In the words of Hank Williams, “The news is out all over town,” but in case you’ve been out of town and haven’t heard, a seismic change is about to hit Patagonia… Jackie Covey is retiring!
For the past 31 years, Jacqueline Marie (Paton) Covey has been the human face of the Patagonia Post Office. Multiple postmasters and coworkers have come and gone, the price of a first-class stamp has nearly tripled and handwritten letters have all but disappeared, but for the last three decades, Jackie has been the constant provider of a friendly greeting, helpful advice and go-the-extra-mile service to appreciative postal patrons.
Although she seems to be always there whenever anyone needs something at the post office, Jackie is not a full-time employee. Even more surprising, however, is that, despite working for a long list of employers, starting with her first job as a teenager bussing tables at the Steakout, for all practical purposes she has never worked full-time at any job.
Hired by the post office in 1994 as a part-time flex window/distribution clerk, Jackie has remained officially a part-time employee with the same job title throughout her entire postal career. But when USPS policy wonks decided the postal service should operate as a business rather than a public service, her title was expanded to include Sales Service Associate.
That change in thinking was not entirely to Jackie’s liking, believing as she does that the emphasis should be on providing service, not on making money. But whatever the official USPS policy, without breaking the rules Jackie found ways to provide a level of service that saved customers time, trouble and expense.
When asked if she ever received training in customer service, Jackie replied, “No, the only training I got was how to use the machines.”
A career with the USPS was not what Jackie had in mind when she received her diploma from Patagonia Union High School. She had hoped to become a veterinarian but abandoned that goal after her freshman year at the University of Arizona. Life in the big city left her yearning for the small-town life she’d grown accustomed to since her family moved from New Hampshire to Patagonia when she was in fourth grade. Although she gave up pursuit of a college degree, she acquired a certificate in computer accounting from the Lamson Business School where she achieved Honor Graduate recognition with a 4.0 GPA.
Except for a few years working as a nurse’s aide and as a waitress when she moved with her husband to Texas, Jackie worked part-time jobs in Patagonia prior to landing the post office job. Most notably, she worked as a clerk in the Town of Patagonia office, as Clerk of the Municipal Court and as cashier at the Patagonia Market.
Jackie’s work history also includes a job that began when she was in high school. It’s widely known that she’s the daughter of Wally and Marion Paton, whose inclination to invite total strangers into their backyard to watch birds eventually led to the creation of the Tucson Audubon Society’s Paton Center for Hummingbirds. Less widely known is that she and her father ran a successful business raising and packaging fishing worms for sale at Patagonia Lake State Park. She worked at this enterprise throughout high school even while she was deeply involved in sports, cheerleading and 4-H projects. She kept the job even when she was pregnant with the first of her two daughters.
At the post office she has been a “Jackie of all trades,” performing every task required of a small-town postal facility, from cleaning floors to fulfilling the duties of postmaster during times when that position was vacant.
One of the many duties Jackie has taken on over the years is managing the lobby bulletin board. Bulletin boards are not permitted in most post offices. It is permitted in Patagonia only because the staff here has thus far convinced upper-level USPS officials that it is a communications vehicle vital to this community and its removal would make it difficult to disseminate important messages. She just wishes that users would help keep it neat and orderly.
Reflecting on her long career at the post office, Jackie notes that while much of the work remains as it was when she started, the job has become more demanding in recent years with the daily arrival of Amazon trucks bearing 80-200 packages to be unloaded and then distributed to customers. Another significant change is that electronic messaging is gradually replacing paper. “Sadly, handwritten letters are disappearing,” she said.
Without doubt, this enterprising woman has earned her retirement. “I’ve always had a job. I’ve never not worked,” she said as she thought about what retirement might be like. Then, as though to punctuate her statement, she revealed that even when she finishes her last day at the post office on Feb. 28, she’ll still be working the part-time business she’s been operating from home filling orders for a musician who sells CDs and LPs online.
Jackie already has plans for how she will use her newfound free time. She looks forward to seeing more of her daughters Emily and Sarah and granddaughters Juniper and Hazel, who all live in the east. She also wants to catch up on some DIY home improvement projects, work in her garden, and eventually maybe do some volunteer work in the community. However, she’s resolute about not making commitments for the rest of this year.
Jackie said that what she will miss most will be the contact with members of the community. Already feeling the loss, she reached for a tissue as she uttered words that won’t surprise the legions of PRT readers who will soon miss her warm reception at the post office window.
“I am truly grateful for the opportunity to serve in this capacity,” she said. “It’s been an honor and a privilege to work for the people of this community, and I almost feel guilty, kind of like I’m letting them down.”
Yes, it’s for real. Jackie Covey is retiring but the good news is that she will continue to live in Patagonia. She hopes many of her friends and postal customers will help her celebrate at her retirement party to be held at 1pm on Saturday, Feb. 22 in Cady Hall. The party is open to the public.
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