Huntannette... i am disappointed for both you and your SS. Does the package tracking reveal anything at this point?
I obviously don’t know how your postal system works - and while it will do little to help the immediate situation - i would think you might have some recourse there?
I am probably thinking of something you already know - my apologies. I just feel bad for you both and wish there was some way to help. Sometimes a person can do everything right, but still bear the brunt of circumstances beyond your control. I am so sorry.
A little hope to offer... a few years ago my husband prepared for an elk hunting trip in Oregon. Not wanting to chance his bow and assorted equipment to the airplane cargo-hold, he decided to ship them ahead with a major shipper (i wont mention here). He planned to hunt with his cousin so had everything shipped to his house. Never showed up and the last point of the tracking indicated one of the southern states (from Iowa to Oregon - not exactly an expected route). So hubby ended up on a 3 week hunting trip having to use an extra bow and equipment provided by his cousin (they are not the same sized or skilled individuals - so the equipment wasnt well matched to him, but hubby wasnt about to drop thousands of dollars on a new setup on short notice). I went to work immediately trying to figure out what could have happened - short answer of a very long and stressful situation - nobody knew. Hubby returned home in 3 weeks with no elk and still no bow/equipment. Now his turn to let the shipper know his displeasure (i guaranty you he is not known as a “diplomat”). Fast forward to 3 months later - the bow/equipment was found in an eastern state (???) in his very damaged special shipping case. An alert was out for it but the case was not in any shape to provide ownership info. Fortunately for hubby he had his name engraved on the bow and that is how they contacted him. He got a photo emailed to him from a higher level rep in the company asking him to confirm that the photo’s contents exhibited all known items in the case. Miraculously - everything was present and accounted for and in undamaged condition (except for the case). End of story - he got everything back. If i remember correctly he was reimbursed for the shipping charges and some small amount for the trashed case.
So... dont give up hope - and put pressure wherever possible for accountability on the part of the shipper!