Community Corner

Time's Running Out to Ship Last-Minute Christmas Gifts

Get to the Moorestown Post Office ASAP to make sure friends and family get their gifts on time.

With Christmas only five days away, it’s time to hit up the so friends and family far and wide get those gifts in time.

The following are a list of shipping deadlines provided by the U.S. Postal Service (USPS) for mail to arrive by Christmas Day:

  • Today (Tuesday) is the last day to send first-class mail.
  • Wednesday, Dec. 21, is the final day to ship priority mail.
  • Thursday, Dec. 22, is the last day for express mail. Those with loved ones outside the country can ship parcels via Global Express Guaranteed (be forewarned—it is pricey) in the next couple days to ensure they receive the gifts in time for Christmas.

Ray Daiutolo Sr., regional spokesman for the USPS, said in spite of the steady decline in first-class mail over the last few years, postal employees continue to be inundated with packages and parcels at this time of year.

He said on a normal Monday the post offices in this region, which includes Moorestown, will cancel or postmark a little less than 1 million pieces of mail. Yesterday, they did 1.7 million.

Regional post offices will handle a total of nearly 6 million pieces of mail on a typical Monday. This Monday, they handled more than 8 million pieces, Daiutolo said.

“Yesterday and today (Tuesday) are looking to be our heaviest days of the year,” he said. “As people start to realize their chances of getting mail to a loved one by Christmas, as that starts to become more remote, you tend to get less of that hectic, last-minute crunch.”

The Moorestown post office is open till 6 p.m. every day this week, except for Saturday, when it closes at noon, and Sunday, when it’s closed altogether.

For more information, visit the post office or call 856-802-9665.


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