Rural Carrier worried about mail piling up alerts authorities

Shelley Ponton, a rural carrier in Ashkum, IL, was recently making deliveries when she grew concerned about an older customer whose mail was piling up unusually.

Ponton asked Postmaster Julia Holohan to alert authorities about the woman, who lived alone and had no family members except a brother 75 miles away.

Emergency responders found the customer deceased.

“Had it not been for Shelley’s attention to her loyal customers, the woman could have been left unnoticed for some time,” Holohan said. “Sometimes Shelley may be the only person a customer talks to all week. She goes above and beyond with customer service and is highly valued by all.”