From Alfie to Ziggy, Bella to Willow, Mister Beanz to Poppy and Jack to Trixie ... just some of the names of the 60 plus dogs who have good reason to have become accustomed to seeing their friendly village postman on his delivery rounds.
And earlier today a special farewell was said to Adrian Bardwell who carries out his final duties in Otley, on Tuesday, the day he celebrates his 65th birthday and the day he retires after spending the past 31 years working for the Post Office.
But he has a special claim to fame which comes in the shape of titbits he carries round with him to the delight of his four-legged friends who range in a variety of breeds from Jack Russells to Labradors and Whippets.
But all of them have become the Postie’s friend and they turned up along with their owners at the village sign on the green to say their goodbyes at the event organised by postmistress Penny Sunaway.
Adrian, who lives in Faulkeners Way, in Trimley St Mary, makes a 37-mile round trip to Otley from his Post Office base in Commercial Road, Ipswich, and was presented with a t-shirt featuring images of the dogs and a bag for his wife Joyce which also had photos of the dogs imprinted on it.
He said: “When I go round the village with the post I also feed the dogs and I have become friendly with them. There’s every breed under the sun and there’s quite a variety of them and we all get on well with each other.
“None of them have ever attacked me and I’ve never had any problems with them in fact we’ve become friends,” said the man who has been delivering the post in Otley for the past eigh years and who also owns a Cavalier Spaniel named Josh.
He said he carries round a box of biscuits on his rounds in the village and did likewise in Bucklesham for 17 years before moving over to Otley.
But now he is hanging up his postman’s bag to spend time with his wife and dog.
“We shall be doing a little bit of walking and I’ll be also spending time in my shed hoping to pick up on my woodwork and get back into it - and having one or two holidays,” he added.
Meanwhile, Penny said of Adrian: “He is a kind person and goes out of his way to make everyone’s day better.
“He is never cross and goes the extra mile for everyone in the village.
“He has done something special for nearly every member of the village. He makes sure that every package has been delivered and if he can’t then he makes sure it is in a safe place.
“He also keeps an eye out for everyone. If someone does not take their mail for a while he will let us know at the Post Office so we can make sure they are okay.
“He also knows every one of the dog’s names and takes round biscuits for all of them every day.
“We just wanted to thank him for what he has done.”
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