2024-2025 Annual Reports
David Aldridge, President
This is my annual report as President of the Colorado Rural Letter Carriers’ Association.
This is my second year of my two-year term as President. Since our convention in Parker, I’ve been very busy is support of the CORLCA. As required by the CORLCA Constitution, I began by filling appointed positions within the organization (e.g., Parliamentarian, Chaplin).
I attended the 2024 National Convention in Reno in August as the national delegate from Colorado. Again, I was assigned as a member of the Sargeant at Arms Committee by the National Office. It required me to be in Nevada a couple of days earlier than the rest of the delegation.
One of my duties is to assign the delegates elected to attend the National Convention to assorted seminars that are held. That year was a bit different. There was a legal seminar scheduled for Monday night, and I assigned a delegate to attend that seminar. But rather than having that seminar, the NRLCA hosted a rally at the offices of the Congressman from Nevada. Many of our delegates attended that rally.
The CORLCA Board also hosted a rally at the State Capitol in Denver in support of the “Protect Our Letter Carriers” Act on Veteran’s Day. We had carriers from along the front range and even had a few city carriers show up.
District officers are required to have training on their duties. Usually, this is done in conjunction with the state convention. But many presidents and vice-presidents didn’t attend that training. So I had a Zoom meeting last August to satisfy the training requirement.
I called five board meetings and presided over every one of them. The board looked at many issues that pertain to communicating with our membership on important aspects of the job. Those include having rallies, informational meetings, as well as district meetings so that our members can stay informed.
In March, I went to Washington, D.C. and met with the Colorado Senators and Congressmen as part of the Legislative Seminar. Our Vice-President, Candie Dyer, went with me. We talked about a few bills that the NRLCA is hoping to see passed, including one that tells the Trump Administration that the Postal Service should remain an independent entity of the federal government and not be privatized.
We met with staff members of each Congressional delegate from Colorado. Our biggest surprise is that Congresswoman Boebert attended our meeting. She was the only actual Representative or Senator that met with us.
Finally, I look forward to presiding over this year’s state convention in Grand Junction and I am seeking another two-year term as your President.
Candie Dyer, Vice President
Well, it's that time of year again where I get to tell all of you what I've done for the year. Last year after the state convention, I attended the board meeting. We went to the national convention, as you may or may not know I am the PAC chair. So I attended the PAC Seminar. I also carried the flag for our state and was the sergeant at arms at the door and helped out with the PAC table.
There were 5 meetings that I remember that I went to for the board meetings. At times even tried or found a place for it to be held. I was the board member that went to represent the District 2 and 3 in Limon. There we talk about the where the state convention is and national convention coming up in Aug. They need to get their nominations in to be a delegate.
I came up with a flyer with all the scans on them to hand out to new people to remember scans, also to give out at meetings.
In January I helped out Cortney with a booster meeting on zoom and in person in Denver. I went to the academy to get the scans so people who came could play with them. Before the Christmas overtime started had a zoom to talk about Christmas over time and the 12 hr. rule. Me and David Alridge went to Washington D.C. to legislative to talk to the congressmen/women and Senators about voting the post office way. One of them was not to privatize the post office, to make stricter laws to those who think they can rob us and of course we are still looking to see it we can buy back out sub years.
I have been looking into getting samples of lanyards to see if we can give them out at the academy instead of the bank bags. I'm always looking to make baskets and other things for the PAC actions. That's all I can remember that I did last year.
Dawn Michelle Nix, Secretary-Treasurer
2024-2025 was a better year from my perspective.
I have been thankful all year for the Assistant Secretary-Treasurer position. We finally found a way to effectively utilize the position. Earlier attempts had been stymied by conflicting personal schedules and my health issues, but this year we were able to spend more time working together and moved several responsibilities to the Assistant, giving him repetitious practice with some of the Secretary-Treasurer duties.
Les handled the Cash Pay dues process for the last 2 years and has processed most of the new membership applications for this last year and a half. He has also assisted one of our districts with the filing of their annually required LM report, prepared some government payroll reports, processed board payroll vouchers, prepared and presented a report on CORLCA voucher processing procedures to the board, assisted me with preparation/organization of the proposed Constitutional changes for this convention, and is currently preparing Convention Committee information and materials for 2025.
It is a relief to have another board member with enough familiarity with the mechanics of our activities to provide assistance, as this board is handicapped by their reliance on the Secretary-Treasurer position. The existence of the Assistant position will be very helpful in the transition to a new Secretary-Treasurer, whether the existing Asst. S-T becomes the new S-T, or is just available to provide assistance.
I attended all called board meetings (but missed one Saturday to attend my grandson’s fourth birthday party), served as board representative to the District 5 meeting this spring, assisted with scheduling and mailings for November Informational meeting, scheduling, mailing, and refreshments for January booster meeting, scheduling for Districts 2-3 combined spring meeting, presented financial and some membership reports, as well as my Secretary-Treasurer column for our CORLCA newspaper 5 times this year. Additional newspaper responsibilities of the S-T are the updating of annual election forms and election informational articles.
I attended the NRLCA-provided annual Secretary-Treasurer trainings provided via ZOOM in 2024, and opted to not attend the latest in-person training held earlier this year. I felt it would be more beneficial to the organization, and a better return on the expense investment required, for Les to attend, as I was not planning to run for re-election and he was.
I organized the annual holiday (calendar) mailing and procured and provided the necessary materials to each board member to mail to members. I researched and provided the requested information to the CPA we utilize for our annual “agreed-upon-services” review of the CORLCA books, as I do every year.
2025 WSC President Tammy Smith issued a check to CORLCA in the amount of $6349.52, the balance left in our WSC “hosting” account, after all outstanding expenses were accounted for. With those funds, I purchased a 12-month certificate of deposit (CD 91, designated as CORLCA WSC Funds), to be retained for use in about 10 years when CORLCA is again responsible for hosting WSC.
CORLCA continues to operate at a loss, and while I do not support a dues increase at this time, I continue to encourage the board to consider ways to reduce expenses. Our biggest expenditures are national convention attendance and board meetings. Obviously national convention expenses are unavoidable and essential. So, my logical leaning is toward finding ways to reduce board meeting expenses.
