Jesús Collazos loved working as a mail carrier. Originally from Cali, Colombia, he first worked as an accountant. Life made him a mailman in the United States, and many of the residents he served during his 25-year career adopted him as family.
After his death, residents joined forces to make sure their beloved postman would never be forgotten in their neighborhood. A post office in Arlington, Virginia, was dedicated as the Jesús Antonio Collazos Post Office Building.
Rep. Don Beyer recognized Collazos’ service to the community.
“The naming of the post office was a testament to how we sometimes give so much when you don’t expect anything in return. I don’t think Jesús Collazos ever thought they’d name a post office after him, but a hundred years from now, it’ll still be the Jesús Collazos Post Office, and that will be a great thing for his great-grandchildren,” he said.
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Collazos was a dedicated father, husband and friend who tried to make a difference for others, his daughter, Vanessa Collazos, said. He grew close to the children, parents and seniors along his route.
"My dad went beyond his obligations. He helped people while working, if they needed any help. He would pick up their medicine or check in on them. They would always call home asking for my dad, and he would just run there to help them,” Vanessa Collazos said in Spanish.
Resident Ole Orset shared a fond memory of Collazos doing his job despite nasty weather.
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“We had a lot of snow — I grew up in Norway. I know snow — and everyone else had stopped delivering packages and everything. But this little mail truck came down the hill like a little bobsleigh,” he said with a smile. “Nothing stopped him — rain, sleet or snow. He always delivered the mail, and he always took care of his neighbors.”
Collazos contracted COVID-19 near the start of the pandemic and died. He was 67.
The void he left was so great that Beyer began getting requests from his constituents to name their local post office, on N. George Mason Drive, after Collazos. Congress unanimously approved a bill on the renaming, cementing his legacy.
The Collazos family and community gathered at the unveiling of a plaque bearing his name and shared their memories.
