Temperatures around Iowa this week neared the eighties, but while it’s hard to think of winter right now, post office spokesman Rich Watkins says there’s a deadline coming up to mail packages for Christmas.
For military cards, letters and packages going overseas to the APO’s — Air and Army Post offices, and FPO’s, Fleet Post offices, the deadline is Monday November 13 to get it in the mail, if you send it parcel post. There are other deadlines coming up for different ways of mailing, and different destinations.
The postal service has a “care kit” to help simplify sending a package to a friend or relative. Called a “mil-kit” for sending to soldiers, it lets families send care packages overseas, and since its inception a couple years ago, the post office has sent more than 150-thousand of these kits. The kits contains basically pre-paid mailers.
Each kit contains four priority mail boxes, and six priority mail flat-rate boxes, which will let you send anything you can fit inside the flat rate of 8-dollars-10-cents. There are also ten priority mail labels, a roll of special tape, and ten custom forms with envelopes. Get them by calling the USPS Expedited Package Supply Center toll-free at 800-610-8734, and it’s all free.