A SMALL Black Isle village which regarded its tiny post office in a wooden hut at the bottom of a field as the hub of the community, turned out last week to bid a fond farewell to the retiring postmistress.
Mary Finlayson ran the Poyntzfield Post Office in Jemimaville for 25 years and her retirement last Thursday brought her 43-year career with the organisation to an end.
The villagers only found out about her date of retirement a few days before and quickly organised a surprise garden tea party to thank her for her service to the community.
“We collected more than £260 for her, that says everything about how important she is to us,” said resident Christine Cameron.
“She was always there chatting away, and instead of sitting at the bus stop, most people would go to the post office and sit in with her. She sold eggs, postcards of Jemimaville and things like that, she was part of the village.”
The community gave Mrs Finlayson gardening vouchers, a flower planter and a photograph of Udale Bay by local photographer Andrew Dowsett, which was signed on the back by the residents. Mrs Finlayson began working for the Post Office in 1972 and ran the part-time Duncanston branch from her home until it shut as part of a round of local closures around seven years ago.
She started at the Poyntzfield Post Office in September 1990, working from a small vestibule in the Church of Scotland hall, known locally as the Tin Tabernacle.
Her bid to buy the church hall a few years later was unsuccessful, and Mrs Finlayson only had one week to find an alternative venue for the post office. Her husband Derry, a builder, saved the day by constructing a small wooden shed as the new base for the post office.
Up until recently Mrs Finlayson braved all weathers to cycle the 10 miles from her home to her wee branch in Jemimaville, which opened on Mondays and Thursdays.
Last Monday she handed over the Poyntzfield branch to the Cromarty Post Office, which is due to provide a reduced service from 11am to 1pm every Thursday.
Mrs Finlayson, a keen gardener, hopes to use the vouchers to buy a fountain and plans to spend her retirement “seeing more of the family” who live in London and Largs.
“The tea party was a complete surprise, they made it very nice, very informal,” she said.
“It was an emotional occasion, leaving after all this time. Everybody said such lovely things, but I was very pleased to do it.”
She has many highlights over the years, but the day her wee post office was flooded in six inches of water stands out.
Mrs Finlayson reckons it is one of the smallest stand-alone post offices in the country.
“I quite like having a chat with folk, I will miss the people,” she said.
“The mechanics of the Post Office were all based on a one-fits-all set up and that really didn’t take account of the Highlands and the remoteness, and it was very difficult to run things on a smaller basis.
Christine Cameron explained the community was “a bit concerned about what happens next”.
“It looks like Cromarty Post Office is going to come to give us a two-hour service on a Thursday, and we hope that might be extended,” she said.
She said that Jemimaville is only a small village but the branch was quite well used and she hopes the situation will become clearer once a consultation is held.
Another resident, Maggie Dove, added: “We have to make sure the post office is used by as many people as possible as we are very keen to retain it.”
and not many years now. 