The postmaster in Valentine, Texas, specially postmarks Valentine's Day mail with a student-designed stamp.
The tiny U.S. Post Office in Valentine, Texas, is preparing to specially stamp thousands of letters and cards for Valentine's Day 2025.The tiny U.S. Post Office in Valentine — more than 500 miles away from Dallas — is preparing to specially postmark thousands of love letters and greeting cards for the holiday, something that’s been a tradition at the “Love Station of Texas” for decades.
Postmaster Ismelda Ornelas is gearing up for her sixth Valentine’s season at the adobe-style post office on U.S. Route 90.Each year, she hand-cancels between 10,000 and 12,000 envelopes, according to a U.S. Post Office news release. She calls it a labor of love. “I truly enjoy stamping the Valentine postmark on every card and letter that comes through this post office and look forward to it every year,” Ornelas said.Since 1994, the postmark design has been picked from an annual competition among Valentine ISD students. This year’s design, featuring a West Texas landscape and campfire, was drawn by seventh grader Ellie Terrazo, a third-generation Valentine resident.The postmark designed by seventh grader Ellie Terrazo will adorn the envelopes of letters mailed out of the U.S. Post Office in Valentine in 2025.The middle schooler was inspired by memories of campfires burning during family gatherings at her grandfather’s house and similar fires throughout the event grounds at the annual Other recent designs include a cowboy on a horse branded with a heart and a Texas sotol adorned with heart blooms. Put your Valentine’s Day mail in an envelope, address it to the recipient and add the required postage stamp.Address it to Valentine’s Day Postmark, Postmaster, 311 W. California Ave., Valentine, TX, 79854-9998. The postmaster will open the larger envelope or box, stamp each valentine that was inside and send it off to its final destination.From its history to the tokens we gift people, here are some fun facts about Valentine's Day.The service is free for up to 50 pieces of mail, and the cancellation is available through March 14.Valentine, roughly halfway between Los Angeles and New Orleans, has a population of about 100, according to the 2022 census. The town is an isolated ranching community in Jeff Davis County. People traveling from Marfa to see the Prada Marfa art installation have driven through Valentine, right past the post office. There’s dispute over whether Valentine got its name from the Southern Pacific Railroad crew laying tracks heading east stopping there on Feb. 14, 1882, or for major railroad stockholder and Wells Fargo President John Valentine, according to the historical commission.There are literal names, like Valentine, Texas; Valentine, Neb.; and Valentines, Va.Dozens more post offices across the country, such as Darling, Miss.; Kissimmee, Fla.; Lovejoy, Ga.; Romance, Ark.; and Sugar City, Colo., also participate in the program.Editorial cartoon: Valentine’s DayLana Ferguson joined The Dallas Morning News after reporting in South Carolina's Lowcountry for The Island Packet & Beaufort Gazette newspapers. She graduated from the University of Mississippi where she studied journalism and Southern studies. She's a Virginia native but her work has taken her all over the U.S., southern Africa, and Sri Lanka.
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