When the Assistant S-T position was originally presented, I was opposed to combining that position with an Executive Committee position, but I now believe that was wrong. Elimination of one Executive Committee position by combining it with the Assistant S-T position could reduce board meeting expenses, while still providing representation to voting members, with the additional benefit of having one Executive Committee member with “hands-on” knowledge of the mechanics of CORLCA activities, who could provide assistance as needed, and be a valuable asset in officer transitions, emergencies, etc.
I have always valued my membership in the CORLCA. 31 years if I am counting correctly – 2 yrs as Editor; 7 years as President; 8 years as S-T, and before being actively involved, I relied on the trainings provided to make sure I had accurate information about my job. Through the CORLCA I have learned a tremendous amount about my job and the union, and have made life-long friends. But, I also recognize that the Rural Carrier job has changed – dramatically! For the future of the organization and its members, I hope constructive changes will be made to bring us to a place where CORLCA is responsive to the needs of working carriers in today’s and tomorrow’s USPS reality.
Dawn Michelle Nix, Secretary-Treasurer (2024-25 Annual Report)
Les Hawkins, Assistant Secretary-Treasurer
I processed 231 1187 forms within the last fiscal year where the membership increased from 1133 to 1146 which is an increase of 13 members or 1.1%. As you can see there was a significant amount of turnover. Which means there was a big expense in hiring and training new employees just to see the majority leave within the same year. 1187’s are processed by changing membership from non-member to member in the database and entering and making sure all contact information is correct in the database. Then the 1187 form is sent to the national office for further processing.
I attended the following District meetings as a representative of the CORLCA Board.
District 6 meeting in Durango CO on July 10, 2024
District 6 meeting in Durango CO on Feb 21, 2025
District 7 meeting in Grand Junction CO on Mar 23, 2025
Attendance at district meetings requires preparing the following. Talking points from the CORLCA board. Communication between the district and the state board. And training as needed at the district level. Where new officers were elected to district positions, there was the need to have the new officers sworn in and oversee the transfer of union property from old officers to new officers. Significant travel is required because of the size of our state.
Regular CORLCA board meetings were held on
July 27-28, 2024
Oct 5-6, 2024
Jan 4-5, 2025
Mar 8-9, 2025
May 3-4, 2025
And the final fiscal year meeting will be held in conjunction with the 2025 state convention located in Grand Junction on Thursday Jun 5, 2025.
Board meetings require preparation. Some of the duties preparing for these meeting include but are not limited to preparing a membership report which shows the total number of members currently in the state. It also shows trends of growth or decline. It also breaks down the total numbers to what position the members hold. For example, regular carrier, PTF, RCA, etc. Specific assignments from the latest board meeting are also prepared prior to meeting so there may be a report and discussion. For example, one assignment I had was to do Voucher training. This entails explaining why the voucher was set up as it currently is and why the information is needed. How this information is used to process the payroll and why the specific paper trail is necessary to stay in compliance with the DOL. I also explained the process of how the vouchers are processed and prepared for payment.
Dawn and I had workdays on Jan 6, 20205 and May 5, 2025, where we sat down together and worked to accomplish specific tasks. One of the benefits of working together is to pass along the knowledge needed to fulfill the position of Secretary-Treasurer. The Secretary-Treasurer position has a variety of responsibilities, and it is beneficial to work together and discuss ideas and techniques with each other. We have divided up tasks which made us more productive.
Last year (2024) the state convention was held in Parker, CO. At the conclusion of the convention, there is an intensive report that the National office requires of each state. Working closely with Dawn and under her supervision we prepared this report for Colorado and submitted it to the National office. This report has time deadlines and was completed and submitted within the limits.
Preparing to have a successful state convention every year requires careful and specific planning. There is an endless amount of paperwork to prepare. And timelines for specific tasks require careful attention. The DOL has strict guidelines for elections that must be adhered to. The DOL requires election procedures follow their timeline from notifying membership of an upcoming election to mailing out the ballots and the collection of those ballots. I have helped prepare paperwork for the 2025 election committee along with securing the required PO box for undeliverable ballots to be returned to. I also prepared the needed paperwork for the following committees. Budget, credentials, constitution and resolution proposal, and the Tom W Griffeth outstanding member committees.
I attended the National Convention held in Reno Nevada on 26 August through 31 August, 2025. I was elected as a delegate to represent Colorado. I attended as many seminars as I could possibly fit in. My assigned seminar was the OWCP seminar which I wrote an article on that was printed in the CORLCA newsletter. I was on the floor of the convention for the entirety of the business session so I could exercise my vote in your behalf. It is an honor to represent every member in Colorado.
I attended a national sponsored training for all state secretaries treasurers and assistants held in Florida in February 2025. The national leadership team presented this training, and it was very informative. They addressed items from elections to reports created in QuickBooks. It was important to have current issues addressed and questions answered. The knowledge I returned with could not be obtained in any other way. Knowledge is power, and this knowledge is obtained through training.
Respectfully submitted,
Les Hawkins
CORLCA Assistant Secretary/ Treasurer
Natalie Gardner, Executive Committee Chair
As your CORLCA executive board member for the last 2 years, I have fulfilled all duties that are required of me. Attending as well as participating in all scheduled and called board meetings. Fulfilling assignments, between board meetings, that I volunteered to do or that were requested of me.
I was the attending board representative for the District 4 meeting in LaJunta, and also attended the Colorado State Convention, and National Convention.
I have submitted the required articles for all of our CORLCA newsletters and, as needed, any additional articles that were required.
With this position, I have represented my fellow carriers, kept them in mind when voting at our meetings, and provided all important information that pertains to all carriers.
Natalie Gardner
Tammy Smith, Executive Committee
My name is Tammy Smith. I am a CORLCA executive board member. I have been to all scheduled meetings, a couple only on Sunday because of work. I was the District 5 meeting representative. Have voted on motions made at the meetings. An article has been written for each CO paper. Wrote a check to transfer remaining funds from the COWSC into a CD. Helped MT WSC secure funds and invited vendors to the conference. Went to and ran the MT WSC in Helena MT. and passed the presidency to Aaron Stieg. I go to the meetings, listen, think about what is being said and vote on what is best for members of this union.
