JACKSONVILLE, Fla. – The City of Jacksonville held a ceremony Friday morning to welcome the new Postmaster Falonda Woods.
“I will listen to the voices of the American public. I will listen to the voices of my employees, and I commit to you that I will serve you in every capacity in which I’m able, according to the postal rules and policies,” Woods said.
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According to a release, Woods began her postal career in 1999 in Port Arthur, Texas. In 2016, she embarked on a new journey as the Postmaster of Tyler, Texas.
Woods is also a proud veteran of the U.S. Army and a graduate of multiple USPS leadership development programs. In May 2021, she began her role as the Postmaster of Atlanta, Georgia.
Now, as Jacksonville Postmaster, Woods oversees retail and delivery operations for the city, which include a dedicated force of 1,145 employees serving customers at 23 facilities delivering on a total of 704 delivery routes.
“It’s a great pride when you can improve service. Leading people, influencing them, that’s the meat and potatoes of everything that we do,” Woods said.
Nationally, the post offices are ranked out of 47, the Duval office is now in the top ten after just a couple of months.
“Just about understanding what is needed from our customers, listening to the verbatims that come in when our customers tell us what’s wrong and understand the problems we need to go after,” Woods said.
Woods is becoming the leader of the Duval post service at a challenging time.
Congressman John Rutherford and four other U.S. Representatives from Northeast Florida and Georgia requested an audit of the Jacksonville Network Distribution Center (NDC) after several complaints from customers.
There also have been disappointments among customers— like Marilyn Bing.
Her mother’s ashes were lost for weeks until our investigation. The ashes were shipped to Illinois and eventually returned to her home.
“I can’t believe they lost her ashes. They lost a whole box. How do lose a whole box that weighs 17 pounds?” she said.
MORE | Jacksonville woman who says USPS never delivered her mother’s ashes searches for answers | ‘I got my mom back’: Woman finally reunited with mother’s ashes after they were lost in the mail for months
News4JAX viewers have also expressed their concerns in the past about the postal service.
“I’ve had several issues with them. Packages that bounce all around the city for as many as 10 days...If I have a choice I never order anything with USPS because of this place,” a viewer wrote.
Though the issues and complaints are happening at the post office, the new postmaster is not responsible for mail processing. Woods is responsible for delivery. However, she is the face of the postal service for Duval County and plans to run the operation with efficiency and timely delivery.
Woods, who served in the Army for 11 years and the post service for 25 years, understands taking care of the community.
“It’s not just about you. It’s a selfless dedication being a prior military veteran we learn that along the way to have valor dignity and respect for all people and in this role,” Woods said.
Woods said this holiday season they will increase staff and have extra vehicles to handle the increase in volume.