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Personal and Family Preparedness

"We live in a most exciting and challenging period in human history. As
technology sweeps through every facet of our lives, changes are
occurring so rapidly that it can be difficult for us to keep our lives
in balance. To maintain some semblance of stability in our lives, it is
essential that we plan for our future. I believe it is time, and
perhaps with some urgency, to review the counsel we have received in
dealing with our personal and family preparedness. We want to be found
with oil in our lamps sufficient to endure to the end."

Elder L. Tom Perry, Quorum of the Twelve Apostles "If Ye Are Prepared Ye Shall Not Fear"

April Meeting

This month's meeting is on Square Foot Gardening. Elaine S. will be our guest speaker. I am so excited to learn everything she has to share.

Please come and join us. It is on April 28th, 7pm, Kathy's house (email for address).

On Sunday the Relief Society Presidency passed around a questionnaire to be filled out. Please fill it out and return it to me (Kathy). I am going to use those answers for meeting ideas. Wheat Watchers isn't just for me but for all of us. We are in this together and together we can replace fear with peace. If you didn't get a copy of the questionnaire go here and print it out.

Food Storage Recipe Monday

I thought that it would be a great use of this blog to post food storage friendly recipes every Monday. I have gotten several comments that people would LOVE more recipes. If you have a recipe that you love and would like to share, please email it to me!

Peanut Butter Cookies- recipe from USDA Peanut Butter can

2 1/2 cups flour (I use half wheat and half all-purpose)
1/2 tsp. salt
1/2 tsp. baking soda
1 cup margarine
1 cup creamy or crunchy peanut butter
1 cup white sugar
1 cup brown sugar
2 eggs (2 TBS powdered eggs + 1/4 cup water)

Mix flour, salt and soda. Set aside. Mix margarine and peanut butter in a separate bowl. Add both sugars and mix well. Add eggs and beat well. Stir in dry ingredients. Drop from teaspoon on ungreased baking sheet. Flatten with fork dipped in sugar. Bake at 375 degrees for 10-15 minutes until lightly browned. Cool on wire rack.

Makes 4-5 dozen cookies.

These cookies are FANTASTIC! I was once told that when you start using your food storage the best place to start is with DESSERT!!

Happy Eating

Self-Reliance

Church leader Elder Robert D. Hales outlines ways we can become self-reliant:

• Be ready for rainy-day emergencies
• Avoid excessive debt; be content with what we have
• Use the resources of the earth wisely; don´t be wasteful
• Prepare for the future by making spending and savings plans
• Keep a family or personal budget
• Teach children wise spending habits and help them save for the future
• Obtain an education or vocational training
• Find gainful employment

As we become self-reliant, we will be prepared to face challenges with confidence and peace of mind.

Food Storage

Vaughn J. Featherstone, “Food Storage,” Ensign, May 1976, 116

Brethren of the priesthood, sisters of the Relief Society, President Henry D. Moyle suggested that when someone speaks we ought to get three things out of the message. First and least important (but still very important), we ought to get what is said. Second, and more important, we ought to have a spiritual experience. Third, and most important, we should keep the commitments we make to ourselves. Let’s write them down and follow through. Don’t ever make a commitment to yourself you don’t intend to keep—if you do, you weaken your character.

For twenty-six years, since I was fifteen, I was involved in the grocery industry. I learned much about human nature during those years. I remember the effects that strikes, earthquakes, and rumors of war had on many very active Latter-day Saints. Like the five foolish virgins, they rushed to the store to buy food, caught in the panic of knowing that direction had been given by the prophet but not having followed that direction—fearful that maybe they had procrastinated until it was everlastingly too late.

It was interesting because only in Latter-day Saint communities did people seem to buy with abandon. It was not a few Latter-day Saints—it was a significant number. It caused great increases in sales. One such experience came when a so-called prophecy by someone outside the Church was greatly publicized.

How foolish we can sometimes be! We have a living prophet; we have God’s living oracles, the First Presidency and the Council of the Twelve Apostles. Let us follow the Brethren and be constant. We need have no fear if we are prepared.

Brothers and sisters, what have we done in our stakes and wards to see that every Latter-day Saint has a year’s reserve of food to sustain life? Let’s not only keep teaching the principle, but let’s also teach our people how.

This morning I would like to discuss food storage. Let me suggest three or four things we can do. Start by taking an inventory—take a physical count of all of your reserves. This would be a great family home evening project if you’re prepared. If not, it may be terribly embarrassing to you in front of your family. Imagine how the powerful testimony you bear concerning a living prophet must sound to your children, who know that as a family head you have been counseled for years to have a year’s reserve of food on hand. We need to know where we are. Every family should take an inventory—get all the facts.

Second, decide what is needed to bring your present reserve levels to a year’s supply. Then make a list and prepare a plan. Consider first, what are the basics?—wheat (or grain from your locale), sugar or honey, dried milk, salt, and water. Most of us can afford such basics. Buy them from your monthly food budget allowance. The Church discourages going into debt to buy for storage.