Tammy Smith
Cortney Clark, Executive Committee
This was my 4th year being an executive committeeman on the CORLCA State board. I attended all of the called upon board meetings in full in person this last year. In August 2024 I conducted a mini mail survey training via ZOOM and was recorded to be put onto the CORLCA website for future use. Much of the mini mail survey information has stayed the same within RRECS so hopefully this helps for the foreseeable future when we have mini mail surveys. We tried to utilize more virtual options over the course of this last year. I wrote 5 committeemen articles for our state paper. I was a delegate to the National Convention in Reno in August of 2024 where I attended the entire convention and seminars. A highlight of last year was rallies. The first rally I attended was regarding the Protect Our Letter carriers act and trying to get cosponsors to sign on and help push this through congress. This rally was in Reno at the national convention. We as a state also held another rally in the Fall at the Colorado State capitol that I attended with some of our city carrier brothers and sisters. Sadly we still as mail carriers have not gotten this passed through as of the time of me writing this report, but it was reintroduced into congress again this year and other pressing matters are now at the forefront with this issue now in regards to getting congress to help postal and federal workers across the country. At the end of September 2024 I was the board representative for the District 3 meeting where I gave a presentation mainly about the national convention and observed the financial audit on District 3’s funds. We did another informational zoom meeting in November 2024 regarding working 12 hours and the Christmas overtime procedures that I assisted in helping with only partially. We as a board voted to continue our christmas card mailing and even though we did not do the gift cards like we had done in the past due to covid and having extra funds, we as a board decided to instead do a cash drawing at the state convention. We mailed out our christmas cards with a little green ticket for our members to save and use it to enter in at our state convention for that cash drawing. Each of us board members put these cards together with help from our Secretary/ Treasurer mailing us the mailing kits! Hopefully many people saved the green tiny cards and we have a lot of attendance at the state convention! In January 2025 we had a “booster” informational meeting that we also conducted via ZOOM regarding RRECS 101, the mapping, the RRECS scans. I wish that we had better attendance in person at these meetings, but online and we had a small turnout. The idea of a “booster” meeting in our state is a newer concept that I think we need to work out more and decide if we want to continue doing that, or do we conduct multiple informational zoom meetings to get some participation that way. I attended District 2 and 3’s combined meeting and originally was not going to be a board rep for this, but it was a good thing I went and I brought a computer so that we could converse with our district rep via zoom and to help in that regard of informational pieces. I observed both the district officers' election and the auditing of each of the finances for their districts. Each board meeting we reviewed our membership, our financial standing, and conducted audits of the credit card usage when it was presented to us. We also would review the meeting minutes from past meetings and I would as a board member review them for accuracy. In April 2025 I attended a Fight Like Hell Rally here in Fort Collins. The last few months have been intense and uncertain for postal workers and the looming threat of privatization is very real. It is good to see our union brothers and sisters working together to protect all of us and even though the threat is real, we have shown we are all stronger together. My goal is always to help others and to try and make things easier for others coming into other positions. We as a board would review some of the board policies and procedures and alter some of our board policies to make things easier for the future. I am always trying to think of new ideas to get more participation in our organization. We as a board voted and decided to create a Facebook page for CORLCA. It will just be the basic information but mainly just sharing information again from the national office. In closing it has been my honor to serve in this role the last 4 years. I care deeply about all of you. Knowing that I have my CORLCA family across the entire state is truly meaningful and I hope that I have served in this role to the best of my ability. In solidarity please look out for one another. We are all stronger together when we are working together to improve the lives of ALL rural letter carriers.
#unionstrong
Respectfully Submitted,
Cortney J. Clark
CORLCA Executive Committeeman , 2023-2025
Pam Smith, Executive Committee
I have made all the board meetings for the last 2 yrs , I did unfortunately missed a video meeting as i had an unfortunate farm accident .
I have put a lot of time into learning all you have to do for the Recs. and talking to lots of the carriers about how it was going,
I personally do not know if it's as good we were told it would be.!
I was the committee chair for district3 state convention in Parker in June.
2024 also was the liaison for the state board, it was a challenge but well worth all the time and effort.
I also went to the Denver capital for the Protect our carrier's. rally. And hope will do more
Thank you for letting me serve you as a member of the state board
Executive committee
.Pamila Smith
aka Pam
Anne Harrington - CHAPLAIN’S REPORT 2024-2025
I attended and opened meetings with prayer. I also wrote articles for the CORLCA Newsletter. We had some deaths and illnesses in our state as well as in other states and national. I sent Get Well and Condolence cards on behalf of the carriers from Colorado.
I thank you for the opportunity to serve as your chaplain.
Sincerely yours,
Anne Dee Harrington
Todd Hohn, Editor
CORLCA Editor 2024-25 Annual Report
The past year I have attended all the board meetings; however, due to a lack of hiring at my office or poor management, I often missed the Saturday portion of the board meeting because I was working. I did miss the March 8 one day board meeting. I had a board member take minutes during the Saturday portion of the meetings I missed and then took minutes on the second day and typed them up together and sent out to board members to look over for corrections.
I edited, designed, created the layout, and mailed five issues of the Colorado Rural Letter Carrier paper to all CORLCA members in the past year—July, September/October, December, February, and May. I continuously worked with the state secretary-treasurer to keep up on changing addresses with our membership.
For the July 2024 issue of the paper, I mailed 1086 copies (+6 from 2023) to CORLCA membership (postage $664.54 – $77.37 more than 2023); September/October issue 2024, I mailed 1087 copies (+9 from 2023 – postage $665.52 – $78.38 more than 2023); December 2024, I mailed 1117 copies (+48 from 2023 – postage $683.45 – $101 more than 2023), February 2025, I mailed 1112 copies (+64 from 2024 – postage $686.61 – $93.87 more than 2024); and for the May 2025 issue I mailed 1135, (+83 from May 2024 – postage $694.22 – $98.90 more than 2024).
Our Membership grew this year. The numbers from May 2025 are up 83 from last year, 54 from 2023 and 85 from 2022. Hopefully, with all the scary unknowns with the Postal Service and our retirement benefits, maybe we will enjoy a continued growth in membership going forward.
