With his background in business, Shebandowan's Bob Gill knows that an organization can't operate in the red indefinitely.

Still, Gill likes to be able to pick up his mail at the village's Canada Post outlet. The outlet just off Highway 11 is only open weekdays until 1 p.m., but the arrangement seems to work for most people who live in Shebandowan or nearby Kashabowie.

The catch is that Canada Post, according to its management, is losing $1 billion annually. To stem the red tide, rural post offices — once considered untouchable by the Crown corporation — are coming under scrutiny.

"As a rural resident, I'd like to see (the Shebandowan outlet) remain open, but I know that Canada Post can't keep on losing money like this," Gill said on Friday from his rural home.

When the fate of rural po

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