Virginia Clerk is the Talk of His Town

(This article first appeared in the May-June 2015 issue of The American Postal Worker magazine.)

Tucked away in the western corner of Virginia, just across the Kentucky border, is the sleepy town of Pound.

On a frigid Tuesday morning this past February, most residents were snowed in – but not 46-year-old Mike Combs. The Pound post office clerk trekked two-and-a-half miles to work that morning so he could open up and serve customers.

In fact, the APWU member’s service is so outstanding that customer Shannon Phillips reached out to The Coalfield Progress to sing his praises.

“He has seen me coming with my young grandson and brought my package out to the parking lot so I would not have to bring the baby in,” she told the paper. “He really does not get the credit that he deserves.

“The entire staff at our local post office is great, but Mike really has a relationship with everyone who comes through his doors,” Phillips said. “It is just nice to know that in the time that we live in, there are still good people who do good things for the right reason.”

‘I Love My Job’

Combs has been a postal worker for 22 years. Living in Pound since the age of 12, he said that he is in tune with his community and takes pride in having personal relationships with customers.

“I love my job, basically. And I love the people in this community,” he told the paper.

Combs noted that he remembers customers and is able to have their package ready by the time they reach his counter.

“After a while you get the hang of it. It’s so simple,” Combs said. “I love making people happy. It’s such a simple thing to do. You get goose bumps on your arms and your hair stands up on them.”

Combs graduated from Pound High School and joined the Air Force, where he worked in the post office. When he left, he “got lucky” and was assigned to a position at the Pound post office.

Combs lives with his wife Phillis and their five dogs.