Agency honors medical community after its president survives COVID-19

Philatelic Foreword by Jay Bigalke

Stamp-issuing entities around the world continue to issue stamps related to the COVID-19 pandemic. The way different countries have handled this topic on their stamps has been interesting to follow.

Linn’s Stamp News reported on several of the early COVID-19 stamps from around the world.

The coverage now continues in the Scott New Issues update section, namely through listing the new stamps and also through the By Topic listing with the new category “Medicine: COVID-19 Pandemic” under the Science and Technology section. The By Topic listing is published online.

Inter-Governmental Philatelic Corp. (IGPC), a new-issue agency based in Brooklyn, N.Y., has organized an omnibus issue of COVID-19 stamps that pay tribute to the medical community. Several postal administrations represented by IGPC will participate in this multination series.

In the Sept. 8 press release announcing the omnibus, Sam Malamud, IGPC president, said: “Being a survivor of the COVID-19 virus, I can say first hand that my wife and I would not have survived without the tireless efforts of the EMS First Responders and the continued support of the medical staff in my community. Round the clock care from the Front-Line healthcare workers kept us and thousands of other men and woman alive and we are forever grateful.

“Honoring these men and women on official postage stamps will serve as global ambassadors for all eternity. When these postage stamps are used to mail a letter to a mom or dad, a postcard from a visitor to these beautiful countries, these healthcare workers will be immortalized for their selfless acts of bravery.”

Six postal administrations have already issued souvenir sheets in this omnibus: Palau, The Gambia and Marshall Islands (Aug. 7); Tuvalu (Aug. 11); Grenada (Aug. 14); and Guyana (Aug. 31).

Each souvenir sheet consists of four stamps showing artwork by Ron Rundo of New York. Each sheet has a similar layout with the header “COVID-19: A Tribute to those on the Front Line.”

IGPC has indicated that other countries will be added to the omnibus, but did not provide specifics as of Linn’s press deadline.

According to IGPC, the stamps can be purchased from the local post offices of the issuing governments or from stamp dealers.

The stamps, along with more information about them, can be found on the IGPC website.

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