The community honors longtime Buxton postmaster Donna Parker as she retires after 34 years of service.

On the day of her official retirement, longtime Buxton Postmaster Donna Parker was honored for her years of service to the Hatteras Island community in a surprise and informal ceremony attended by friends, colleagues and Hatteras Island County Commissioner Danny Couch.

At the Buxton Post Office, Couch presented Parker with a Dare County proclamation thanking her for her exceptional service and highlighting highlights of her distinguished career.

Parker began her career in 1990 in Watauga County, North Carolina, as a $5-an-hour urban casual carrier, a non-career employee typically hired on a temporary basis to supplement the regular workforce.

Her diligent work ethic allowed her to take a position as a rural carrier’s assistant, working a variable schedule, replacing regular carriers who were on vacation, sick, or otherwise unable to perform their duties.

In 1994, she was offered the position of city carrier. Over the years, she was asked to take on leadership roles and was promoted to supervisor and then postmaster.

Donna Parker also served as operations manager for our regional post office.

In addition to these positions, she has worked on numerous project teams and is certified as a Yellow Belt in Lean and Six Sigma. Throughout her career, she helped train many employees who went on to become supervisors and postmasters, including people who lived close to home.

Since 2014, Parker has been a familiar face at the Buxton Post Office and has become a role model for the current team in her duties.

“I worked with her here for five years and I couldn’t ask for a better boss,” said Darryl Hill of the Buxton Post Office. “She knows everything there is, and you just absorb so much information from her about how to best get the job done.”

For example, colleagues estimated that Donna had approximately 3,000 hours of sick leave booked at the time of her retirement because she never took days off, especially when she was needed most.

“From a support staff standpoint, she was absolutely phenomenal,” Couch said. “Whether there were storms or other adversities, she always made sure that if there was mail or packages that people needed, they got them. She was truly gifted with the ability to help people when they needed it.”

“I think we can all learn a lesson about what it means to be a servant from the way she has done her job all these years,” Couch said. “She always had a smile and she truly made a difference in our community.”

Parker brought her daughter to the surprise celebration on Wednesday, October 31, under the pretext that her colleagues needed help.

“She came because she thought, ‘This is my last day, I’m going to go and help,'” Hill said. “She wasn’t one to take a lot of days off, that’s for sure.”

Surprised by the crowd at the post office, Parker graciously accepted the signed Dare County proclamation presented by Couch and signed by Commission Chairman Bob Woodard and Board of Commissioners Secretary Skyler Foley.

She told the crowd that her future plans include new educational adventures – like learning the banjo or a new language – and spending as much time as possible with her grandchildren.

“I had a feeling something was going on and they told me they could take some photos today, but I wasn’t expecting that,” Parker said. “It’s pretty amazing – and it was definitely a wonderful surprise.”