The CORLCA continues to maintain a very happy and successful relationship with Sunset Printing.
Candie Dyer, Political Action Committee Chair
So far this year we have raised $1,476.00 for PAC looking to make that number much bigger after the state convention. There will be lots of goodies to bid on, so if you have something you would like to donate to PAC you do get credit. So, bring your goodies too. We are ranked nationwide #40 out of 50 not great but not too bad. If you ever want to have an event, please let me know would love to bring games and knowledge to your town spaghetti dinner or silent auction. Per capital we are ranked at #47. If you would like to sign up to be a sustaining doner please call me or sign up on line. Hope to see you all at the state convention.
Bob Brandt, Parliamentarian
Annual Report of the State Parliamentarian and CORLCA Dist. Two President
The 2024 State Convention was fairly low-key and offered few controversial proposals that created procedural difficulties. It was good to have a couple new members in attendance that prompted questions regarding “common practice” and it was useful to offer general explanations to the convention attendees. While most of the “regulars” have a reasonable working knowledge of parliamentary practice, overviews/reviews never hurt.
The year proved to be considerably more enlightening, as the President of Dist. Two. At the ’24 State Convention, actions were taken to attempt streamlining the District Meeting process. It was the consensus of the State Board and Convention attendees that perhaps fewer meetings, combined with an educational element may get better attendance.
To that end, even as early as the National Convention, representatives of Districts Two and Three, both located in the eastern edges of our state, started conversations on format, location and timing of the 2025 Spring meetings. The Executive Committee Members of both districts had multiple conversations and included the State Board, in format options and training conceptual ideas.
Ultimately, Districts Two and Three met in Limon and had a joint meeting. We had planned to have a “Mapping Training” and both Districts would conduct their respective meetings in a combined group setting. While this did attract several State Officers, including the President Aldridge, communication/scheduling issues complicated the original planed formatting.
To the good fortune of both district attendees, CORLCA State Executive Committee Member, Courtney Clark was one of the attendees. She jumped in and handled some technical connecting issues and presented a brief training and Q & A for the attendees.
Valuable lessons were learned, by everyone present. It became more then problematic attempting to hold combined meetings. Between reading/approval of minutes, voting on singularly necessary district action items (i.e., which attendees had the right to vote on what actions on the floor) and primarily, conducting district officer elections—a joint format isn’t entirely practical.
While it was great to have the attendance and attendees that the format garnered, it was increasingly obvious that a joint format may not be the most workable solution to attracting greater participation. Alas, like so many new concepts—until effort is put into attempting to launch the conceptual practice and a “trial-run” is attempted, there “practical application” remains an unknown.
As for this District Officer, we tried and it failed—miserably. It is not within my power to nix the idea/practice, but I will certainly be an active participant in any future discussions as to its viability and practicality.
Respectfully submitted, CORLCA State Parliamentarian and Dist. Two President, Bob Brandt
Pam Smith, National General Insurance Representative
I would like to first thank all of the academy trainers for talking about National General.
National general is the only insurance company out Thir that understands the rural route job, and the torte act
also is backed by Nationals
This insurance company gives back to .C.O.R.L.A.
This year we received $14,507.98
NGI. Is a well-established company (they are affiliated with All State.
I have enjoyed being the representative.
Pam Smith
George Halcomb, Historian
Historian Report
To be honest, not much occurred in the office of the historian this year. I did learn a lot of our history as a Union overall and that has been interesting. Finally, due to my friend Cindy Keyes I obtained a copy of the book, The R.F.D. Then and Now. This is the second book written by Gwendolyn M. Aaberg. She wrote RFD Golden Jubilee to celebrate the 50th Anniversary of our Union in 1947. This book is an update written in 1967 and is much harder to find than the older book. These books are treasures of another time. Much thanks to Cindy.
The highlight of the year has to be our visit to the National Office. President Maston was gracious enough to have a tour for the National Auxiliary President and I was enlisted for the security detail and got to tag along. If you are ever given the opportunity to tour the National Office, you have got to do it. There is stuff in there from 1903 and my daughter’s name is in the lobby. Kind of gives you a sense of what we are fighting to keep and why it's worth our time. Also hit the cafe across the street, Table Talk, it’s a blast!
Theresa Mecom - DR Report
My first year as DR found myself certifying more Local Stewards, handling the dispute process for the April MMS, processing grievances, and being present for investigative interviews and Labor Management Meetings with the District Manager.
I also attended Western States in Helena, Montana, will be attending the State Convention in June in Grand Junction, and plan to attend my third National Convention in August in Florida.
From June 29, 2024 to present, I have handled 97 grievances and 104 PDIs; 21 were class actions, 29 discipline, and 47 were contractual. To date, I was able to get $6,105.15 in grievance payouts for carriers.
I conducted one MOU 25 for the CO-Springs, Briargate Office in which we were able to identify lapses in training with management that will hopefully be corrected to allow for better communication between carriers and EAS. I organized two Labor Management Meetings with the District Manager, Doug Smith and myself: one in November and the most recent one in March. Topics like workplace environment, vehicle distribution, hiring/retention, and pay were addressed.
I have certified eleven new Local Stewards and conducted four Local Steward Enhancement Trainings this year to ensure our Stewards are in compliance with their yearly trainings. I also was able to get three Local Stewards promoted to Area Steward.
We had 33 disputes from the latest Survey, and all were met on with myself and my Labor Counterpart. I was very excited to be able to resolve these disputes within a couple of weeks of their submissions.
I have attended multiple District Meetings the CORLCA has put on as well as a RRECS training conducted by the CORLCA.
Moving into the rest of 2025 and 2026, my focus is to still get carriers as much information regarding RRECS as I can. Mapping has proven to be the most efficient way to ensure the carriers are getting an accurate evaluation.
Union membership is still at the forefront of my agenda. I am always recruiting membership into the NRLCA so the carriers can get information related to contract negotiations, RRECS, Step Fours, Arbitrations and updates from the National Office.
I want to thank the Board for allowing me the opportunity to serve the membership. I look forward to serving the carriers as I continue my career with the National Steward System and the Postal Service.
