Morris Wilkinson: National Safety Council's Driver of the Year, our Driver of the Decade

Center Point City Carrier Morris Wilkinson has achieved yet another milestone in his 70-year career: he has been awarded the National Safety Council's highest honor for USPS employees who drive as a part of their duties: the Joseph M. Kaplan Safe Driver of the Year Award.

During the brief ceremony, Customer Service Manager Tommy Morrison said, " “Back in February, I did something that I never did before: nominated Mr. Wilkinson for a National Safety Council award. 64 years without an accident is incredible."

Morrison, who is about to be transferred to another office, was thrilled to be able to present the award to Mr. Wilkinson.

Center Point is an office where everyone seems to like each other and work well together. After Mr. Wilkinson was summoned front and center and the announcement and presentation were completed, everyone applauded for the achievement of their beloved colleague. 

Everyone also joined together in laughter when Morrison commented on the number of awards that Mr. Wilkinson has earned. "Pretty soon, the Postal Service is going to have to rent you a storage locker," Morrison said. 

"I am running out of space on my wall, " Mr. Wilkinson said, smiling. 

Birmingham Postmaster Mike Allison arrived to participate in Mr. Wilkinson's award ceremony and to commend the entire office on their FY2011 safety performance. "We had a great reduction in accidents last year, a 50% reduction in Birmingham City," said Allison. 


The Center Point Post Office reduced their accidents from 6 in FY2010 to 4 in FY2011; only one of the 2011 accidents was due to an employee being at fault, but all accidents count on an office's statistics. 

To show his appreciation of their efforts, Allison purchased breakfast for everyone. "You all are a good group that shows what can be done. I am proud to have you as a part of my team," he said. 

During the gathering, Clerk Shelly Ward also received a commendation for her 25 years of postal service. 

Afterwards, a co-worker said to Shelly, "I knew you were old, but I didn't know you were that old."

"I started when I was 10," Shelly said. 

Congratulations to Morris Wilkinson, Shelly Ward, and all of the Center Point staff.

If you would like to see the official announcement of Morris Wilkinson's Driver of the Year Award, you can visit the National Safety Council's web site by clicking here.