TORONTO — Like clockwork, Anita McCulloch moves from house to house with a stack of flyers and letters tucked under her arm. The dogs know when the Canada Post mail carrier is coming up the driveway. They perch on the windowsill at the sight of McCulloch’s bright green vest, their tails wagging as they rush to meet her at the front door before their owners know she’s there. It’s one of her favourite parts of the job — and on Friday, she said goodbye to all of it. It was 60-year-old McCulloch’s last day of door-to-door delivery in Rexdale, her beloved northwest Toronto neighbourhood, filled with people she’s grown to care for over the last 2 1/2 years. “Even a smile or a ‘hello’ makes a difference in a person’s life, it makes a difference in mine,” McCulloch said, tearing up just before her shift began. “That is now all changing.” Hundreds of homes and businesses in that part of the city had their last day of door-to-door delivery as Canada Post phases in community mailboxes for roughly four million addresses over several years. It’s a key pillar of the beleaguered Crown corporation’s plans to overhaul its business model amid the decline of letter mail and huge financial losses. The neighbourhood, decorated with old trees and crunchy autumn leaves, is on the list of Canada Post’s earliest home delivery conversions, starting on Monday, despite concerns over accommodation for those with accessibility issues. Several other neighbourhoods in the Greater Toronto Area set to lose door-to-door mail delivery in 2027 include those in Pickering, Ajax, Mississauga and Brampton. In an April news release, Canada Post said the change will “strengthen the post service” and meet its mandate without being a “recurring burden on taxpayers.” It added that nearly three out of every four Canadian addresses already receive their mail through “some form of centralized delivery.” For McCulloch and other mail carriers, the change has been devastating. After the COVID-19 pandemic years, she said human contact has never been more important. She has countless stories of the connections she’s made over the years, including elderly residents who know her by name and dogs that follow her from home to home with their tails wagging. “Whether you’re a part of it for two years or 25 years, you are part of that community. You know your people,” McCulloch said. “It is a very sad, sad moment in our history.” A thank-you message awaited McCulloch on Carol and Steve Kay’s driveway, written in brightly coloured chalk by the couple’s grandchildren. As soon as the mail carrier saw it, she immediately teared up as the couple and their seven-year-old dog, Red, rushed down the steps to give her a hug goodbye. Steve Kay said McCulloch has been almost a part of the family and has always looked out for the couple and their neighbours. “She cares about what she does,” Steve said. “It’s just wrong to see her taken away.” The couple watched as Red followed McCulloch the rest of her route down the block. It’s their normal routine every time the mail carrier comes by. “I can’t take the dog for a walk ‘till after she delivers (the mail),” Steve said. For the Kays and their neighbours, including Martin Murchie, the switch to community mailboxes has been an unwelcome change. “We’re not fond of the idea. We still prefer that door-to-door access,” Murchie said. “There’s a human element to this that I think everybody’s missing out on.” Rain or shine, Katherine Petrie said she knew she’d be seeing McCulloch at her doorstep with a smile on her face. Petrie, who has lived in her home for 59 years, said the mail carrier still stops by in any case to say hello. Beyond not being able to see her favourite mail carrier every day, Petrie said she has concerns about possible community mailbox vandalism and having her mail stolen. “I know I’m going to get my cheque and (McCulloch) will put it in the mailbox,” she said. But with community mailboxes, “you can never tell.” McCulloch’s role goes beyond slotting pieces of paper into people’s mailboxes; she also keeps an eye on residents that may need help. She recalled how a two-year-old girl wandered into the street one day as she was delivering mail in the neighbourhood and elderly residents who needed help after suffering an injury inside their home. “I can’t tell you the number of times 911 has been called because we’ve noticed something that’s not supposed to be in the community or something’s happened to somebody,” she said. “We’re there every day.” Zach Avdelopoulos, president of the Canadian Union of Postal Workers Toronto local, said the change will be difficult for mail carriers and they are urging communities to voice their concerns over the switch to community mailboxes. The union has been advocating to keep home delivery, especially for residents with a disability or accommodation needs. “You see how much connection she has with the public,” he said of McCulloch. “Now, you’re just going to be subjected to going to a box and the box has a lot of issues.” McCulloch, who has been with Canada Post for a decade, will still be coming around the neighbourhood but spending most of her time staring inside the community mailbox slots, shuffling mail to empty trays. Throughout her Friday morning route, she promised several residents she would swing by to say hello once in a while. Later down the route, 85-year-old Gail Buntin is out on the front lawn. Her leaf collection machine has been jammed for a few minutes when McCulloch stops by. McCulloch gets down on the cold grass and fixes Buntin’s machine. It runs smoothly in a few minutes. The pair share a hug and say their goodbyes before McCulloch takes the short walk up Buntin’s driveway to slot in a few envelopes. She then briskly makes her way over to the next house, repeating the process over and over again, for the last time. This report by The Canadian Press was first published Nov. 15, 2026. Sadeen Mohsen, The Canadian Press
