West Newton postal clerk gets special send-off at funeral

This postal route didn’t have a mailbox or package to deliver.

Instead, the mail truck, with black bows fluttering from their perches on the side mirrors, turned into the West Newton Cemetery on Saturday, leading a funeral procession of those mourning Edmund Minkus, a longtime employee of the West Newton post office.

It was a fitting tribute for a man whose life was dedicated to the postal service, even after his retirement in 1988, according to his children.

“To him, it was not just a job, it was his passion,” said daughter Teresa Vitigoy of West Newton.

Minkus died Monday. He was 92.

He did many honorable things in his life, from serving in the Army during World War II and the Korean War to regularly donating blood through the American Red Cross. But Vitigoy said the more than three decades working as a clerk at the West Newton post office made him the most proud.

Minkus’ home was filled with mail memorabilia, from mail truck figurines to photograph collages of mailboxes. His family placed stamps in his casket.

“They’re going with him,” Vitigoy said.

She and brothers Gregory Minkus of Webster and Mark Minkus of North Huntingdon were touched by the mail truck tribute. Two postal vehicles were waiting for the procession at the entrance to the cemetery under a sunny October sky.

“It was his livelihood, it was his life,” Gregory Minkus said.

“There’s no higher honor for him for us,” Vitigoy said.

Minkus loved baseball, Scrabble, crossword puzzles and “Jeopardy!”. His daughter described him as a compassionate, friendly man.

He is survived by several grandchildren and great-grandchildren. Gregory Minkus said the family suggested memorial contributions to the American Red Cross in lieu of flowers.