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LOWER L'ARDOISE - Residents of eastern Richmond County, and their municipal councillor, are not impressed with inconsistent mail delivery in the communities of Grand River Falls, L'Archeveque, St. Esprit, and other areas served by the Canada Post outlet based in Lower L'Ardoise. 

The retirement of a longtime mail carrier in March sparked a series of gaps as Canada Post struggled to find a replacement driver, including stretches that saw many residents of Richmond County's District Five forced to drive to the post office in L'Ardoise to pick up their mail. 

Longtime Grand River Falls resident Judy Morrison, who enjoyed 54 years of uninterrupted daily mail service until this past spring, said that many community residents - including seniors and others who struggle with computer literacy - require hard-copy mail for many services that impact their lives. She also noted that many such residents do not wish to use the digital options available to them in this regard. 

"I think it's time that people realize that there are people in their communities that still want their old way of life," Morrison declared. "I don't want to send a birthday card online. I want to write it and I want to pick [my own cards] up at the mailbox."

Richmond County's Deputy Warden, Brent Sampson, pointed out that many residents of Grand River and nearby communities such as Framboise, Fourchu and Loch Lomond do not have reliable internet or cellular service, making physical mail delivery even more important. He expressed hope that the arrival of a new Canada Post driver on July 25 would "put this in the past" and restore consistent service to his district. 

Also on TELILE 24/7 this week:

* 24:13 - The coordinator of an annual public swim at the St. Peter's Canal National Historic Site, Gordon Kerr, explains how cooperation with Parks Canada staff is critical to the use of the canal for the August swim between the Bras d'Or Lake and the Atlantic Ocean. 

* 34:00 - Host Adam Cooke sits down with his LJI counterpart from CHCO-TV in St. Andrews, New Brunswick, Vicki Hogarth, to discuss common threads on stories that have impacted both their provinces this summer, including wildfires, climate change and the launch of a federal carbon pricing program that was opposed by their respective premiers.