a change of scenery did us some good. If you were not able to be there, I’m sorry you missed it. We always open our meetings with patriotism and prayer. That’s one thing I love about UPMA. We are very patriotic, and we are not ashamed of God. This year a first timer, the Postmaster of Sparta sang the National Anthem. It was beautiful! Speaking of First Timers we had 13 with several from Marietta. It was good to have them back in the house as well as the others. I think that’s a record for Fall Con-ference if not, then very close. We were also blessed by a large group of Veterans present. They are the true heroes and we thank them for their service. Tony Leonardi brought word from the National Office on Presi-dent Dan’s behalf due to a scheduling conflict. We had a long list of distinguished guests including Mr. Amos Rodgers, retired Postmaster of Columbus, age 92 and fit as a fiddle. The Area and District staff were very forthcoming with answers to our questions. Our morning session ended with the presentation of our Lifetime Achievement Award to Ola Mae Ross by celebrat-ing her 90th birthday and becoming a Lifetime member. Ola Mae’s dedication to the Postal Service, UPMA, her family and friends is amazing. I’m convinced she is a Proverbs 31:10 to the end woman. It is always, always a privilege to be in her pres-ence.

November 1 begins our new year. As of this writing we have not met for the Changeover. When we do among the many things, we discuss will be the Legislative Summit. This year the Summit is February 23-26. I hope everyone understands how critical our presence on the Hill will be. As your Executive Board we under-stand. We will be setting aside funds to assist with the expenses of this trip to each member that attends all meetings and is not receiving funds from other sources. I have notified our National Office of our need for extra rooms once they become available December 1st. Watch the website for contact information for the hotel. Please make plans to join us. Don’t wait the rooms will go fast. Contact me if you’re interested in going, need a roommate, information or just that little nudge to help you make up your mind. You’ll be glad you went. I believe FY 20 will be super chal-lenging. We must make our voices heard. Strength in numbers you know. Finally, be sure to visit the Chapter website gaupma.com, as well as the National website at www.Unitedpma.org. Roy is do-ing an excellent job as our Webmaster. On the National website you will find the latest release of “From the President’s Desk” and all the other latest news and training. Take care and please be safe. Safety first

http://gaupma.com/

http://www.unitedpma.org/


Chapter Member Representative - Roy Shaffer

Ramblings of an Old Man

Y ou may have heard of some Postmasters/Managers at-

tending IMIP (Initial Management Inquiry Process) training.

This process is exactly what it says. It’s an inquiry process used

to gather all the relevant facts pertaining to a single or ongoing

incident or complaint. The process doesn’t pertain to EAS only

but the majority of the IMIPs are initiated based on the alleged

actions of an EAS employee. When a complaint is received, the

HR Manager determines if an IMIP is the appropriate next step.

I went through the process as a Postmaster and will explain the

process as it pertained to my duties at the Winder Post Office.

The person assigned to conduct an IMIP called (on a Friday)

and informed me that she and another manager would be at my

office on Tuesday to conduct an IMIP based on allegations of a

hostile work environment. When they arrived, they said they

would need You to talk with randomly selected employees. I

called all the employees together and introduced the two man-

agers and stated they were there to conduct an investigation

and would be talking to random employees. At the time, Winder

had 51 employees so they weren’t required to interview ALL the

employees nor the select few which may have been mentioned

in the complaint against me. I think they interviewed 15 employ-

ees (25%) plus the 204-B and myself (the supervisor was out on

SL). They had only three questions to ask so they were able to

finish their inquiry that day. I only remember two of the ques-

tions: Do you think your job is stressful? Is Winder Post Office a

Hostile Work Environment? I was told that their final report

would be submitted to the HR manager to determine if any fur-

ther actions were needed. No action was ever taken so I have

never seen that IMIP report. Unless the Postal Service takes

action based on an investigation, you are not entitled to see the

investigation report.

Exempt/Non-exempt is determined by the number of employees

Postmasters manage. In order to be exempt, you must supervi-

sor two full time equivalent employees (80 workhours per week).

If you’re a level-18 PM with only 2 PTF clerks, you shouldn’t be

exempt. Exempt PMs are entitled to Personal leave but do not

receive pay for any hours worked in excess of 40 hours weekly

and can not take AL/SL in hourly increments. If you’re Non-

exempt and work over 8 hours in a day or 40 hours in a week,

you are entitled to overtime but not Personal leave and can use

AL/SL in hourly increments.

