From the Republican-Herald, some big local news. (If link doesnt work, expand and read pasted text.) ---------------------------------------------------------------- POTTSVILLE NATIVE TO BECOME FIRST WOMAN POSTMASTER GENERAL CEO m.republicanherald/pottsville-native-to-become-first-woman-postmaster-general-ceo-1.1788217 BY GABRIELLA O’GRADY (STAFF WRITER [email protected]) Published: November 14, 2014 The U.S. Postal Service Board of Governors announced Friday that Megan J. Brennan, a Pottsville native and its current chief operating officer, will be appointed as the 74th Postmaster General CEO and the first woman to hold the job. Postmaster General Patrick Donahoe announced his retirement Friday amid annual Postal Services losses surpassing $5 billion and ongoing battles with Congress over cost-cutting moves, including ending Saturday delivery. “I am deeply honored and humbled to take on this role at such an exciting time for the organization,” Brennan said in a press release from the U.S. Postal Service. “The Postal Service plays a vital role in America’s society and economy and I’m looking forward to strengthening that role and meeting the demands of a rapidly evolving marketplace in the years ahead.” Donahoe will be succeeded Feb.1 by Brennan, who could not be reached for comment Friday by The Republican-Herald. “It’s great to see a local person succeed at the highest level of an organization such as the postal service,” Jared Diehl, Pottsville Postmaster, said. “I know she will look out for the best interest of the post office and its employees. She is obviously dedicated to her job to get to that position.” Diehl said though he never had the chance to work with Brennan, he had met her a few times before. “You talk to her like a regular person. She doesn’t talk down to you and she talks to you like you’re a regular person,” Diehl said. “...Her brother worked here as an employee... but he passed away last year so I had some one-on-one time with her. She would stop by when she was in town visiting family.” Brennan graduated from Nativity BVM High School in 1980 and was recently named the 2014 distinguished alumna. “She is an excellent choice for Postmaster,” Lynn Sabol, Nativity BVM principal, said. “She was here at graduation last year and gave a speech to the graduating class. She was wonderful.” Sabol said though she didn’t teach Brennan, she knew her through her visit to the high school. “We’re very proud of her and to have her (as an alumnus),” Sabol said. “She was very active while she was here.” As the COO, she oversees day-to-day operations for the agency, including mail processing, transportation, delivery and retail operations. “Megan has led important initiatives to provide Sunday delivery services, improved tracking and greater predictability and reliability,” said Mickey D. Barnett, chairman of the Board of Postal Governors. “She has also been highly successful in rationalizing our mail processing, delivery and retail operations.” Brennan played basketball for Nativity as a key reserve in 1978 when the team won the school’s first PIAA Class A state championship, which assisted in earning her a spot in the Allen-Rogowicz Chapter of the Pennsylvania Sports Hall of Fame in October 2012. She was a team co-captain, won the Lions Club Award for Top Female Athlete and was named “Most Outstanding Female Athlete” at Nativity, according to The Republican-Herald archives. She was also the fourth Nativity girls player to score over 1,000 points in her high school career, John O’Connor Sr., president of the hall of fame, said. Brennan earned three letters in basketball and four in softball. O’Connor has fond memories of Brennan, not only because she was inducted into the hall of fame, but for the time they spent together. “I used to see her at all the Irish festivals around here. Me and her start talking about the old days at Irish festivals when I see her,” O’Connor said. “I’m really proud of her. What a terrific girl. She is a really deserving person and I’m so glad.” Brennan’s father said her family is excited for her. “We’re very, very proud of her,” Jeremiah “Jerry” Brennan, 86, of Pottsville, said. “She’s a very level-headed person.” Brennan became Chief Operating Officer and executive vice president in December 2010, according to the press release. The 28-year postal service veteran began her career in the Postal Service in 1986 as a letter carrier in Lancaster, Pennsylvania. “Previously she was vice president of Eastern Area Operations. As the senior postal official she oversaw an area that encompassed Pennsylvania, Ohio, West Virginia, Delaware, Kentucky, Central and South Jersey, Western New York and parts of Virginia and Indiana,” according to the press release. “...Brennan served as vice president of Northeast Area Operations from May 2005 until being named vice president of Eastern Area Operations.” Brennan is also a graduate of Immaculata College in Pennsylvania, is a Sloan Fellow and holds a Master of Business Administration degree from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology. “We have grown our revenue for two years in a row, primarily through growth in our package business and price changes,” Donahue said Friday. “While we still have major issues to resolve with regard to our business model and legislative constraints, our message today is about momentum and progress.” Donahoe, who has spent 39 years with the Postal Service, took over the agency during a serious financial crisis and oversaw a restructuring of the agency as it sought to deal with sharp declines in the volume of first-class mail. “Pat was the calm in the financial storm. He ignored the naysayers and went forward with his team and built a comprehensive plan for the future of the organization, made tough decisions and executed against those decisions,” Barnett said. “That’s a testament to the great team he built and his own personal leadership.” Donahoe’s retirement announcement came as the agency reported a $569 million revenue increase in a fiscal year the year that ended Sept. 30, but an overall loss for the year of $5.5 billion. Donahoe said there’s still more to be done. “The organization has a lot of momentum right now, and we’re doing a lot to innovate and improve the way we serve the public and our customers,” he said. The agency has an about 491,000 employees. The change in top management comes as the Postal Service seeks to cut costs to stay financially viable. Postal Service officials have pushed Congress to pass comprehensive legislation that would allow it to end most Saturday mail deliveries and reduce a congressionally mandated $5.6 billion annual payment for future retiree health benefits. The Postal Service is an independent agency that receives no tax dollars, but it still is subject to congressional control. Donahoe began working for the Postal Service as a clerk in Pittsburgh, where he was attending college. “Working for a brand that touches every citizen of this great country every day has been a tremendous honor,” he said. “It’s always difficult to walk away from something you love and have a lot of passion for, but knowing that the organization is moving forward with a strong plan and lot of momentum makes it easier.”
Posted on: Sat, 15 Nov 2014 19:05:53 +0000