To Americans serving in the military, few things are more welcome than mail from home. “Mail Call” brings news and packages and love letters-a vital connection with home that helps to keep spirits high and confidence strong during difficult, dangerous times. A postage discount is available on a specially designed Priority Mail box for the military! The boxes can be ordered from usps.com.

The U.S. Postal Service understands the importance of military mail. Nearly a quarter of its workforce-more than 185,000 men and women-are veterans of military service. The Postal Service goes to great lengths to ensure that military mail gets delivered to the brave men and women who are serving our country with distinction of honor.

Military mail enjoys several well-deserved advantages, whether the final destination is in the United States or overseas. Each piece that bears an APO (Army Post Office) or FPO (Fleet Post Office) address for an overseas installation costs the same to send as if it were being sent to a location within the United States. Mail cannot be addressed to “any serviceman”. It must be addressed to a specific individual.

Your soldier, sailor, airman or marine can provide you with the complete and accurate mailing address. Make sure you use it, including the individual’s grade, rank or rating, full name, group/division/ship number, and all other coding so the Postal Service will be able to deliver your message or gift as quickly as possible. Mail cannot be addressed to “any serviceman;” it must be addressed to a specific individual.

The Postal Service also maintains retail services for many military installations, providing a convenient and inexpensive way for them to stay in touch with all of us back home.

The Postal Service is proud to help bring a little bit of home to those serving our country, no matter where they may be. And we join you in saluting our brave men and women in uniform.

For more information about purchasing stamps, stamps by mail, postal regulations, a free subscription to USA Philatelic magazine, Post Office events, the location of the nearest postal store or contract unit, or for answers to your specific Postal Service questions, contact USPS at 1-800-275-8777, or visit www.usps.com. To schedule a presentation for our community, club or group on how the Postal Service brings the Post Office to your home or office computer, call 573-9638.

Mr. Zip’s Tip: Postage stamps are printed using water-based inks made from soybeans and contain no lead.

An independent federal agency, the U.S. Postal Service is the only delivery service that visits every address in the nation 146 million homes and businesses. It has 37,000 retail locations and relies on the sale of postage, products and services to pay for operating expenses, not tax dollars. The Postal Service has annual revenues of $75 billion and delivers nearly half the world’s mail.