With appreciation,
Theresa Mecom, District Representative for CO/WY
This is my annual report as President of the Colorado Rural Letter Carriers’ Association.
This is my second year of my two-year term as President. Since our convention in Parker, I’ve been very busy is support of the CORLCA. As required by the CORLCA Constitution, I began by filling appointed positions within the organization (e.g., Parliamentarian, Chaplin).
I attended the 2024 National Convention in Reno in August as the national delegate from Colorado. Again, I was assigned as a member of the Sargeant at Arms Committee by the National Office. It required me to be in Nevada a couple of days earlier than the rest of the delegation.
One of my duties is to assign the delegates elected to attend the National Convention to assorted seminars that are held. That year was a bit different. There was a legal seminar scheduled for Monday night, and I assigned a delegate to attend that seminar. But rather than having that seminar, the NRLCA hosted a rally at the offices of the Congressman from Nevada. Many of our delegates attended that rally.
The CORLCA Board also hosted a rally at the State Capitol in Denver in support of the “Protect Our Letter Carriers” Act on Veteran’s Day. We had carriers from along the front range and even had a few city carriers show up.
District officers are required to have training on their duties. Usually, this is done in conjunction with the state convention. But many presidents and vice-presidents didn’t attend that training. So I had a Zoom meeting last August to satisfy the training requirement.
I called five board meetings and presided over every one of them. The board looked at many issues that pertain to communicating with our membership on important aspects of the job. Those include having rallies, informational meetings, as well as district meetings so that our members can stay informed.
In March, I went to Washington, D.C. and met with the Colorado Senators and Congressmen as part of the Legislative Seminar. Our Vice-President, Candie Dyer, went with me. We talked about a few bills that the NRLCA is hoping to see passed, including one that tells the Trump Administration that the Postal Service should remain an independent entity of the federal government and not be privatized.
We met with staff members of each Congressional delegate from Colorado. Our biggest surprise is that Congresswoman Boebert attended our meeting. She was the only actual Representative or Senator that met with us.
Finally, I look forward to presiding over this year’s state convention in Grand Junction and I am seeking another two-year term as your President.
Candie Dyer, Vice President
Well, it's that time of year again where I get to tell all of you what I've done for the year. Last year after the state convention, I attended the board meeting. We went to the national convention, as you may or may not know I am the PAC chair. So I attended the PAC Seminar. I also carried the flag for our state and was the sergeant at arms at the door and helped out with the PAC table.
There were 5 meetings that I remember that I went to for the board meetings. At times even tried or found a place for it to be held. I was the board member that went to represent the District 2 and 3 in Limon. There we talk about the where the state convention is and national convention coming up in Aug. They need to get their nominations in to be a delegate.
I came up with a flyer with all the scans on them to hand out to new people to remember scans, also to give out at meetings.
In January I helped out Cortney with a booster meeting on zoom and in person in Denver. I went to the academy to get the scans so people who came could play with them. Before the Christmas overtime started had a zoom to talk about Christmas over time and the 12 hr. rule. Me and David Alridge went to Washington D.C. to legislative to talk to the congressmen/women and Senators about voting the post office way. One of them was not to privatize the post office, to make stricter laws to those who think they can rob us and of course we are still looking to see it we can buy back out sub years.
I have been looking into getting samples of lanyards to see if we can give them out at the academy instead of the bank bags. I'm always looking to make baskets and other things for the PAC actions. That's all I can remember that I did last year.
Dawn Michelle Nix, Secretary-Treasurer
2024-2025 was a better year from my perspective.
I have been thankful all year for the Assistant Secretary-Treasurer position. We finally found a way to effectively utilize the position. Earlier attempts had been stymied by conflicting personal schedules and my health issues, but this year we were able to spend more time working together and moved several responsibilities to the Assistant, giving him repetitious practice with some of the Secretary-Treasurer duties.
Les handled the Cash Pay dues process for the last 2 years and has processed most of the new membership applications for this last year and a half. He has also assisted one of our districts with the filing of their annually required LM report, prepared some government payroll reports, processed board payroll vouchers, prepared and presented a report on CORLCA voucher processing procedures to the board, assisted me with preparation/organization of the proposed Constitutional changes for this convention, and is currently preparing Convention Committee information and materials for 2025.
It is a relief to have another board member with enough familiarity with the mechanics of our activities to provide assistance, as this board is handicapped by their reliance on the Secretary-Treasurer position. The existence of the Assistant position will be very helpful in the transition to a new Secretary-Treasurer, whether the existing Asst. S-T becomes the new S-T, or is just available to provide assistance.
I attended all called board meetings (but missed one Saturday to attend my grandson’s fourth birthday party), served as board representative to the District 5 meeting this spring, assisted with scheduling and mailings for November Informational meeting, scheduling, mailing, and refreshments for January booster meeting, scheduling for Districts 2-3 combined spring meeting, presented financial and some membership reports, as well as my Secretary-Treasurer column for our CORLCA newspaper 5 times this year. Additional newspaper responsibilities of the S-T are the updating of annual election forms and election informational articles.
I attended the NRLCA-provided annual Secretary-Treasurer trainings provided via ZOOM in 2024, and opted to not attend the latest in-person training held earlier this year. I felt it would be more beneficial to the organization, and a better return on the expense investment required, for Les to attend, as I was not planning to run for re-election and he was.
I organized the annual holiday (calendar) mailing and procured and provided the necessary materials to each board member to mail to members. I researched and provided the requested information to the CPA we utilize for our annual “agreed-upon-services” review of the CORLCA books, as I do every year.
2025 WSC President Tammy Smith issued a check to CORLCA in the amount of $6349.52, the balance left in our WSC “hosting” account, after all outstanding expenses were accounted for. With those funds, I purchased a 12-month certificate of deposit (CD 91, designated as CORLCA WSC Funds), to be retained for use in about 10 years when CORLCA is again responsible for hosting WSC.
CORLCA continues to operate at a loss, and while I do not support a dues increase at this time, I continue to encourage the board to consider ways to reduce expenses. Our biggest expenditures are national convention attendance and board meetings. Obviously national convention expenses are unavoidable and essential. So, my logical leaning is toward finding ways to reduce board meeting expenses.
