Colorful birthday wishes are heading back to mailboxes this spring.
For the first time since 2021, the U.S. Postal Service will release a new Happy Birthday stamp designed for invitations, cards, letters and packages.
“I am excited that we are issuing new Happy Birthday stamps. Many customers have submitted ideas for occasion-specific stamps such as these and we are pleased to be able to fulfill this request from the public,” said Lisa Bobb-Semple, USPS stamp services director.
Lisa Congdon created the artwork for the stamp. Greg Breeding served as art director on the project.
The Postal Service also unveiled another design set for later in the year — a nonprofit-price stamp called Summer Sunset.
A sunset over Martha’s Vineyard
Summer Sunset features an oil painting of a sunset in Menemsha, a small fishing village in Chilmark, Massachusetts, on Martha’s Vineyard. Local artist Rachael Cassiani painted the scene.
“Sunsets are universally appealing,” said Derry Noyes, a USPS art director who designed the stamp. “A postage stamp that celebrates looking out over a body of water at the end of a summer day seems to fit well for a nonprofit organization.”
USPS will sell the Summer Sunset stamp in self-adhesive coils of 3,000 and 10,000. Authorized nonprofit organizations will use the nondenominated stamp for bulk mailings.
Release dates set for spring and summer
USPS also announced first-day-of-issue dates and locations for several upcoming stamps.
Happy Birthday will debut April 18 in Providence, Rhode Island, ZIP code 02904.
Other releases include:
• Figures of the American Revolution on April 10 in Washington, D.C., 20066.
• A Day at the Beach on April 24 in Burlingame, California, 94010.
• Route 66 on May 5 in Phoenix, Arizona, 85026.
• Bald Eagle: Hatchling to Adult on May 14 in Wabasha, Minnesota, 55981.
• Summer Sunset on June 25 in Edgartown, Massachusetts, 02539. No ceremony is planned.
• Declaration of Independence on July 4 in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, 19104.
USPS said it will announce additional stamp subjects, as well as other first-day-of-issue cities and ceremony details, in the coming weeks and months. Officials said dates and locations could change.
How to buy the stamps
Customers can buy stamps and other philatelic products at usps.com/shopstamps, by calling 844-737-7826, by mail through USA Philatelic or at Post Office locations nationwide.
Shoppers can also find officially licensed stamp products through the USPS Officially Licensed Collection on Amazon. More details about stamps and first-day ceremonies are available at stampsforever.com.
USPS celebrates 250 years
The Postal Service is celebrating its 250th year. The independent federal establishment serves more than 170 million addresses six and often seven days a week.
The agency operates under a bipartisan Board of Governors. It receives no tax dollars for operating expenses and relies on the sale of postage, products and services to fund operations.
This content is brought to you by the FingerLakes1.com Team. Support our mission by visiting www.patreon.com/fl1 or learn how you send us your local content here.