Dedication through the eyes of a newspaper carrier
Think of the worlds exhilarating jobs, firefighters, safari guides, secret agents! Each day must be an action-packed escapade worth front-page treatment. While these gigs are surely full of adrenaline there is one day job that is just as full of adrenaline…a newspaper carrier!
Many people are dedicated to their jobs, but few match, a dedicated newspaper carrier. Even with social media there are still those who love to hold a newspaper in their hands
Most people think that a newspaper carriers job starts and ends by throwing a paper into the customers yard, that is not the case. Delivering newspapers is not for everyone, the hours and demanding nature of the job can get to newspaper carriers from time to time. Originally, a newspaper carrier was a boy- often an older child or adolescent- who delivered newspapers to homes, offices or businesses on a regular route, usually by walking or riding a bike. In the heyday of print newspapers, in the early 20th century, this was often a young person's first job, often done before or after school. Some very famous people were once newspaper carriers:
Walt Disney, started delivering 600 papers a day when he was 9 and by the time, he stopped at 15 he was delivering 700 papers. To get them all delivered by the time school started he had to get up at 3 a.m.
Martin Luther King Jr. at age 13 was the youngest assistant manager of newspaper carriers in Atlanta.
America's 47th vice president, Joe Biden, used a childhood paper route to hone his people skills. Biden had a noticeable stutter, to make small talk with his subscribers go better he would anticipate the conversations to come then rehearse some sentences
Bob Hope was helping support his family as a paperboy he said “at 8 I had a paper route, at 12 I worked in a butcher shop at 18 I was on the road singing and dancing at 19 I was back on a paper route.”
Warren Buffet one of the richest men in the world got his start delivering newspapers at the age of 14. He filed his first tax return and knew he could write off the cost of his watch and various bicycle repairs as business expenses.
Most newspaper carriers today are adults with cars or in the case of one of our carriers a motorcycle. Most are doing two jobs or are retired and trying to supplement their incomes. They are not employed by The Herald; they are independent contractors. The job pays per paper per day, therefore profits hinge on perfection and mistakes cost the carrier. Being late is one of the reasons they may lose a customer. Most times a carrier being late is due to problems beyond their control., a flat tire, car problems, an accident or weather. Carriers drive with vehicle windows down when it's 100+ degrees, below freezing, raining, snowing or sand blowing.
Newspaper carriers are like DJ'S; they honor request: hand deliver, porch or place in special locations. A carrier will gladly hold papers when a subscriber is going to be on vacation, when notified. Letting the subscriber know when their subscription is running out is very important, to a carrier since losing a customer even for one day cost the carrier. While carriers are not responsible for collecting payments any longer most will pick up a payment for a subscriber to make it easier on them to continue receive their newspaper.
A good route is everything and can be passed down from generation to generation. A man on his deathbed is sensing his time is over, so he calls his family to come see him, his two sons, James and Mark and his wife Lisa. He says to Mark, as my oldest son, I bequeath to you the condo's and lake houses. To James he says, I bequeath the apartments to you. Finally, he turns to his wife and says “and to you I leave all the houses in the suburbs.” As the family is leaving the nurse stops the wife and says, “you are lucky to have such a rich husband who left you all that property.” And to that the wife says” “Rich my foot, those are his paper routes”
Newspaper carriers don't just deliver papers, without carriers many people would not receive the news that keeps them informed about their communities. during the current pandemic we were on the front line too, we wore gloves and masks and ran our routes. With shelter in place this helped customers stay informed while staying in and staying safe. We deliver to individual customers, store's and racks. Carriers help keep the communities safe, because we are in the same neighborhood every day and notice when something changes or is out of place, and sometimes we are in the right place at the right time to witness a crime and report it. In 2019, 45 carriers were murdered while delivering papers, fortunately none here. Also, carriers know their customers and will call the police for a welfare check if we notice papers piling up in the yard and the customer does not answer the door. Several times this has resulted in a senior citizen being found after a fall. For some of the older customers their newspaper carrier is the only person they will see for days at a time. This is one reason carriers do not mind putting a paper on the porch or hand delivering papers. One carrier here will read the headlines to his customers as he delivers them. This is because all of our customers are important to us.
Being a carrier requires organization, time management and the ability to lift heavy loads, it takes muscles to lift bundles of papers that can weigh up to 35 pounds and load them in their cars. Carriers roll their own papers, usually before they start their routes, however sometimes when papers are late, they will do what is referred to as “roll and go” where they roll papers as they drive.
Gas prices are a big expense for carrier's, some carriers travel 15 to 100 miles a day. Not only does a carrier have to deal with gas prices, but almost every carrier will go through at least one set of tires in a year sometimes two when there is construction in an area. Carriers have their oil changed every month and brakes at least every three months. Carriers buy their own supplies this includes bags and rubber bands.
Christmas cards expressing a customer's appreciation means a lot to us. The gifts, homemade goodies and special treats are always enjoyed. Just as the cups of hot chocolate in cold weather or the bottle of cold water in the heat of summer.
Some may say being a newspaper carrier is a thankless job and wonder why anyone would do it. We do it because we enjoy it, we like helping our customers, we like being out in the town and surrounding area and seeing the daily changes. For some of the older carriers they do it because they remember the glory days of being the first to see the news. Every carrier has a funny, touching or heart breaking, story to tell.
I started as a carrier ten years ago, the last four years I have been the Assistant Circulation Manager as well as a carrier. I am proud to be a carrier for The Big Spring Herald and enjoy visiting with my customers.
I appreciate all our customers and thank them for their business and look forward to another year as a carrier. We all give our best, because being a newspaper carrier is who we are.