Our website seems like a natural place to announce when issues of the NEWS have been mailed to the membership.  As we utilize non-profit presorted bulk mail to accomplish this, here is a brief overview of what a Mailing Date means, and what members may expect with regards to delivery times.  Keep in mind that the timeline is a generalization of what we see with each mailing.

The Zip Code sorted bundles of our magazine packets are taken to the Joliet, Illinois Post Office.  This is the date provided on the Events/News page of the website.

Once our packets enter the system, they follow a general 'ripple' pattern emanating from the Post Office's regional distribution center points in major cities.  Virtually no member will receive their mailing in the week following the Mailing Date.  That is just the way the USPS handles this type of mail.  The distance an individual town is from a specific regional center is the second factor influencing delivery dates. 

Each 'ripple' corresponds to approximately an additional week in transit time.  

From the point of origin (star), persons with zip codes beginning with '6' are likely to be first to see our mailing arrive.  Generally, this will be within a 7 to 14 day period.  This first 'ripple' is shown as the states colored yellow.   Members living IN  large cities, even though they are outside of this area (such as  Memphis, Indianapolis, or Pittsburgh),  will also start to receive mailings, as there are no additional transit points.

Zip Codes beginning with '3', '4', '5', and '7' are generally next to see packets arrive.  These states are shown in green.  Florida and Georgia seem to be exceptions, as their delivery patterns mimic a '2' zip code (below).  Smaller cities in or near secondary distribution operation points will see their mailings begin to arrive.

The third wave in the 'ripple' reaches states (shown in blue) with zip codes beginning with '8', '2' and '1'.  Packets seem to have an arrival time to these destinations toward the end of a three week time frame.  Concurrently, members in smaller towns in the previous regions will begin to see delivery.

The 'ripple' reaches the outermost areas (as measured from Joliet) in a three to four week interval.  This includes zip codes beginning with '9' or '0' (orange).  Members in Alaska and Hawaii are hopefully not too far behind, but may be due to the additional distances. 

INTERNATIONAL  MEMBER  MAILINGS

International members' packets have a mailing date of approximately one week after the given date of our bulk mailing.  However, international members receive their mailings via Global Air Mail Letter-Post.  This method of mailing has a target  delivery time of 7 to 10 days.   

Required Customs forms are filled out, and destination-specific postage is applied.  Actual delivery dates vary, but members in Canada are first to receive their packets, members in the UK and elsewhere in Europe follow, with our contingent in Japan and Australia having the longest wait.

We aim for international members to receive their packets in a two to three week span from the announced mailing date.