For The Raymore Journal

27 years and no more mail.

Fran Walley-Brown stood behind the clerk's counter at the Raymore Post Office for the last time Friday, June 28.

After 27 years of work with the United States Postal Service Walley-Brown is retiring.

“It's going to be a big change but I'm excited,” Walley-Brown says. "The Postal Service has taught me so much. I'm going to miss it but I am ready for the next step.”

Four years ago Walley-Brown transferred to the Raymore office after 20 years in the Peculiar office and three years in the Drexel office before that.

"Transferring to Raymore has been the best thing I could do for myself," Walley-Brown says. " I have enjoyed being here because the atmosphere is so great."

This is not the first time the decision has crossed her mind. Last year Walley-Brown found herself with thoughts of retiring but was not mentally prepared for the change.

“I thought my life revolved around the post office,” Walley-Brown says. “I was afraid of the idea and wasn't mentally prepared to accept the change. My health wasn't good at the time and I just wasn't ready."

Now Walley-Brown finds herself with thoughts apart from her work.

“ I know there's more than the post office,” Walley-Brown says. "I want to travel and spend time with my family. I have some trips planned to nearby destinations and want to get familiar with the places around me.”

Before starting her career with the Postal Service Walley-Brown describes herself as someone different than she is now.

“I used to be extremely shy,” Walley- Brown says. “Seeing so many people every day has helped me learn to talk and relate to people, how to genuinely care.”

But for this long-time employee it's not the work she will miss the most, but the customers she gets to serve every day.

"I will miss all of my friends I see at the counter,” Walley-Brown says. “All of my customers, even the ones I don't know, I love. I get to know all of them here, if not by names but by faces. I inquire about their lives and what they are doing.”

Walley-Brown encourages others to pursue a career with the Postal Service, saying it is as rewarding as it is challenging.

“We all start out with extremely hard and challenging jobs but you just have to stick with it,” Walley-Brown says. "The jobs will become better and more rewarding and you will become better because of it.”

Walley-Brown's absence at the post office will not only be missed by customers but by her supervisor and coworkers.

"We hate to see her go but know that she deserves it more than anyone,” Raymore Postmaster, Lisa Petersen says. “The customers are used to seeing her every day and will really miss her.”

Although Walley-Brown's familiar face will no longer be behind the clerk’s counter her legacy will not be forgotten.

“She has trained around 50 clerks in the district,” Petersen says. “That's a great legacy to leave behind an impact on the Postal Service.”

Walley-Brown has no plans of becoming a stranger to the Raymore Post Office and plans to stop in and visit her former workplace every time she's in the area.