U.S. Senator Daniel Webster once famously declared that “I do not propose to be buried until I am really dead.”
Well Jason Gerling of Chaska, Minnesota was neither buried nor dead, but that didn’t stop the U.S. Postal Service from declaring him deceased – to his mother’s horror.
Jan Gerling told WCCO News in Minneapolis that she was checking the mail one morning when she received the scare of a lifetime: a letter sent to her son had been returned with the words “DECEASED” written across the envelope.
“It said ‘Deceased’ in red, red letters,” Jan Gerling said. “It almost caused me to have a heart attack.”
In a panic, she rushed to contact her son, who after a few frightening moments confirmed he had not yet shuffled loose the mortal coil.
“I was like ‘mom, I’m okay,’” Jason Gerling said.
While such a mistake would cause any mother to worry, the incident was especially troubling for Jan and Jason.
That’s because almost twenty years ago, Jan received the horrifying news that her son’s life was in danger.
The vicious automobile accident would confine Jason to a wheelchair for the rest of his life, and his mother is still bothered by the terrible news she received that night.
“So 20 years later, ironically, my mom goes out to the mailbox and sees ‘Deceased’ on a letter,” Jason said. “I was very frustrated, I was scared, I was thinking, ‘I hope somebody’s not trying to pull a practical joke on me.’”
The U.S. Postal Service says the returned letter was a result of a mix-up on their part, after another Chaska family went to the Post Office to request mail stop being delivered to a relative who had passed away.
“It was our mistake,” a spokesperson for the Postal Service said in a statement. “It likely began with a piece of Jason’s mail being mis-delivered to the mother of the deceased.”
“In any event, this is a mistake that shouldn’t have happened. Postal policy is that mail for a deceased person should be returned only if it is known that the individual is deceased and the mail cannot properly be delivered to another person.”
The Gerling’s say they hope this honest mistake can serve as a warning to the USPS that there are gaps in their mail delivery system.
“I certainly hope that this will shine light on this error and hopefully cheques and balances will be put in order,” Jason said.
Comments