Frank’s first class service recognised

Frank’s first class service recognised

3 November 2021

DOWNPATRICK postmaster Frank Latus is celebrating after clocking up 40 years’ service in the Post Office.

Mr Latus is also marking 30 years of becoming Downpatrick’s first postmaster on October 30, 1991, when the Post Office was franchised.

A former civil engineer, Mr Latus became a postmaster when he took over the Post Office in Tullycarnet, Belfast, in 1981 with his wife, Ivy.

While working in Tullycarnet, he and his staff received a gallantry certificate for bravery against an armed robber. 

He decided to leave Belfast and move to Downpatrick, a town that he had lived in previously when his family returned from living in England.

Mr Latus moved Downpatrick Post Office to different premises at Grove Shopping Centre, 65 Market Street, Downpatrick, several years later so that he could add a newsagents’ business alongside the post office.

However, an arson attack destroyed most of the shops in Grove Shopping Centre in 2008. 

While the Post Office was largely untouched — it was only closed for four days whilst they sorted out smoke damage — all the other shops around them had to be rebuilt.

Mr Latus has been a part-time postmaster for the past 10 years, so that he has more time to enjoy golf. 

His son, Gareth, is the full-time manager for Downpatrick, and will become the postmaster early next year when his father retires at the age of 80.

Mr Latus explained how he came to working as a postmaster.

“A lot of work dried up for civil engineers in the Eighties when Margaret Thatcher cut back on capital expenditure building roads and such and engineers began to look of alternative work,” he said. 

“A lot of people went to work in places like Saudi Arabia but I couldn’t do that as I had a young family and I didn’t want to do that. I saw an advertisement for a post office and newsagent in 

Tullycarnet and I applied for it and got it.”

Being a postmaster became a family tradition — at one point Mr Latus was running both Tullycarnet and Downpatrick post offices and had his other son Robert working in Belfast.

He has noticed a lot of change in the Post Office since he started, mainly in what services they now offer and the use of IT.

“We did everything manually when I first started and I actually bought our own computer in 1985 before the Post Office even had computers in order to help us out and it made things a lot quicker,” he said.

“In the early days it was all pensions and Family Allowance and saving stamps but now there’s a lot more to do with foreign currency, banking and money transfers.”

Post Office Area Manager,Timmy Grant presented Mr Latus with his long service award.

He said: “Frank and his son Gareth are doing a great job serving the Downpatrick community. They have worked throughout the pandemic and they have picked up extra work from two banks closing recently and they also do longer opening hours than the remaining banks.”

Gareth Latus added: “We slightly reduced our hours during the pandemic to help keep us safe, but we were still doing much longer hours than the banks and not closing at lunchtime. 

“Personal and business customers were very grateful and appreciative that we stayed open and still offered the same products and services. Customers were afraid to go far and they wanted to stay local, so we were here for them.”