Apr 7, 2006 By Patty Yauger 3 min read

CONNELLSVILLE – After spending several years elsewhere, a 1988 Connellsville Area High School graduate has returned home and is helping to spur the economy of his hometown by opening a new business. Terry Halfhill opened the doors of his Goin’ Postal store in February, but joined with local officials and the Greater Connellsville Chamber of Commerce Thursday to officially mark the occasion.

The store is located within Widewater Commons.

“We’re happy to see another new business open,” said Chris Wagner, chamber executive director.

Wagner said the strip mall complex continues to draw new business to the area.

“This development is something the community can be very proud of,” she added.

The store offers a wide range of postal and shipping services, along with other business services, including copying, faxing, mailbox rentals, cards and gifts.

Goin’ Postal, headquartered in Zephyrhills, Fla., was founded by Marcus and M.J. Price in 2002 as a convenient neighborhood shipping store.

In just a short period of time, it has grown to a chain of nearly 150 stores throughout the U.S.

The Connellsville site is the first in western Pennsylvania; however, two more are being planned for Uniontown and Mount Pleasant, said Halfhill.

Convenience, said Halfhill, is a priority.

“There is plenty of parking and no long lines,” he said. “Folks on their way to work or on their lunch break can stop by and mail their packages.

“We’re open until 6 p.m. for those business people, such as attorneys who need to overnight information to their clients.”

Another benefit of the store is that a customer can choose what delivery service is used to get packages to their destination.

“If someone is sending a package to Tempe, Ariz., I can give the customer four different rates – tell you what it costs to go through the post office, parcel post, priority mail or first class mail, and also tell them what the UPS, FedEx and DHL rate would be to ship it,” he said.

Although he has only been in business a few months, Halfhill said those selling products on eBay have brought their valuable items to him for shipping to their new owners.

“If you have a package, just bring it in and we’ll take care of getting it to its destination,” he said.

Halfhill said that family ties prompted his return to Connellsville while the new business was a result of having some spare time on his hands.

After attending college, he received his doctorate degree in industrial and organizational psychology from the University of Tennessee in 2000.

After a brief teaching stint at Texas University, Halfhill returned home. In addition to overseeing his new business, he is a business professor at Penn State Fayette, The Eberly Campus.

Goin’ Postal joins several other stores in the Widewaters strip mall, including Martin’s Food Market and gas station.

Goin’ Postal is open Monday through Friday from 8 a.m. to 6 p.m. and Saturday from 8 a.m. to 3 p.m.