Postmaster believed in putting customers first

Montville - As a rookie carrier in the 1970s, David Leonard loved his walking route in downtown New London.

He got to know the locals, gained their trust, looked out for them. And on one occasion, he helped the police capture one of them.

Recently, Leonard, who retired from the U.S. Postal Service on Friday after 38 years of employment, ending his tenure as the postmaster of the Oakdale Post Office, recalled one of the more memorable moments at the beginning of his career.

While walking his route one day, Leonard was delivering the mail when a New London police officer on a foot chase asked Leonard to trip a suspect. He put his mail bag in the middle of the sidewalk just before the man ran past and achieved the requested task.

"He handcuffed the man and said, 'Thanks,'" Leonard said, laughing.

Leonard's career became less harrowing soon thereafter when he accepted a more supervisory position, leaving New London in the early 1980s for a job as a safety adviser with the postal service's regional office in Hartford.

Last week, sitting in a small kitchen area at the back of the Oakdale office, Leonard, 60, reflected fondly on his nearly four decades with the postal service.

"It's been enjoyable, but it's probably time to do something different. I want to leave here with the customers happy," he said.

Leonard began work as postmaster in Oakdale in January 1993, after working in supervisory positions in East Lyme, Stonington and Old Lyme.

Throughout his career, Leonard said he always aimed to provide the best customer service possible.

"Supervisors just don't have the time now. It's the economy, it's micromanaged, it's just tough now," he said, adding that work hours and required paperwork has put a strain on the customer service component of the job.

If he has any parting advice for the service, it would be to bring the focus back to customer service and show people that its employees care.

Leonard said taking the time to hear an employee's or a customer's complaint, even if you can't fix it, can make a world of difference.

It's the subtle touches: the holiday music that plays in the lobby during Christmas to reduce stress; going to a customer's house to address a complaint; helping a person repair a damaged mailbox.

"Things are changing, and we can't stop it. We've got to save money, but we've got to improve customer service. We're trying to get to a point where we have that premier product," he said, suggesting that the USPS' Priority Mail option could be that product.

Leaving may be difficult, but Leonard considers himself lucky to be handing over the reins to someone he trusts. His post was turned over to Officer in Charge Linda Nelson on July 1. When Nelson started her career in the postal service, she worked with Leonard in Oakdale before she transfered to Waterford and Uncasville.

"I just hope he enjoys it. He's been great with the customers, and they're all going to miss him - we're all going to miss him," Nelson said.

Leonard will begin work in a much larger venue in the coming weeks. Although he's not big on crowds, Leonard's next job will be in another form of customer service: working as an event staffer at Mohegan Sun.

m.bard@theday.com