VALENTINE, TX IS FOR LOVERS
Legacy is usually something we talk about in the past tense. Old buildings. Family names. Traditions that once mattered. But in Valentine, Texas, legacy isn’t something old and dusty, it’s something very much alive: stamped, mailed, and sent back out into the world every February.
For decades, the tiny West Texas town of Valentine has quietly played host to a meaningful Valentine’s Day tradition. For a few weeks each year, the post office in Valentine becomes the “Love Station,” carefully hand-canceling valentines sent by people who want their words marked by something real, something with feeling. Each year, the mark itself is a hand-drawn postmark selected through an art contest among students at Valentine Independent School District. Over the years, the winning designs have featured animals, desert landscapes, rail lines, and scenes from daily life in the West Texas town. No matter the subject, each one serves as a tiny love letter, not just to the recipient, but to the students’ own small slice of the world in Valentine, Texas.
“This is the view I see when I wake up every morning and I wanted to share the landscape in my little corner of the world with others.” — This year’s winning artist, 11th grader Romeo Garcia
SEND YOUR VALENTINES FROM VALENTINE
The cherry on top of this love letter tradition is that the postmaster who applies that cherished postmark is not just a steward of the legacy, she is a product of it. Postmaster Ismelda Ornelas won the postmark contest years ago as a student. Today, she stands on the other side of the counter, hand-canceling thousands of valentines with a design born from the same classrooms and small-town experiences that shaped her.
And that, friends, is how legacy is supposed to work. Not shelved away. Not remembered and forgotten. Real legacy is stamped with intention, entrusted to the next generation, and shared with every corner of the globe. You might say that real legacy and real love are one in the same.
Do you want your valentines hand cancelled in Valentine, Texas?
Sending your valentines through the Love Station is easier than you might think. Start by writing a greeting card or letter to someone you love (or a few someones, we don’t judge). Add a First-Class Mail stamp to each card, then tuck them all into a larger envelope with proper postage. That outer envelope should be addressed to:
Love Station
Postmaster
311 W. California Ave.
Valentine, TX 79854-9998
The Love Station will take it from there. There’s no charge for up to 50 hand-cancelled valentines. If you’re sending more than that, additional cancellations are just five cents each. The Love Station will be stamping and sending Valentine cheer through March 14, 2026, so you’ve got time. But earlier is always sweeter.