Dear Georgia Mail Carrier Floyd Martin returns with a big surprise

This is Floyd Martin. He has been an email carrier in Georgia since 1985.

For the past 20 years, Martin has been working the same route in the center of Marietta, and all the people on his route have come to love him – AMAZING he loves.

"He's really part of our family," said Sarah Bullington, who has lived in the neighborhood for 11 years, told BuzzFeed News. "He's just very special."

Martin told BuzzFeed News the best part of His job was all the people he met and befriended over the years.

"They wanted to invite me to dinner. [On] Holidays, they would try to make sure I was not alone. They give me gifts. If my truck broke, as it did, they would come out to check "They were there for me," he said.

So when some of the neighbors learned that Martin was going to retire a few months ago, they knew they had to send him in style.

"I knew we had to do something big, says Becky Poole, who has known Martin for about 25 years. "I didn't know it was going to be that big."

About 500 people live on Martin's route, and the group decided to invite every one of them to be part of the celebration.

The group asked people to decorate their mailboxes for Martin's last day and to come to a potluck party.

"I had a small meeting on my porch one night with some ladies and we made a plan," said Sarah Bullington, who has lived in the neighborhood for 1[ads1]1 years. "We shared our neighborhood into zones and we wanted to Going our dogs and mailboxes with a flyer who told people what we were doing. "

They didn't know how many people would attend, and on Thursday morning, Poole was worried that it would be less than she hoped.

"You are not sure how many people will decorate their mailbox. When I went early I thought, Participation in our street is not so great she said.

But when she drove back down The street two hours later, everyone had decorated their mailboxes. [19659014] The group said it was appropriate send-off for someone who has touched their lives through generations.

"I don't remember the moment we first met Floyd, "Bullington said." But probably the third year we were there, he had made enough of an impact on our family that my 3-year-old daughter would dress like Mr. Floyd for a career day at school, and then he came to a birthday party . "

Martin celebrated a number of other birthdays – and births, holidays, sports transitions and graduations – with the people on his route.

"He gave each one of my children a graduation gift. When one of them graduated, he would put $ 20 in the mailbox, Poole said." It was only he, he loved our children. "

He loved also the neighborhood animals, fed the cats and brought treats to the dogs.

"When one of our dogs died," Poole said, "Floyd cried. He loved that dog. "

Over the years, the neighborhood came to rely on Martin for more than just mail.

" I've had many years, and he just wanted to look at me, say "Uh -So, tell Floyd, what is wrong, "Poole said." We wanted to get out there and he would give me the huge Floyd clamp and I would get better. "

Martin was particularly kind to the elderly on his route Poole says that when her mother suffers from multiple sclerosis, she will often fall, and on two occasions Martin was there to help her get back.

Another neighbor, Amanda Seals, now 45, said her grandmother has signed Martin's praise since she was in college. "" My grandmother is older, "said Seals." She has dementia and her vision is very, very bad, but she knows who Floyd is. "

Seals says that a photograph they took together on Thursday "will help her with her long-term memories as she has

Martin told BuzzFeed News. Four other postal workers helped him complete his route on Thursday.

But even with all the help he was still late for the party because so many people wanted to talk to him. [19659003] When he finally arrived, "Everyone broke out with a cheer," Bullington said. "Not a dry eye."

"Bring me to tears," Martin said. "I'm a crybaby. I show my feelings."

Bullington estimated that around 350 people of all ages appeared.

"You see this group of sullen teens line up when Mr. Floyd passes by. Teens!" She said. "They don't like doing anything, but everyone showed up to him last night. "

Martin's story went viral this week after Jennifer Brett a reporter with the Atlanta Journal Constitution, tweeted about it while following Martin on his last day.
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Martin told BuzzFeed News to be a record carrier is not easy, but the conditions he built made it worth it.

"It's a very difficult job. I did not have the post frequency when I first started. It took me a while to get it, and I got frustrated, "he reminded." I called my mother said, "I can't do this." She said, "Stay there, baby." " heard these words anytime I wanted to quit. Then I did, and it all came together. I just went full, 100%. I said, "I want to be good at this, I want to be the best." "

And for those on his route, in the center of Marietta, who showed.

"We are just very grateful for his years of public service," said Seals.

"Many can leave it behind and enter the private sector and have an air-conditioned office and what not," she said. "It takes someone with a true servant's heart to do what he did as long as he did, and we are grateful for that."