
                         Roanoke Times
                 Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.

DATE: FRIDAY, September 24, 1993                   TAG: 9309240195
SECTION: CURRENT                    PAGE: NRV-2   EDITION: NEW RIVER VALLEY 
SOURCE: 
DATELINE: FLOYD                                LENGTH: Short

FLOYD HELPERS SORT WHITE HOUSE MAIL

A contingent of volunteers from Floyd County have made a second trip to the White House to help sort some of the thousands of pieces of mail sent to President Bill Clinton every day. The White House has relied on volunteers to handle the flood of presidential mail for many years.

"I'm always amazed at the letters," said Ed Broderick, one of the 38 who made the trip last Saturday. Broderick, his wife Asta and others had gone on a similar mission in June.

This time, the Floyd volunteers were split up into two groups. One group sorted incoming mail by subject. The other group helped respond to requests for birthday or anniversary greetings from the president, including one for a woman 108 years old.

In all, the group sorted over 6,000 letters during their 4 1/2-hour session.

The visitors also got a behind-the-scenes tour of the West Wing of the White House, including the Oval Office, the Cabinet Room, the Press Room and the Rose Garden.

One volunteer even caught a glimpse of Socks the cat taking a stroll on the lawn. "She was so excited about it," Broderick said.

Another saw presidential aide David Gergen.

"We've got people who want to go back again," Broderick said.

by CNB