Contact: Patricia M. Mikelson
Highlights Corporate Communications
pmmikelson@highlights-corp.com or 614-324-7003
"There are good things in the mail. One of the very best is Highlights for Children."
Remarks by Postmaster General John E. Potter, CEO, United States Postal Service, at the Historic Achievement and History-Making Partnership with Highlights for Children Smithsonian's National Postal Museum, August 23, 2006
Allen Kane, I want to thank you and the staff of the National Postal Museum for hosting this event and for helping to preserve the proud history of our nation's Postal Service.
I am also pleased to share the platform with two very special guests: Kent Johnson, the CEO of Highlights for Children and Christine French Clark, the editor of Highlights magazine.
We're here today to celebrate a historic achievement and a history-making partnership.
By any standard, Highlights for Children is an incredible magazine.
For six decades, it has been welcomed into American homes, where it has entertained and educated our children while earning the respect and trust of their parents.
And, personally, I can remember looking forward to reading about Goofus and Gallant every month.
Gallant, of course, was the good kid. And Goofus? Well, Goofus needed some polish.
To tell you the truth, like a lot of kids, I was a little resistant to Gallant's message. It just seemed like Goofus always had more fun.
But over the years, I realized Gallant had a real and quiet influence on me — and on entire generations of children.
Looking back, I might even say that Highlights, through "Goofus and Gallant" invented viral marketing — long before anybody thought to give it a name.
We at the Postal Service like to say, "There are good things in the mail." One of the very best is Highlights for Children.
Since we're in a place dedicated to Postal history, it's a good time to recall that the founding fathers created a national Postal Service to promote the commerce, growth, welfare, and education of the American people.
I think that they would be proud to know that their vision is alive and well. And it's exemplified by the partnership we recognize today.
On behalf of the nearly 700,000 men and women who care for and deliver the mail, I can tell you we are proud to deliver Highlights for Children magazine.
And we are honored to share in this celebration of the production and delivery of the one-billionth copy of that great magazine.
Kent and Christine, you can be very proud that each issue of your magazine provides hours of entertainment for America's children.
At the same time, it promotes reading skills and fosters a love of learning — things that are so important to the future of our children and our nation.
And these are things that we care strongly about at the Postal Service.
I'm delighted that our two organizations have so much in common and so much shared history.
And looking back over the years, it's no wonder that many issues of Highlights for Children are saved like treasured heirlooms — because that's exactly what they are!
Please convey our best wishes to your entire team. And let them know that, as we look back, we are also looking forward.
We look forward to delivering the next billion copies. We look forward to new generations of children becoming excited about reading and learning.
And we look forward to many more years of partnership and to a bright future for you, the Postal Service and, most importantly, our children.
Now it's my pleasure to introduce a thoughtful leader, a great partner, and the CEO of Highlights for Children, Inc. — Kent Johnson.
# # #
Highlights for Children, Inc. (www.Highlights.com) has focused on helping children become their best selves for generations. Highlights magazine celebrated the printing and delivery of the one-billionth copy of the magazine and its 60th anniversary through summer 2006. Highlights High Five™, devoted to pre- and emerging readers (ages two to six) will publish in January 2007. On the Web, www.HighlightsKids.com offers children interactive content related to each issue of the magazine, as well as independent activities such as "Click-and-Play Hidden Pictures®," e-cards, games, craft activities, "Mystery Messages," jokes, and riddles. Devoted to "Fun with a Purpose®," Highlights for Children also offers children, parents, grandparents, and educators a broad range of products including the Highlights for Children Book Clubs (Puzzlemania®, Mathmania®, Which Way USA?®, Top Secret Adventures™, and Hidden Pictures Playground®). Highlights Toy Catalog (www.Highlights.com) selects quality toys, games, craft activities, puzzles, and other products that children will love and parents can trust. Corporate offices are in Columbus, Ohio, and the editorial offices are in Honesdale, Pennsylvania.
For more information or to arrange an interview with a Highlights for Children spokesperson, please contact Patricia M. Mikelson, Highlights Corporate Communications at pmmikelson@highlights-corp.com or 614-324-7003.