Patrons should take care of post office

To the editor:

I have debated whether or not to say something about the condition patrons leave the Wasilla Post Office in over the weekends, and particularly, long weekends that include a holiday.

On Columbus Day, I stopped in the Wasilla Post Office around 6:30 p.m. to check my mail. What I saw was appalling, and it had nothing to do with the post office employees, but with the patrons!

As I walked to my post office box, I saw that all the trash cans were overflowing with discarded mail and trash. What upset me the most was the pizza box left on one of the counters among the unwanted mail and other trash. Since there was no room in the trash cans, the patron just left the pizza box on the counter. Included with the other discarded mail were fast food soda cups and fast food bags. On other occasions, I have found patrons will remove items from the packaging received in the mail and leave empty boxes on the counter instead of putting them in the trash. I guess they feel it is someone else’s responsibility to throw away their trash.

The post office provides trash cans for the convenience of the patrons to throw away unwanted mail. In the past, it provided recycle bins for unwanted mail, but instead of using the trash cans also provided, many patrons were throwing trash in the recycle bins, leaving the recycled material just trash. It seems some patrons feel it is more convenient to trash the post office than taking the trash home and put it in the garbage there.

I just feel there is a complete lack of respect for public areas in Wasilla. It also appears to me that folks don’t take pride in their community if they treat the post office like a trash bin. I guess it is always easier to have someone else clean up the mess than taking responsibility for one’s own trash.

Pauline Hooten

Wasilla