SOUTH HADLEY — Like the neighborhood Santa Claus, South Hadley families looked forward to their visits from Robert “Bob the Mailman” Mandeville.
Savannah Berbue not only remembers mail carrier Mandeville greeting her family with a smile, but she can see his warm expression in the background of old family videos. Randie Packard and her brother would leave art projects and comic strips in their mailbox for Mandeville.
South Hadley Postmaster Myra Morgan previously told the Gazette that Loomis Village residents flood the lobby everyday at lunchtime to greet their favorite mailman.
“In a world where simple acts of friendliness are sometimes overlooked, Bob’s moment in the spotlight serves as a reminder that everyday heroes often come dressed in blue, carrying mailbags, and spreading kindness one doorstep at a time,” Berbue wrote in a text.
But soon, after 31 years delivering mail, Mandeville, who always made the community a priority, will be hanging up his mail bag. It is a bittersweet moment for the United States Post Office mail carrier, who will retire on Jan. 1. While he is excited to no longer work during a snowstorm and spend more time with his family, retirement means saying goodbye to 200 other families.
“They’ve become part of my family and I’ve become part of theirs,” Mandeville said. “I thought years ago that I would just be delivering the mail. I had no idea I’d interact with so many wonderful people here and became part of their daily lives.”
Mandeville first joined the mail service in the early 1990s as a way to supplement his part-time work in kitchens. It snowed every day his first month on the job, and if he did not have a child at home to support, Mandeville said he would have quit.
The weather, in fact, is the one thing Mandeville will not miss. He showed up to people’s doors during heatwaves, snowstorms, rain showers and cold fronts. Late fall, he said, is the worst because it gets dark and cold early in the day.
“It’s just a gloomy time of year to be delivering,” he said.
Even though the weather bothers him, many of the households along his route never noticed. Both Packard and Berbue said Mandeville was always happy, silly and kind regardless of nature’s agenda.
When Packard chose to raise her own children in town, she was excited to introduce them to her favorite mailman. These are the moments Mandeville will miss the most. He loved meeting newborn babies, getting big greetings from family dogs and swapping good news with the neighbors.
“My all-time favorite memory is when he signed the bottom of my cast because I knew the doctors would be cutting the top portion as I healed,” Packard wrote in a message.
Mandeville’s route travels through Brainerd Street, Cedar Ridge, North Main Street and River Road. He will have to remember it, because the households have already told him to come visit them.
“I’m going to have to get on my bicycles twice a week and visit everyone or I will be in big trouble,” he said.
