NNAF establishes Max Heath Postal Institute

Aug 26, 2021

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Contact: Lynne Lance, lynne@nna.org

A new postal education program from National Newspaper Association Foundation will be named after its longtime mentor and trainer Max Heath of Kentucky.

The Max Heath Postal Institute becomes the new umbrella to train newspapers and printers for best uses of the mail in a rapidly-changing postal environment.

NNAF President Matt Adelman, publisher of the Douglas (Wyoming) Budget, said the NNAF board decided the most appropriate way to recognize the lifelong work of Heath, who died in July, would be to continue his mission. Memorial donations to NNAF will be dedicated to a fund for postal training.

“No one in this industry has to look very far to find a newspaper whose essential work has been protected by Max," Adelman said. "He understood that the best newspaper imaginable has little value unless people are able to receive it. Max spent decades training us, fighting for us and leaping into the fray of postal policy. An entire industry is indebted to his selflessness.

“Now, as the Postal Service is pushing massive changes out to mail users, we face a daunting frontier without our leader. But National Newspaper Association and its partner foundation, NNAF, have known for years that this sad day would come. Our postal team is ready for it. We’ll be launching new training programs within MHPI, even as NNA continues to advocate for universal postal service.”

Adelman said the first program in the Institute would be October 21 with a presentation by USPS National Customer and Support Center in Memphis. The topic will be “Liberating your Newspaper from Costly Address Change Notices.” It will be designed for publishers, circulation professionals, printers and mail service providers. More information on this program will be provided in the weeks ahead. MHPI will also become the host of Postal Tips, a regular column in Publishers’ Auxiliary.

Adelman said NNAF expressed its condolences to Heath’s wife, Ruth Ann, and son, Jason.

“They have blessed this new design, even as they both often had to share Max with a wide world of newspaper people who called and wrote him at all hours of the day for help," he said. "We thank them for their generosity,”

NNAF has established a donation link for industry professionals who wish to contribute to carrying on Heath’s legacy.