Okay, so we are leaving for Italy on Saturday night. We applied for our passport renewals in MARCH. My youngest daughter’s passport is still in process.
We have done everything we know to do. We had to wait until 14 days prior to our travel date to begin the rush process. Since then, we have called daily. We cannot get an appointment at any of the passport offices within 200 miles. We called the office of Carol Maloney, our state rep,and her guy in her office has been on the phone with the passort processing center in New Hamphshire on a daily basis for us every day this week. Every time he calls us back, it is the same news “Not ready yet. But they have moved your request up to urgent”.
So I am putting it out to the blogosphere…
I’m praying that someone in the passport office in New Hamphire reads my blog and can see it in their heart to help us.
Or someone reading this blog knows someone in the passport processing center in New Hampshire. Or knows someone at the state department. Or is someone really, really important who can get my daughter’s passport processed for us tomorrow.
In the meantime, we are heading up to Norwalk Connecticut so that we can get online at 5 am tomorrow in hopes that we can get an appointment and get a passport. I will be checking me email continually, so if you can help, please email me at tbtam@rcn.com.
THANKS, whoever you are!
UPDATE: 9am We are in line at the passport office in Norwalk. They could not be nicer. We got here at 6am and were 2nd in line. However, it is clear that they are triaging by urgency of travel and passport status, so we are hopeful. The mantra seems to be “We will help you”. Here’s hoping…
UPDATE:
We have a passport!
Thanks to all of you for your great suggestions, you are so wonderful. And thanks most of all to the wonderful folks at the Norwalk Passport Center, who treated everyone there like human beings, always had a smile and a kind word, and know how to handle a crowd, triage and move the work. Everyone of them embodies what a civil servant should be.
BOTTOM LINE: IF YOU LIVE IN THE NEW YORK METRO AREA, AND YOUR PASSPORT APPLICATION IS BEING DELAYED AS WAS OURS, AND YOU NEED A PASSPORT WITHIN 2 WEEKS, GO TO NORWALK.
Wow! Sorry I don’t have any info that might help you out, but good luck in Norwalk. And now I know, if we might want to travel, say in 2010, better apply for those passports now.
If you lived in Europe I could help – the Counselates can do a 2 hour rush!
As it is, all I can do is wish you the best of luck… The delay is really inexcusable!
And hope you have a lovely trip..
Fingers crossed….
Schruggling says…
Why not go to the passport center in Philly. This used to be the national center and they used to process in a day. However, that was pre-9/11.
As an alternative, try using a service to expedite the process. The below link offers such a service. I don’t know how effective they are though – I never used them.
Here is another.
http://www.passportsandvisas.com/passport/index.asp
http://www.passportsandvisas.com/index.asp?affiliate=g6passportofficephiladelphia&gclid=CNjZ4aC-pI0CFSgRGgodbG0Z1A
we had the same thing exactly a year ago. call one of your state representatives – we did and we had it in 24hrs. they live for such things…to be heroic. everyone wins.
No help here, but I hope you have a safe and wonderful trip! Looking forward to your blog postings about said trip and food.
You may live in NH, but you work in Manhattan. Call Hillary.
this past march my brother and dad came to visit me in thailand, they applied for their passports at the beginning of january and still hadn’t received them by the end of march (when they were leaving). they ended up going to our closest regional/passport office and getting emergency passports. all you need is proof of your tickets.
the real ones came in the mail a week later.
I hope it all works out for you. Have a great trip and I look forward to your Italian posts.
Thanks everyone for suggestions.
For the record, we already had called our state rep,Carol Maloney, and Victor in her office (a great guy…) has been calling the New Hampshire processing center for us all week, but to no avail. BTW, Judy, I live in NYC, but apparently all the passports get made in New Hampshire. And I did think of calling Hillary, and strongly considered asking freinds/patients in high places for their help, and almost used a passort service but didn;t trust that process at this late date.
In the end, we did it ourselves and I am proud of us.
Thanks for the update! Have a lovely trip!
I’m so glad you were able to do it — and it may be helpful to someone else to know that you can get your passport by going to the source. I never would have guessed that was Norwalk.
Have a wonderful trip! 🙂
TBTAM, Your story resembles my current perdicament… I have a Missouri Senator’s office (McCaskill) and US Representative’s office (Graves) helping me obtain my passport for my trip to Dubai late next week. I have not heard anything and the closest passport office is Chicago (live in Kansas City). Can I go to Chicago even though the NH location has possession of my birth certificate, application, and phono? I would really appreciate any insight you might have. Thx. Missouri.
I am in the exact same predicament. The process is ridiculous and no one seems to be able to do anything, but say “just wait”! Insanity! I will be in Norwalk on Monday for a Tuesday flight. I applied 4/3/07. Wish me luck! I’m (supposed) to go to Paris with my daughter.
Dorothy, getting my congressman involved helped tremendously. I applied April 14. Supposedly my passport was mailed and should be here today or tomorrow. Wish me luck.
I am in the same situation… I was wondering if you could clarify what happens when you show up at a passport center… are they able to make your passport on the spot?
So, I have called everyday and left emails….and my paasport just came on a Saturday! No CT for me…I am so relieved, but still angered at the way all of this happened. To everyone still in the struggle-be persistent and stay strong. Good luck!
rk
Yes, if you show up, you get your passport that day. At least, that is what hapened for us.
I have a feeling, though, that if you show up too far away from your travel date, it may not be that day.
Tucker – glad to hear your congressman helped. Ours tried, but in the end we had to do it ourselves.