Postal worker retires from collecting letters for Santa at 6abc Dunkin' Thanksgiving Day Parade
PHILADELPHIA, Pennsylvania (WPVI) -- "It's funny, a family history of postal workers," said Vince McGuigan. "Four brothers, three of us work for the Postal Service."
McGuigan, who lives in Claymont Delaware, has spent 36 and a half years with the United States Postal Service. Starting as a letter carrier, he is currently a driver safety instructor.
But every Thanksgiving, he takes on a special job for Santa Claus.
McGuigan and his team of co-workers join the 6abc Dunkin' Thanksgiving Day Parade each year. There, they drive a decorated USPS truck and collect children's letters for Santa.
"Maybe run into old friends on the route, taking pictures with the kids, they want to hold the mailbag," he said. "It's just so much fun, so much fun."
McGuigan first hit the parade route about 20 years ago and only missed a few years in between. But this year, he has decided to retire from his career both on and off the Parkway.
"I'll miss it. Miss the camaraderie," he said about his dedicated co-workers. "It is a hard job to do. The heat, the cold, the weather conditions and all that. But we do our best to get your package and your letters to your house."
In the future, McGuigan hopes to return to the 6abc Dunkin' Thanksgiving Day Parade as a happy-go-lucky spectator.
"And I might have a letter for Santa, thanking him, say hey, thank you for allowing me to do this for so many years," he said, "And waving to my fellow workers that'll be doing the parade next year."
Click here to learn more about the United States Postal Service or the 6abc Dunkin' Thanksgiving Day Parade.
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