When the Assistant S-T position was originally presented, I was opposed to combining that position with an Executive Committee position, but I now believe that was wrong. Elimination of one Executive Committee position by combining it with the Assistant S-T position could reduce board meeting expenses, while still providing representation to voting members, with the additional benefit of having one Executive Committee member with “hands-on” knowledge of the mechanics of CORLCA activities, who could provide assistance as needed, and be a valuable asset in officer transitions, emergencies, etc.
I have always valued my membership in the CORLCA. 31 years if I am counting correctly – 2 yrs as Editor; 7 years as President; 8 years as S-T, and before being actively involved, I relied on the trainings provided to make sure I had accurate information about my job. Through the CORLCA I have learned a tremendous amount about my job and the union, and have made life-long friends. But, I also recognize that the Rural Carrier job has changed – dramatically! For the future of the organization and its members, I hope constructive changes will be made to bring us to a place where CORLCA is responsive to the needs of working carriers in today’s and tomorrow’s USPS reality.
Dawn Michelle Nix, Secretary-Treasurer (2024-25 Annual Report)
Les Hawkins, Assistant Secretary-Treasurer
I processed 231 1187 forms within the last fiscal year where the membership increased from 1133 to 1146 which is an increase of 13 members or 1.1%. As you can see there was a significant amount of turnover. Which means there was a big expense in hiring and training new employees just to see the majority leave within the same year. 1187’s are processed by changing membership from non-member to member in the database and entering and making sure all contact information is correct in the database. Then the 1187 form is sent to the national office for further processing.
I attended the following District meetings as a representative of the CORLCA Board.
District 6 meeting in Durango CO on July 10, 2024
District 6 meeting in Durango CO on Feb 21, 2025
District 7 meeting in Grand Junction CO on Mar 23, 2025
Attendance at district meetings requires preparing the following. Talking points from the CORLCA board. Communication between the district and the state board. And training as needed at the district level. Where new officers were elected to district positions, there was the need to have the new officers sworn in and oversee the transfer of union property from old officers to new officers. Significant travel is required because of the size of our state.
Regular CORLCA board meetings were held on
July 27-28, 2024
Oct 5-6, 2024
Jan 4-5, 2025
Mar 8-9, 2025
May 3-4, 2025
And the final fiscal year meeting will be held in conjunction with the 2025 state convention located in Grand Junction on Thursday Jun 5, 2025.
Board meetings require preparation. Some of the duties preparing for these meeting include but are not limited to preparing a membership report which shows the total number of members currently in the state. It also shows trends of growth or decline. It also breaks down the total numbers to what position the members hold. For example, regular carrier, PTF, RCA, etc. Specific assignments from the latest board meeting are also prepared prior to meeting so there may be a report and discussion. For example, one assignment I had was to do Voucher training. This entails explaining why the voucher was set up as it currently is and why the information is needed. How this information is used to process the payroll and why the specific paper trail is necessary to stay in compliance with the DOL. I also explained the process of how the vouchers are processed and prepared for payment.
Dawn and I had workdays on Jan 6, 20205 and May 5, 2025, where we sat down together and worked to accomplish specific tasks. One of the benefits of working together is to pass along the knowledge needed to fulfill the position of Secretary-Treasurer. The Secretary-Treasurer position has a variety of responsibilities, and it is beneficial to work together and discuss ideas and techniques with each other. We have divided up tasks which made us more productive.
Last year (2024) the state convention was held in Parker, CO. At the conclusion of the convention, there is an intensive report that the National office requires of each state. Working closely with Dawn and under her supervision we prepared this report for Colorado and submitted it to the National office. This report has time deadlines and was completed and submitted within the limits.
Preparing to have a successful state convention every year requires careful and specific planning. There is an endless amount of paperwork to prepare. And timelines for specific tasks require careful attention. The DOL has strict guidelines for elections that must be adhered to. The DOL requires election procedures follow their timeline from notifying membership of an upcoming election to mailing out the ballots and the collection of those ballots. I have helped prepare paperwork for the 2025 election committee along with securing the required PO box for undeliverable ballots to be returned to. I also prepared the needed paperwork for the following committees. Budget, credentials, constitution and resolution proposal, and the Tom W Griffeth outstanding member committees.
I attended the National Convention held in Reno Nevada on 26 August through 31 August, 2025. I was elected as a delegate to represent Colorado. I attended as many seminars as I could possibly fit in. My assigned seminar was the OWCP seminar which I wrote an article on that was printed in the CORLCA newsletter. I was on the floor of the convention for the entirety of the business session so I could exercise my vote in your behalf. It is an honor to represent every member in Colorado.
I attended a national sponsored training for all state secretaries treasurers and assistants held in Florida in February 2025. The national leadership team presented this training, and it was very informative. They addressed items from elections to reports created in QuickBooks. It was important to have current issues addressed and questions answered. The knowledge I returned with could not be obtained in any other way. Knowledge is power, and this knowledge is obtained through training.
Respectfully submitted,
Les Hawkins
CORLCA Assistant Secretary/ Treasurer
Natalie Gardner, Executive Committee Chair
As your CORLCA executive board member for the last 2 years, I have fulfilled all duties that are required of me. Attending as well as participating in all scheduled and called board meetings. Fulfilling assignments, between board meetings, that I volunteered to do or that were requested of me.
I was the attending board representative for the District 4 meeting in LaJunta, and also attended the Colorado State Convention, and National Convention.
I have submitted the required articles for all of our CORLCA newsletters and, as needed, any additional articles that were required.
With this position, I have represented my fellow carriers, kept them in mind when voting at our meetings, and provided all important information that pertains to all carriers.
Natalie Gardner
Tammy Smith, Executive Committee
My name is Tammy Smith. I am a CORLCA executive board member. I have been to all scheduled meetings, a couple only on Sunday because of work. I was the District 5 meeting representative. Have voted on motions made at the meetings. An article has been written for each CO paper. Wrote a check to transfer remaining funds from the COWSC into a CD. Helped MT WSC secure funds and invited vendors to the conference. Went to and ran the MT WSC in Helena MT. and passed the presidency to Aaron Stieg. I go to the meetings, listen, think about what is being said and vote on what is best for members of this union.
