82R8283 BPG-D

By: Aliseda H.R. No. 523

R E S O L U T I O N

WHEREAS, The Campbellton Post Office in southern Atascosa County, Texas, has played as essential role in the lives of area residents for more than 130 years, but the United States Postal Service has placed it on a list of facilities to be closed in 2011; and

WHEREAS, John Campbell established the post office in his general store in 1874, and five years later, moved them both to the new town of Campbellton; Mr. Campbell was officially appointed the first postmaster and was succeeded over the years by a number of his descendants, including William Campbell, Edward Campbell, Louise Campbell, and Alyce Campbell; and

WHEREAS, Its present postmaster, Lydia Rodriguez Castillo, began her long tenure in 1971; a postal service hiring freeze prevents her position from being filled when she retires, yet the postal service has targeted the branch for closure in part because it lacks a permanent postmaster; and

WHEREAS, Residents of the rural area and hamlets served by the Campbellton Post Office rely on it for business communications as well as for their personal mail, and the post office is particularly important to the elderly; if it should close, customers would have to travel some 20 miles to send packages, check post office boxes, or mail important documents; accordingly, patrons and civic leaders have formed a committee and started a petition to support the preservation of this integral institution; and

WHEREAS, Throughout the history of Campbellton, the post office has been part of the fabric of the community, and its closing would deprive citizens of ready access to vital services and diminish their quality of life; now, therefore, be it

RESOLVED, That the House of Representatives of the 82nd Texas Legislature hereby honor the legacy of public service to the community of the Campbellton Post Office; and, be it further

RESOLVED, That the house of representatives hereby respectfully urge the United States Congress to direct the U.S. Postal Service to continue operating the Campbellton Post Office in Atascosa County, Texas; and, be it further

RESOLVED, That the chief clerk forward official copies of this resolution to the president of the United States, to the president of the Senate and the speaker of the House of Representatives of the United States Congress, to the United States postmaster general, and to all the members of the Texas delegation to Congress with the request that this resolution be entered in the Congressional Record as a memorial to the Congress of the United States of America.