Dear Jasper,
I tried not to feel like I had to write this letter, but the more I reminisce of the last nine years, the more I feel it is due. I鈥檝e recently been told by people that this is like a divorce, but I have absolutely no idea how one person is supposed to break up with an entire community.
It鈥檚 been a real pleasure serving you as Purolator Courier, but sadly my time at the helm has drawn to a close. It鈥檚 time for me to move on to a new chapter in my life. I鈥檓 overwhelmed at the love and support this town has shown me over the years, and I feel very privileged to have been blessed by so many friendly faces and kind words. I will genuinely miss most of the people I got to interact with on a daily/weekly basis.
It was not an easy decision to relinquish my position, but what鈥檚 even harder is writing a farewell letter to a small town that I love and have called home since Oct. 31, 1998 when I first became a resident, until 2012 when I moved to Hinton to cut out the commute to the job site.
Since February of 2006 I鈥檝e been delivering Purolator freight to Jasper and it鈥檚 residents, and by reading the shipping labels sometimes it has seemed that I know where to find people better than they do themselves. That being said, I鈥檇 like to leave behind some helpful tips of how the process works in order to bring your purchases to your door:
1) Every building within a town has a physical address, learn yours.
2) Most commercial buildings have multiple separate businesses operating under a central address. Learn to differentiate yourselves. It鈥檚 helpful to use: your name and your company, unless your name is posted on a noticeable sign outside your location.
3) Use the physical address of where shipments can be delivered so it doesn鈥檛 have to be redirected to some other second or third location at time of delivery. If couriers always made appointments, they鈥檇 be called doctors.
4) Always include a phone number, preferably local and in service. If your parcel arrives and there is no way to contact you, it may very well be returned to sender.
5) A post office box number is also helpful, but only to Canada Post or USPS freight. The rest of the world operates on physical location and method of contact. Just like where you want the ambulance to come to when you need one. They need to find you without hassle. Same goes in the world of logistics.
6) Ensure your physical address and business name are posted CLEARLY from outside your location.
7) Learn the difference between a billing address and a shipping address and be proactive in making sure your info is current and up to date on the shipping labels of your freight. Read your shipping labels when you receive your freight.
8) Realize that your freight may be transported to town by someone who is completely unfamiliar with your area. They are relying on municipal infrastructure in order to find you. They don鈥檛 necessarily know you by name, or care that you鈥檇 like to rely on them to know you by name. Not always the small town feel, but that鈥檚 the real world.
9) Help each other; be neighbourly. Seems odd to think, but space is a very precious commodity in Jasper. Use what you have to assist those around you and they may do the same for you.
10) Do not wait until the last minute! If you procrastinate you may find yourself missing the proverbial bus. Order your needs well in advance and keep supplies on hand so that you鈥檙e not desperate for a saviour delivery on Friday afternoon of a long weekend. Same goes for shipments that you may need to send out.
Alas Jasper, I bid you a fond and tearful farewell. Until we meet again on your quiet streets...
Much love and thanks,
Jamie McCardle (formerly Purolator Courier)
