My name is Mike Porter and I’m a communications specialist for the chief processing and distribution officer’s organization at USPS headquarters in Washington, DC.
When I’m not at work, I manage an Illinois-based 1980s tribute band, BoomBox, and spend my time traveling to our weekend gigs. I also play keyboards and provide lead vocals for the band, which includes my sister, brother-in-law and niece.
Not only do I come from a musical family, we are a postal proud one, too. My sister, Marsha Banning, is the postmaster of Flora, IL; my brother-in-law, Shane, is a rural carrier; and my father, Bob Porter, is a retired rural carrier. My grandfather also worked for the Postal Service. But I have my mother to thank for my musical influences, including Roy Orbison and rockabilly artists such as Jerry Lee Lewis, Little Richard and Elvis Presley.
I work weekdays and as soon as Friday night rolls around, I fly to Illinois. The following morning, we travel anywhere from a few hours to a few states away to perform, and sometimes we do it again on Sunday before I fly back to DC for my workweek. The band usually takes off in January and February, while our busiest months are June and July.
I also emcee a music variety show on the first Sunday of each month, and I’m an award-winning yodeler. I will often receive yodeling song requests ranging from alpine to Hank Williams Sr.
I have been singing my whole life, but I knew early on that working for USPS is a great job. I knew I could make it into a career and that would provide a stable work life and allow me to work on my music on the side.
I began as a processing and distribution clerk in St. Louis. I then became a letter carrier in Chesterfield, MO, before transferring as a carrier to Nashville, TN, where I always wanted to live and focus on my songwriting.
While in Nashville, I got a bird’s eye view of the business. I sang at famed spots including Loretta Lynn’s Ranch, where I opened shows for her, and Tootsie’s on Broadway. I focused on songwriting and producing and recorded an original album called “Nashville Ain’t Gonna Come to Me.”
So many times, I heard people say, “If I don’t make it in the business in five years, then that’s it.” I never had to worry like that. I was able to work, go into a studio, and pay my own way because I had a secure job when other artists did not. It didn’t have to be hand to mouth for me.
The Postal Service helped me do it a different way.
“Off the Clock,” a column on Postal Service employees and their after-hours pursuits, appears regularly in Link.
