CRESTVIEW — John Blair didn’t set out to work for the post office, let alone become a postmaster.
That was just one of life’s twists.
“I went to college to be a high school teacher and basketball coach. That was my goal,” said Blair. “After college, in the summer I was home sitting around on the couch scrolling TV channels.
“After a couple weeks of that, my dad came home one day and said, ‘That’s enough of that, you need to get a job.’ He said, ‘The post office is testing and you’re going to go down and take the test.’”
Blair did, and soon received a call.
“They were offering more money than any teaching job,” Blair said. “I thought I’d work a few years until I found the right teaching job. Thirty years later, and I’m still here.”
Blair, born in Pensacola, began his postal career as a letter carrier in Bremerton, Washington.
Working his way up, in 1998 he became a postmaster in the Spokane, Washington, postal district. But he often returned to Northwest Florida to vacation.
When the Crestview postmaster’s position opened nine years ago, “I asked my wife and said, ‘What do you think?’” Blair said. “She said, ‘Sure, let’s give it a whirl,’ so I applied for the job and got hired here.”
This week, Blair announced his early departure from the Crestview Post Office, from which he’s been on a medical leave for several months, and that will be quite a change.
“I never missed a day in 30 years,” he said.
By his Sept. 13 retirement, Blair will have been Crestview’s postmaster for almost 10 years.
While Blair exhausts several months of accumulated leave, Shalimar Postmaster Mike Stanford will supervise Crestview’s post office.
Both postal colleagues and customers said they will miss him.
“Mr. Blair taught me a lot,” Crestview Post Office customer service supervisor Ramona Hunter said. “Oh yes, he will most definitely be missed.”
“He’s a pretty colorful character. He does a very good job and we will miss him,” customer Jim Moore said. “We wish him the best in his retirement.”
Though enjoying “being a househusband” and remaining active in the Rotary International, Blair said he will miss his staff in the Commerce Boulevard post office.
“It’s an awesome group to work with,” he said.
“He is well respected not just by the people who work for him, but also the people who used to work for him and the people who are above him,” window clerk Shelton Sumrall said.
“One of John’s biggest beliefs was in customer service,” Hunter said, adding Blair was her mentor. “His philosophy was, ‘Get to know your community.’ That was good advice he gave me.”
“He is an excellent leader,” Sumrall said. “He is very strict about making sure everything is done to postal regulations.”
“He led me but he allowed me to learn,” Hunter said. “He taught me how to grow and learn from my mistakes. That’s one of the biggest things I like about him.”
“He’s going to be sorely missed,” Sumrall said.
Retiring Crestview Postmaster John Blair leaves with many fond memories of the “awesome group” of postal workers he’s called colleagues for nine years.
The Christmas mailing season is an annual opportunity to put them to the test, he said.
“I don’t think people realize this, but the Crestview post office averages roughly about 120,000 pieces of mail a day that goes through it, between in and out," Blair said.
“It’s three times that during the month of December, but these guys still get it done. It’s not unusual for a carrier to handle five times the amount of packages that they normally get.”
CRESTVIEW'S 'AMAZING' POSTAL TEAM
This article originally appeared on Crestview News Bulletin: Crestview postmaster retiring after 30-year career (VIDEO)