Misconceptions in Liberty
Misconceptions in Liberty
As a longtime Liberty Town- ship resident I want to commend Trustee Stan Nudell for his determination in talking to the postal authorities about returning postal services to our community.
However as the former clerk in charge of the contract post office in our Administration Building, I cringe every time an article appears in the newspaper mentioning money missing or merchandise being stolen. First and foremost, my fellow employees and I took great pride in serving our residents.
I was hired upon the opening of the contract station in 1979 and ran this post office for 28 years, exactly the way we were taught and, perhaps most importantly, according to the postal guidelines established by the U.S. Post Office.
In a July 21, 2009, letter from Ohio Attorney General Richard Cordray’s office, the forensic accountant Leo Fernandez specifically states “there were problems with the post office’s IRT machine which acts as a central processing unit for the post office and it provides accountability for the sales and collection of monies from stamps and supplies inventories.”
Repeatedly I had made requests and suggestions to the investigators that they look into the entire reporting process to ascertain if incorrect figures had been transposed between the Liberty location to downtown Youngstown and then to the Cleveland postal authorities.
Mr. Fernandez later states that because the IRT tapes did not itemize the sales of specific stamps sold, he was unable to reconstruct a perpetual inventory to identify any shortage.
Recent reports in the media cited township officials stating our post office cost Liberty residents approximately $200,000 over a six year period. That is about $34,000 a year. When our contract station originated, it was never intended to be a money maker, but rather, a service to our residents.
The bottom line is the Liberty Township Contract post office closed under an ugly cloud of suspicion. It is important to me that my name be cleared and my reputation be maintained.
Virginia Elliott, Liberty