Tammy Smith
Cortney Clark, Executive Committee
This was my 4th year being an executive committeeman on the CORLCA State board. I attended all of the called upon board meetings in full in person this last year. In August 2024 I conducted a mini mail survey training via ZOOM and was recorded to be put onto the CORLCA website for future use. Much of the mini mail survey information has stayed the same within RRECS so hopefully this helps for the foreseeable future when we have mini mail surveys. We tried to utilize more virtual options over the course of this last year. I wrote 5 committeemen articles for our state paper. I was a delegate to the National Convention in Reno in August of 2024 where I attended the entire convention and seminars. A highlight of last year was rallies. The first rally I attended was regarding the Protect Our Letter carriers act and trying to get cosponsors to sign on and help push this through congress. This rally was in Reno at the national convention. We as a state also held another rally in the Fall at the Colorado State capitol that I attended with some of our city carrier brothers and sisters. Sadly we still as mail carriers have not gotten this passed through as of the time of me writing this report, but it was reintroduced into congress again this year and other pressing matters are now at the forefront with this issue now in regards to getting congress to help postal and federal workers across the country. At the end of September 2024 I was the board representative for the District 3 meeting where I gave a presentation mainly about the national convention and observed the financial audit on District 3’s funds. We did another informational zoom meeting in November 2024 regarding working 12 hours and the Christmas overtime procedures that I assisted in helping with only partially. We as a board voted to continue our christmas card mailing and even though we did not do the gift cards like we had done in the past due to covid and having extra funds, we as a board decided to instead do a cash drawing at the state convention. We mailed out our christmas cards with a little green ticket for our members to save and use it to enter in at our state convention for that cash drawing. Each of us board members put these cards together with help from our Secretary/ Treasurer mailing us the mailing kits! Hopefully many people saved the green tiny cards and we have a lot of attendance at the state convention! In January 2025 we had a “booster” informational meeting that we also conducted via ZOOM regarding RRECS 101, the mapping, the RRECS scans. I wish that we had better attendance in person at these meetings, but online and we had a small turnout. The idea of a “booster” meeting in our state is a newer concept that I think we need to work out more and decide if we want to continue doing that, or do we conduct multiple informational zoom meetings to get some participation that way. I attended District 2 and 3’s combined meeting and originally was not going to be a board rep for this, but it was a good thing I went and I brought a computer so that we could converse with our district rep via zoom and to help in that regard of informational pieces. I observed both the district officers' election and the auditing of each of the finances for their districts. Each board meeting we reviewed our membership, our financial standing, and conducted audits of the credit card usage when it was presented to us. We also would review the meeting minutes from past meetings and I would as a board member review them for accuracy. In April 2025 I attended a Fight Like Hell Rally here in Fort Collins. The last few months have been intense and uncertain for postal workers and the looming threat of privatization is very real. It is good to see our union brothers and sisters working together to protect all of us and even though the threat is real, we have shown we are all stronger together. My goal is always to help others and to try and make things easier for others coming into other positions. We as a board would review some of the board policies and procedures and alter some of our board policies to make things easier for the future. I am always trying to think of new ideas to get more participation in our organization. We as a board voted and decided to create a Facebook page for CORLCA. It will just be the basic information but mainly just sharing information again from the national office. In closing it has been my honor to serve in this role the last 4 years. I care deeply about all of you. Knowing that I have my CORLCA family across the entire state is truly meaningful and I hope that I have served in this role to the best of my ability. In solidarity please look out for one another. We are all stronger together when we are working together to improve the lives of ALL rural letter carriers.
#unionstrong
Respectfully Submitted,
Cortney J. Clark
CORLCA Executive Committeeman , 2023-2025
Pam Smith, Executive Committee
I have made all the board meetings for the last 2 yrs , I did unfortunately missed a video meeting as i had an unfortunate farm accident .
I have put a lot of time into learning all you have to do for the Recs. and talking to lots of the carriers about how it was going,
I personally do not know if it's as good we were told it would be.!
I was the committee chair for district3 state convention in Parker in June.
2024 also was the liaison for the state board, it was a challenge but well worth all the time and effort.
I also went to the Denver capital for the Protect our carrier's. rally. And hope will do more
Thank you for letting me serve you as a member of the state board
Executive committee
.Pamila Smith
aka Pam
Anne Harrington - CHAPLAIN’S REPORT 2024-2025
I attended and opened meetings with prayer. I also wrote articles for the CORLCA Newsletter. We had some deaths and illnesses in our state as well as in other states and national. I sent Get Well and Condolence cards on behalf of the carriers from Colorado.
I thank you for the opportunity to serve as your chaplain.
Sincerely yours,
Anne Dee Harrington
Todd Hohn, Editor
CORLCA Editor 2024-25 Annual Report
The past year I have attended all the board meetings; however, due to a lack of hiring at my office or poor management, I often missed the Saturday portion of the board meeting because I was working. I did miss the March 8 one day board meeting. I had a board member take minutes during the Saturday portion of the meetings I missed and then took minutes on the second day and typed them up together and sent out to board members to look over for corrections.
I edited, designed, created the layout, and mailed five issues of the Colorado Rural Letter Carrier paper to all CORLCA members in the past year—July, September/October, December, February, and May. I continuously worked with the state secretary-treasurer to keep up on changing addresses with our membership.
For the July 2024 issue of the paper, I mailed 1086 copies (+6 from 2023) to CORLCA membership (postage $664.54 – $77.37 more than 2023); September/October issue 2024, I mailed 1087 copies (+9 from 2023 – postage $665.52 – $78.38 more than 2023); December 2024, I mailed 1117 copies (+48 from 2023 – postage $683.45 – $101 more than 2023), February 2025, I mailed 1112 copies (+64 from 2024 – postage $686.61 – $93.87 more than 2024); and for the May 2025 issue I mailed 1135, (+83 from May 2024 – postage $694.22 – $98.90 more than 2024).
Our Membership grew this year. The numbers from May 2025 are up 83 from last year, 54 from 2023 and 85 from 2022. Hopefully, with all the scary unknowns with the Postal Service and our retirement benefits, maybe we will enjoy a continued growth in membership going forward.
