By some standards the Sandpiper's run of 2,600 copies might seem small; but when you consider that these copies are assembled by hand, the task becomes Herculean.  Lucie Walther and her husband, Bob, thrive on the assembly and distribution of the Sandpiper, at least partly because it is so physical.  Lucie, who plays tennis regularly, says she needs no other activities to keep in shape.

The Sandpiper, printed at Del Mar Blue, has 12 numbered pages printed on three tabloid-sized (11x17 in) sheets of paper which are then folded and packed into cartons.  The process takes about 24 hours.  

When Del Mar Blue is ready, Lucie Walther arrives to claim the cartons and to assume responsibility for the assembly and distribution of the paper.  She has been doing this since 1997, when the Sandpiper's first issue was published.

Before she retired, Lucie had a mail distribution business.  Her husband, also retired, was a tool and die maker.  Both come from Switzerland, but have been in the States for more than 50 years, in Del Mar for 40.  The two work as a team to assemble the Sandpiper, and it will take the whole weekend.

By early afternoon, Lucie and Bob are ready for business.  The 7,800 sheets for the April issue have been organized on the dining room table, along with this month's 4 inserts, another 10,400 pages.  In all, Bob and Lucie will assemble by hand a staggering 18,200 sheets of paper in the next two days.

In addition to assembling the papers, Lucie will paste on the address stickers.  She does this in accordance with bulk mail regulations: the addresses are sorted by carrier routes and have to be stuck on in an exact order so that the post office will have no sorting to do.

As each batch is finished, Lucie binds it with rubber bands and puts it in a Number 3 post office bulk mail sack.  When full, the sack will weigh about 50 lbs.  And there will be 7 of these sacks - a potential 350 pounds. 

The Del Mar post office no longer handles bulk mail, so Lucie delivers the 7 sacks to the Encinitas Post Office where she has made an appointment with the post master.  Once the post master clears the mailing, she could go home.  But ... if the Sandpiper were actually mailed from Encinitas, it would transit through San Diego.

So, to ensure a timely delivery, Lucie hauls the entire load back to Del Mar and turns it directly over to your friendly postal carriers, who will drop your paper into your mailbox in a day or two, hopefully on the first.