<h3>Lucky Gilbert stepping down as Mineral Wells' postmaster</h3>

The Mineral Wells post office will be soon out of luck – Postmaster Lucky Gilbert that is.

After 25 years of ensuring the mail comes and goes without problems in Mineral Wells, today is Gilbert’s last day before retiring.

“It’s a sad day for Mineral Wells,” Shannon Bowling, a city carrier, said. “He’s easy to get along with and always there for his employees.”

“I love coming to work every morning, [but] I’m looking forward to it,” Gilbert said about his retirement. “I’ve worked with a really good group of people. They made my job easier.”

He began working for the post office in 1968, right out of high school, serving areas in Hurst, Euless and Grapevine.

But his postal career was soon put on hold.

“I spent two years in the military during Vietnam,” Gilbert said.

Gilbert said he arrived in Mineral Wells in 1984 with his sons to work as a supervisor in the post office.

“We’d never heard of Mineral Wells … we had to find it,” Gilbert said.

At first they thought they’d moved to the country but “we grew to love it,” Gilbert said.

It was in Mineral Wells that Gilbert met and married his wife in 1990, who currently works for the school district.

“You couldn’t drag me out of Mineral Wells now,” Gilbert said.

In 1996, Gilbert took over the position of postmaster, supervising the 28 employees at the Mineral Wells post office and reporting to a district supervisor in Fort Worth.

A typical day finds him at the office around 7:30 a.m. helping the supervisor get the carriers on the streets.

The Mineral Wells office serves as an area as far north as Salesville and Whitt and south as far as the railroad bridge that crosses U.S. Highway 281 South. They have a contract route to Palo Pinto and deliver as far east as the Mineral Wells State Park and Railway bridge.

They make about 6,800 deliveries daily, not counting boxes and other items picked up, according to Gilbert.

“I try to take care of the business community, make sure their needs are met,” Gilbert said.

“[The postmaster] is responsible if there is new growth,” Gilbert said. If new businesses or other buildings are added, he makes sure they are added to the proper route and know where to place their mailboxes.

He often works the front window, interacting with the public and in the financial unit, as well, according to Gilbert.

During his 25 years in Mineral Wells, he’s gotten to know much of the community.

“I know quite a few,” Gilbert said.

“We’re going to miss him,” Stella Hall, a clerk at the post office, said. “He’s really a great guy … all the carriers like him.”

“He likes to tell jokes and enjoys being with the public,” Hall said.

Gilbert’s laid back nature has helped during busy times, according to Hall.

“He keeps things going at an even pace,” Hall said. “He doesn’t seem to get stressed out.”

Gilbert said Kevin Stobb out of Fort Worth will be his temporary replacement until they find a permanent postmaster.

He said he won’t be retiring from involvement with the community, though. His plans include working as a substitute teacher at Mineral Wells high school.

“I’m looking forward to playing a little golf,” Gilbert said.