A Day in the Life - Local Postal Worker

Article written by: Laura Pearson

Anyone living in the Dover area of South Dunfermline will be familiar with Alan Petrie and Jenna Johnston, our wonderful postie duo. I was delighted to catch up with them and find out a bit more about them and their jobs. 

Jenna starts her working day about 5.30am at the sorting office, sorting the parcels for Dunfermline and surrounding areas, including the West Fife villages, Inverkeithing, Rosyth and Dalgety Bay. Jenna’s knowledge of street names has improved immensely over the last 7 months she’s been doing this sorting role, and she now knows the street names on auto pilot. A bit of banter with her colleagues while they’re sorting gets her day off to a great start.

Alan’s day starts about 6.30am when he heads into the depot to sort out the mail that’s come in overnight from Edinburgh. Matching Jenna’s street knowledge, Alan knows every street, every door and every name in his area, which is quite a feat, given that they have nearly 1000 houses on their route! Even more impressive, is that he also knows individual info like where people like their parcels to be left and which dogs enjoy a wee biscuity treat.

At around 9.15am, Jenna and Alan leave the sorting office and head out for the delivery part of their day in the Tern and Dover area. Jenna has been working this route for over 5 years, with Alan joining her 3 years ago.

Getting out on their route gives them a chance to get a bit of a blether with their residents and over their time in this area they’ve built up many friendships. Alan acknowledged that many people think they’re “just posties that bring bills and parcels” but he sees their role as so much more than that. “Sometimes you’re the only person someone might see all day, so you spend a couple of minutes with them and it makes their day.” Jenna remembered an experience of ringing a bell to ask a lady to take in a parcel for her neighbour and after a good blether, the lady actually thanked Jenna for coming to her door and cheering her up. They are certainly excellent examples of how a postie can become a friend, someone to talk to, even an agony aunt. With their friendly, fun and approachable way, they easily get to know people, build relationships and share a comfortable bond with their residents.

During COVID the role of the postie was particularly important, with many people sending little gifts and care packages to friends and relatives that they couldn’t see or visit. Jenna remembered receiving a parcel marked only with a kid's name, street name and post code and made it her mission to get that parcel to that child. When she did so, she received lots of praise on the Duloch Billboard for going above and beyond her role.  Over this period, people regularly told Jenna and Alan how lovely it was to see them, when they felt isolated and particularly when the kids were back at school. Jenna remembered feeling that the regular chats and human contact were helpful for her too as due to isolation rules all vans had to go out single crewed and she was working alone.

It’s no surprise to learn that in 2020, Alan won the notonthehighstreet 'Thank You Postie' campaign after being nominated by Kingseat residents on his previous route. The story was reported in the Dunfermline Press and highlights how Alan played games with the residents to keep their spirits up and helped out older residents who were isolated or scared. He really is one in a million!

So dedicated to their job, even the weather doesn’t put them off. Jenna laughed that she never thought she could be a postie as she hates the cold, the rain and especially the wind and rain together, but she loves her job so much - even bad weather can’t stop her. In fact, she said that on exam results day it’s pretty much always raining so she goes to extra lengths to keep those important envelopes dry! Alan said when it’s bad weather he just gets wrapped up and gets on with it, and doesn’t really think about it. But he does enjoy the sunny days where he can wear his shorts.

After they complete their deliveries, which usually takes about 5 hours, they head back to the sorting office, taking the contents of the postboxes at Tern Road and Dover Drive, any undelivered parcels, return to sender items and customer collection items. Once these items are sorted and ready for sending on, Jenna and Alan are ready to finish their shift.

When I asked them what they enjoy most about the job, Alan said one of the best things about his job is that every day is different. He also loves the feeling of community and getting to know the people and families he serves.

Jenna said it's not just one thing she likes about this job, but a mix of banter with colleagues, being out and about, receiving respect and acceptance from residents, and building up relationships and friendships.

It’s clear that both Jenna and Alan love being part of a community and getting to know the people, dogs, cats and kids on their route. They have found the people on this route very welcoming, accepting and friendly, and I personally think they are very much part of our community. 

Thank you Jenna and Alan for everything you do for us in the Dover area. And thanks to all the posties across all areas of South Dunfermline.