Elwood Hurd is the Sam Drucker of Wedron.

In the far reaches of television land, Sam Drucker was the general store owner-postmaster on the shows "Green Acres" and "Petticoat Junction." Sam's place was ground zero for the imaginary community of Hooterville, in which both shows were set.

Wedron is for real and Hurd is no character dreamed up by a scriptwriter. Rather, he is the flesh-and-blood postmaster in Wedron, where he sees the gentle, although not as much the goofy, side of small-town life as did Sam Drucker.

"You really get to know a lot of what's going on in town, without trying to know everyone's business," Hurd observed.

Before taking the job in Wedron five years ago, Hurd worked for the Postal Service in a far different setting — suburban, upscale Naperville.

"It's a night-and-day difference." Hurd noted with a chuckle. "It was very stressful in Naperville. It's very laid back in Wedron."

As Hurd has found, the burg nestled along the folds of the Fox River and Indian Creek is not conducive to going postal.

Hurd explained he asked for the assignment to Wedron to get away from the environment in Naperville. However, he lives in suburban Montgomery, commuting 40 miles to Wedron five days per week. He works from 7:45 a.m. to 4:45 p.m. The only other governmental presence in Wedron is the Serena Fire District's branch station.

On a typical day, Hurd handles about 400 pieces of mail for the Wedron area; he pointed out 400 pieces of mail is not even one-tenth the daily volume of one carrier's route in Naperville.

Mail is not delivered to Wedron area residents, so the post office serves as Grand Central Station for the community, with folks stopping by to pick up their letters and parcels, chatting occasionally with each other when their trips intersect.

In the center of the comings and goings is Hurd, who in the best Sam Drucker tradition, still tacks up FBI wanted posters in the office's lobby. Perhaps J. Edgar Hoover smiles down with approval.