John Mayer, 89, a career postal employee who developed a system of labeling forwarded mail that is still used today, died Thursday, Dec. 14, at Harborside Healthcare Gulfcoast in New Port Richey, Fla. Mr. Mayer, a native Chicagoan, attended Northwestern University and began work in 1929 as a substitute carrier and clerk. After holding a variety of positions in the Chicago post office, he was promoted to deputy director of the office of regional administration in Washington, D.C., in 1961. Also that year, Mr. Mayer was honored for developing a plan that created guidelines so postmasters could schedule temporary Christmastime employees for the heaviest mail volume, an idea that saved the post office millions of dollars. The following year Mr. Mayer retired from the post office and worked as an independent postal consultant for large corporations. In 1970, he created a way to label forwarded mail that was adopted by the U.S. Post Office for the United States and in Sweden, Finland, Switzerland and Canada. A pilot, Mr. Mayer was a past master of the Niagara Masonic Lodge & Shriner, Medinah Temple in Chicago. He was also a former member of the Aviators Unit of Medinah Temple and a volunteer for the Tampa Shriners Children’s Hospital. Survivors include a daughter, Patricia Grace Veon; a son, John B. Mayer; six grandchildren; and 13 great-grandchildren. A memorial service will be held Jan. 7 in New Port Richey, Fla.