The CORLCA continues to maintain a very happy and successful relationship with Sunset Printing.
Candie Dyer, Political Action Committee Chair
So far this year we have raised $1,476.00 for PAC looking to make that number much bigger after the state convention. There will be lots of goodies to bid on, so if you have something you would like to donate to PAC you do get credit. So, bring your goodies too. We are ranked nationwide #40 out of 50 not great but not too bad. If you ever want to have an event, please let me know would love to bring games and knowledge to your town spaghetti dinner or silent auction. Per capital we are ranked at #47. If you would like to sign up to be a sustaining doner please call me or sign up on line. Hope to see you all at the state convention.
Bob Brandt, Parliamentarian
Annual Report of the State Parliamentarian and CORLCA Dist. Two President
The 2024 State Convention was fairly low-key and offered few controversial proposals that created procedural difficulties. It was good to have a couple new members in attendance that prompted questions regarding “common practice” and it was useful to offer general explanations to the convention attendees. While most of the “regulars” have a reasonable working knowledge of parliamentary practice, overviews/reviews never hurt.
The year proved to be considerably more enlightening, as the President of Dist. Two. At the ’24 State Convention, actions were taken to attempt streamlining the District Meeting process. It was the consensus of the State Board and Convention attendees that perhaps fewer meetings, combined with an educational element may get better attendance.
To that end, even as early as the National Convention, representatives of Districts Two and Three, both located in the eastern edges of our state, started conversations on format, location and timing of the 2025 Spring meetings. The Executive Committee Members of both districts had multiple conversations and included the State Board, in format options and training conceptual ideas.
Ultimately, Districts Two and Three met in Limon and had a joint meeting. We had planned to have a “Mapping Training” and both Districts would conduct their respective meetings in a combined group setting. While this did attract several State Officers, including the President Aldridge, communication/scheduling issues complicated the original planed formatting.
To the good fortune of both district attendees, CORLCA State Executive Committee Member, Courtney Clark was one of the attendees. She jumped in and handled some technical connecting issues and presented a brief training and Q & A for the attendees.
Valuable lessons were learned, by everyone present. It became more then problematic attempting to hold combined meetings. Between reading/approval of minutes, voting on singularly necessary district action items (i.e., which attendees had the right to vote on what actions on the floor) and primarily, conducting district officer elections—a joint format isn’t entirely practical.
While it was great to have the attendance and attendees that the format garnered, it was increasingly obvious that a joint format may not be the most workable solution to attracting greater participation. Alas, like so many new concepts—until effort is put into attempting to launch the conceptual practice and a “trial-run” is attempted, there “practical application” remains an unknown.
As for this District Officer, we tried and it failed—miserably. It is not within my power to nix the idea/practice, but I will certainly be an active participant in any future discussions as to its viability and practicality.
Respectfully submitted, CORLCA State Parliamentarian and Dist. Two President, Bob Brandt
Pam Smith, National General Insurance Representative
I would like to first thank all of the academy trainers for talking about National General.
National general is the only insurance company out Thir that understands the rural route job, and the torte act
also is backed by Nationals
This insurance company gives back to .C.O.R.L.A.
This year we received $14,507.98
NGI. Is a well-established company (they are affiliated with All State.
I have enjoyed being the representative.
Pam Smith
George Halcomb, Historian
Historian Report
To be honest, not much occurred in the office of the historian this year. I did learn a lot of our history as a Union overall and that has been interesting. Finally, due to my friend Cindy Keyes I obtained a copy of the book, The R.F.D. Then and Now. This is the second book written by Gwendolyn M. Aaberg. She wrote RFD Golden Jubilee to celebrate the 50th Anniversary of our Union in 1947. This book is an update written in 1967 and is much harder to find than the older book. These books are treasures of another time. Much thanks to Cindy.
The highlight of the year has to be our visit to the National Office. President Maston was gracious enough to have a tour for the National Auxiliary President and I was enlisted for the security detail and got to tag along. If you are ever given the opportunity to tour the National Office, you have got to do it. There is stuff in there from 1903 and my daughter’s name is in the lobby. Kind of gives you a sense of what we are fighting to keep and why it's worth our time. Also hit the cafe across the street, Table Talk, it’s a blast!
Theresa Mecom - DR Report
My first year as DR found myself certifying more Local Stewards, handling the dispute process for the April MMS, processing grievances, and being present for investigative interviews and Labor Management Meetings with the District Manager.
I also attended Western States in Helena, Montana, will be attending the State Convention in June in Grand Junction, and plan to attend my third National Convention in August in Florida.
From June 29, 2024 to present, I have handled 97 grievances and 104 PDIs; 21 were class actions, 29 discipline, and 47 were contractual. To date, I was able to get $6,105.15 in grievance payouts for carriers.
I conducted one MOU 25 for the CO-Springs, Briargate Office in which we were able to identify lapses in training with management that will hopefully be corrected to allow for better communication between carriers and EAS. I organized two Labor Management Meetings with the District Manager, Doug Smith and myself: one in November and the most recent one in March. Topics like workplace environment, vehicle distribution, hiring/retention, and pay were addressed.
I have certified eleven new Local Stewards and conducted four Local Steward Enhancement Trainings this year to ensure our Stewards are in compliance with their yearly trainings. I also was able to get three Local Stewards promoted to Area Steward.
We had 33 disputes from the latest Survey, and all were met on with myself and my Labor Counterpart. I was very excited to be able to resolve these disputes within a couple of weeks of their submissions.
I have attended multiple District Meetings the CORLCA has put on as well as a RRECS training conducted by the CORLCA.
Moving into the rest of 2025 and 2026, my focus is to still get carriers as much information regarding RRECS as I can. Mapping has proven to be the most efficient way to ensure the carriers are getting an accurate evaluation.
Union membership is still at the forefront of my agenda. I am always recruiting membership into the NRLCA so the carriers can get information related to contract negotiations, RRECS, Step Fours, Arbitrations and updates from the National Office.
I want to thank the Board for allowing me the opportunity to serve the membership. I look forward to serving the carriers as I continue my career with the National Steward System and the Postal Service.
With appreciation,
Theresa Mecom, District Representative for CO/WY