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RPS postal service comes to the Chilcotin

Kleena Kleene Postmaster Melodie Gano and staffer Mary Klepacz spent last week learning how to operate a new piece of equipment.
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Postmaster Melodie Gano (left) helps out Linda-Lou Howarth and Don McDonough with their postal needs using the new RPS machine installed at the Kleena Kleene Post Office last week.

Both gazing with trepidation at this “thing” plunked in their office, Kleena Kleene Postmaster Melodie Gano and staffer Mary Klepacz spent last week learning how to operate a new piece of equipment.

Until this past year the post office for Kleena Kleene was just a few green locked boxes outside an old log house at the edge of town so that when people went to get their mail that is all they did.

The post mistress at the time was Brenda McFetridge who trained Gano to deliver the mail. That job resulted in Gano being hired as the postmaster of Kleena Kleene when McFetridge retired and the post office service being moved about six kilometres further west along Highway 20 to Jan Petrie’s property where people could receive parcels and buy stamps.

Until now Gano has had to carefully record every business transaction in a book, by hand.

Kristine Drader is holding training sessions for postmasters all over the north.

She came all the way from McBride to teach Gano and Klepacz the new accounting systems.

She spent the final day of training Oct. 16 helping the two women to use the new Retail Point Service machine.

“Not all post offices have this machine but I have helped quite a few get set up and make sure that they are running smoothly,” Drader says.

With the RPS system in place, Gano and Klepacz are able to offer more services to rural Canada Post customers, such as C.O.D.s and money grams.

Gano is still working out so-called bugs and learning new procedures every time she uses the RPS, system.

“But with many calls and minutes on the phone with Drader and others for further help, I am getting along with the machine,” Gano says. “Thank goodness for technology.”