Terry keeps a bag of suckers by the box slots. Kids know they get one on Friday if they're polite when they come in. Terry who was a substitute carrier from 1974 to 1979 when she became postmaster knows where everyone lives. When letters come for Santa, every one gets a response and sometimes a sucker. If they get to the post office late, Santa usually asks the writer if he or she liked a particular toy.
Terry knows what most kids in town find under their tree.
Last year, Terry and her husband, Gerald, spent an hour delivering 15 packages that came Christmas morning. They weren't all guaranteed-delivery packages, but she knew each one was anticipated. The machines in other post offices make that mistake, not the four women whose hands touch every piece of mail that goes through Atlanta, Indiana.