Yuba City Post Office says goodbye to two longtime employees

Shamaya Sutton, Appeal-Democrat, Marysville, Calif.
Updated ·3 min read

Nov. 10—Two longtime workers of the United States Postal Service (USPS) in Yuba City celebrated their retirement on Nov. 3 inside the mailroom of their Plumas Street office.

This was the official retirement of Stuart Kitchen, who has worked 41 years for USPS and 34 years at this specific site. But for Karyn Rahming, retirement won't start until Dec. 29.

"That's the official date due to the pay period but I like to say Dec. 31," joked Rahming.

Rahming was sworn in as Yuba City Postmaster during a ceremony that took place on Oct. 18, 2019. Starting as a letter carrier in Rancho Cordova, Rahming has spent the last 37 years working her way up the postal service ladder. She said she will miss all the familiar faces of her customers and co-workers but looks forward to filling up her new passport with stamps.

Both Rahming and Kitchen were introduced to the USPS by their fathers. Kitchen majored in communications at Chico State University and has dabbled in a few other careers such as substitute teaching and disc jockeying. He even spent 20 years writing sports features for the Appeal-Democrat, but his longest full-time job was with USPS.

"I've done a little bit of everything," said Kitchen. "I graduated from Chico State in 1982 and in 82/83 there was a major recession. My dad spotted an ad in the newspaper for operators and the thing that caught my eye is that I was gonna make $10 an hour, which was a lot back then for me."

Kitchen started in Marysville on a letter sorting machine that required 35 operators to run 24-hour shifts. Some of the people that started with him back then were even present at his retirement party.

"Stuart has been fortunate to have just about every job there is to do in the postal service," said Rahming. "He has helped so many customers, and I'm glad we had such a good turn out for him."

From sorting mail, Kitchen moved his way up to carrier and mail clerk. He even served as postmaster himself for a time, but preferred being more face-to-face with customers.

"I just always kind of felt that this is where I belonged. I never felt totally comfortable as a supervisor," added Kitchen.

His final days at the Yuba City Post Office were spent at the service window, doing what he liked best. He still considers the 1980s and 1990s to be the "heyday" of the postal service but even amidst the rise of email, social media, and Amazon, Kitchen said the USPS has stayed busy helping customers, especially those in the military or with families overseas.

"That's when you really see the importance of what we do," said Kitchen. "There is always going to be a need for this type of service."

During the retirement party, Kitchen received a special service award certificate and both he and Rahming were given memorial plaques. Kitchen also looks forward to traveling more and spending time with grandchildren, once he has some.