August 18, 2021 by Jackson Wang

Betty Lou Orr has called Wells home for most of her life. Even at age 81, she is still looking after the residents in the Hamilton County town.

“We do have a lot of older people in town, and they might be sick or something,” Orr said.

Lately, she’s been making sure people are getting their mail. At least twice a week, Orr will hop on Route 30 and make the drive down to Northville, currently the nearest post office to them.

“Round trip is 30 miles, and we have a lot of older people in our community,” Orr said.

What You Need To Know

Back in May, the Wells Post Office closed after its lease expired


Residents have been driving a 40-minute round trip to Northville for mail


A spokesperson for the Postal Service says they are actively seeking a new permanent location

That’s because in May, the Wells Post Office closed after its lease expired. All the post office boxes were moved to Northville. Postal Service officials say the closure is temporary, but it has made things a lot more difficult for residents like Orr.

Residents have started a petition to push for its post office to return immediately.

Congresswoman Elise Stefanik, State Senator Jim Tedisco and the town supervisor have written letters to the Postal Service requesting that service be restored.

“My concern right now is that they want to go on another 60 days, and to me, this really looks like a form of geographic discrimination,” Tedisco said.

In a statement, a spokesperson for the Postal Service says it is actively seeking a new permanent location and plan to continue providing first-class service to Wells’ customers.

As Orr arrives back in Wells, she has mail for herself and five other residents. The trip is doable now, but the concern is winter. She’s hoping a post office will be back in town before snow starts flying.

“As long as it’s in town, I don’t care where it is,” Orr said.

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