Honor and integrity is doing what’s right no matter the cost/

consequences to oneself.

Always remember these two questions when you get that call

from your boss.

Do I need representation?

If the answer is no, then ask: May I bring representation?

Secretary/Treasurer - Tammy Cantrell

Yearly summary

GA UPMA had a great 2019 but let’s all work to make 2020 even better. This year we saw an increase in membership, we had great representation at the Legislative Summit and the Na-tional Convention, we had one of highest number of active members to attend a State Convention and we had 13 first tim-ers attend the Fall Conference in Columbus. It was great to see some of the new members attend the conference. It was even greater to see Ola Mae Ross that recently turned 90 years young and Amos Rogers that recently turned 92 attend the con-ference. That’s the kind of dedication we should all strive to

have for this great organization. Our chapter has worked this year to give back to the membership by helping increase attend-ance at national meetings through financial assistance. The executive board voted to pay additional expenses for our state conferences to help keep registration cost low to encourage attendance. Your executive board is always working for you. My challenge to you for 2020 is to become more involved in UPMA, you won’t regret it.

Retiree President - Theresa Pulliam

Looking forward to the future

I t is hard to believe that another summer has come and gone. I hope everyone enjoyed your vacations with family and

friends. Now is the time of the year that we begin planning for the holidays. As retirees, we to have to plan since our lives as so busy with a different kind of “busy”. Freddy and I regret that

we missed the Fall Conference in Columbus this year. I know

that each of you were rewarded with lots of fellowship and good information. I look forward to serving as Retiree President and

thank you for the opportunity. If I can be of service to anyone, please feel free to contact me. In closing, my wish for each of you this Holiday season is for Love, Peace, Joy and a blessed

new year.


Executive Vice President/Membership Chair—Wendy Spears

I describe the beginning of my postal management experience like this: After agreeing to take on my first OIC assignment,

my postmaster crumpled me up into the ball of his hand and threw me as hard as he could to my new assignment. On my flight there, I could barely make out what he was saying as he waved goodbye, “See you when you get back. You’re on your own now girl. Sink or swim!”

Well, I chose to swim, but I was only able to stay afloat with the help of my kind, neighboring postmasters that took me under their wings. They spent endless hours talking me through pro-grams on the phone and even brought in outside reinforcements to help. Yes… I was that inexperienced. I say that to say this – those ladies were members of our great organization and as ambassadors they provided me with the knowledge and tools I needed to succeed in that small office and to be successful still in my management career. I will forever be thankful to them and am still friends with them today.

Our organization is such a huge asset to any new or seasoned manager in the United States Postal Service. I have made friends in all of Georgia and across the United States. We look forward to seeing each other at national and state conventions and we help each other in between.

UPMA offers so much – lifelong friendships, education on any and everything postal, opportunity to meet with district, area and national leaders that you may not otherwise have, mentoring, and access to the network of Adverse Action Member reps, should the need arise just to name a few.

My wonderful, neighboring, postmaster friends invited me to my first state convention in 2007 and I have been a member since. I am so thankful that they did. As members, I encourage each of you to reach out and invite someone to our meetings and to join our organization. Let’s lead them to the same watering hole that we drink and benefit from.

***All EAS will get 6 months free membership upon joining***

Wendy Spears

Executive VP/Membership Chair

Veteran Recognition at the UPMA fall conference


Fall Conference 2019


Fun and Games


Addressing the group


Ola Mae Ross becomes lifetime member


Tommie Fenn Kelley Postmaster Retired Rochelle GA

SCHOLARSHIP DONATIONS:

Would you like to remember someone who is sick

or shut in or maybe in memory of a lost loved one?

You can make contributions to the scholarship

fund in their name. For more information please

contact Tammy at:

[email protected]

Send your donations to:

Tammy Cantrell

State Secretary/Treasurer

Roy Shaffer in honor of Leo Helme’s Dad

Tammy Cantrell in honor of Leo Helme’s Dad

Louise Nix in honor of Leo Helme’s Dad

Karen Wehunt in honor of Le o Helme’s dad

Lakeisha Osgood - Postmaster Dallas

Larry Parker– SR. Filed Sales Representative

Eddie McDonald—Field Sales Representative

Lisa Bradley—Sr, Field Sales Representative

Periodical Postage

PAID at

Lexington, GA 30648

nov/dec 2019 vol. 3 no. 6 · 2019. 11. 11. · ga upma had a great 2019 but let’s all work to...

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