Summer Plans Require Spring Planning

Forestville Post Office to Host Saturday Passport Fair

What:
Passport fair at the Forestville Post Office

When:
Saturday, April 26, 2008 from noon to 3 p.m.

Where:
Forestville Post Office, 17 Main Street, Forestville NY 14062

Background:
Summer plans require spring planning. And applying for a U.S. passport book or card now will ensure that there's one less bump in the road when it comes to traveling outside of the United States.

The Forestville Post Office is hosting a Saturday passport fair to assist customers in the application process. The special Saturday hours make it more convenient for families with children to apply, especially since both parents need to be present with the child.

"It generally takes 4 to 6 weeks to receive the passport book," says Forestville Postmaster Marilyn Sticek. "Customers also have the option of applying for a passport card, which is less expensive but good only for land and sea travel between the U.S. and Canada, Mexico, the Caribbean region and the Bermuda. For some Western New Yorkers, the passport card may be all that they require."

The cost for an adult passport book is $100; the passport card is $45. Both are good for ten years. If an adult already has a valid passport book, the cost of obtaining a passport card drops to $25.

Ms. Sticek is offering a discount for passport photos taken the day of the fair. The normal photo price is $15; on April 26 the price for the photo will be $10.

The Postal Service recommends that customers visit the passport agency website at www.travel.state.gov to get the list of required documents and a print out of the passport application. A pre-completed passport application expedites the process when the customer gets to the Post Office.

Contact:
Karen Mazurkiewicz at 716-846-2375.

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An independent federal agency, the U.S. Postal Service is the only delivery service that visits every address in the nation, 146 million homes and businesses, six days a week. It has 37,000 retail locations and relies on the sale of postage, products, and services to pay for operating expenses, not tax dollars. The Postal Service has annual revenues of $75 billion and delivers nearly half the world’s mail.