Now that you know where you are and where you need to be, the third step is to work out a time schedule for when you will reach your goal. I suggest that one year from today we ought to have a year’s supply of food in all active—and many inactive—members’ homes in the Church. Where food storage violates the law of your land, then abide the law. However, even in those cases we can plant gardens and fruit trees and raise rabbits or chickens. Do all you can within the laws of your community, and the Lord will bless you when the time of need comes. Now here are some suggestions how:

1. Follow the prophet. He has counseled us to plant a garden and fruit trees. This year don’t just think about it—do it. Grow all the food you possibly can. Also remember to buy a year’s supply of garden seeds so that, in case of a shortage, you will have them for the following spring. I’m going to tell you where to get the money for all the things I’m going to suggest.

2. Find someone who sells large bulk of grains, depending on your locale. Make arrangements to buy a ton or so of grain.

3. Find someone who sells honey in large containers and make arrangements to buy what you can afford on a regular basis or buy a little additional sugar each time you go to the store.

4. Purchase dry milk from the store or dairy, on a systematic basis.

5. Buy a case of salt the next time you go to the store. In most areas, 24 one-pound packages will cost you less than $5.

6. Store enough water for each member of your family to last for at least two weeks.

Where the foods I mentioned are not available or are not basic in your culture or area, make appropriate substitutions.

Now you ask, “Where do I get the money for these things? I agree we need them, but I’m having a hard time making ends meet.”

Here is how you do it. Use any one or all of these suggestions, some of which may not be applicable in your country:

1. Decide as a family this year that 25 or 50 percent of your Christmas will be spent on a year’s supply. Many families in the Church spend considerable sums of money for Christmas. Half or part of these Christmas monies will go a long way toward purchasing the basics. I recall the Scotsman who went to the doctor and had an X-ray taken of his chest. Then he had the X-ray gift-wrapped and gave it to his wife for their anniversary. He couldn’t afford a gift, but he wanted her to know his heart was in the right place. Brethren, give your wife a year’s supply of wheat for Christmas, and she’ll know your heart is in the right place.

2. When you desire new clothes, don’t buy them. Repair and mend and make your present wardrobe last a few months longer. Use that money for the food basics. Make all of your nonfood necessities that you feasibly can, such as furniture and clothing.

3. Cut the amount of money you spend on recreation by 50 percent. Do fun things that do not require money outlay but make more lasting impressions on your children.

4. Decide as a family that there will be no vacation or holiday next year unless you have your year’s supply. Many Church members could buy a full year’s supply of the basics from what they would save by not taking a vacation. Take the vacation time and work on a family garden. Be together, and it can be just as much fun.

5. If you haven’t a year’s supply yet and you do have boats, snowmobiles, campers, or other luxury possessions, sell or trade one or two or more of them and get your year’s supply.

6. Watch advertised specials in the grocery stores and pick up extra supplies of those items that are of exceptional value.

7. Change the mix in your family’s diet. Get your protein from sources less expensive than meat. The grocery bill is one bill that can be cut. Every time you enter the store and feel tempted by effective and honest merchandising to buy cookies, candy, ice cream, non-food items, or magazines—don’t! Think carefully; buy only the essentials. Then figure what you have saved and spend it on powdered milk, sugar, honey, salt, or grain.

The Lord will make it possible, if we make a firm commitment, for every Latter-day Saint family to have a year’s supply of food reserves by April 1977. All we have to do is to decide, commit to do it, and then keep the commitment. Miracles will take place; the way will be opened, and next April we will have our storage areas filled. We will prove through our actions our willingness to follow our beloved prophet and the Brethren, which will bring security to us and our families.

Now regarding home production: Raise animals where means and local laws permit. Plant fruit trees, grapevines, berry bushes, and vegetables. You will provide food for your family, much of which can be eaten fresh. Other food you grow can be preserved and included as part of your home storage. Wherever possible, produce your nonfood necessities of life. Sew and mend your own clothing. Make or build needed items. I might also add, beautify, repair, and maintain all of your property.

Home production of food and nonfood items is a way to stretch your income and to increase your skills and talents. It is a way to teach your family to be self-sufficient. Our children are provided with much needed opportunities to learn the fundamentals of work, industry, and thrift. President Romney has said, “We will see the day when we will live on what we produce.” (Conference Reports, April 1975, p. 165.)

I should like to address a few remarks to those who ask, “Do I share with my neighbors who have not followed the counsel? And what about the nonmembers who do not have a year’s supply? Do we have to share with them?” No, we don’t have to share—we get to share! Let us not be concerned about silly thoughts of whether we would share or not. Of course we would share! What would Jesus do? I could not possibly eat food and see my neighbors starving. And if you starve to death after sharing, “greater love hath no man than this …” (John 15:13.)

Now what about those who would plunder and break in and take that which we have stored for our families’ needs? Don’t give this one more idle thought. There is a God in heaven whom we have obeyed. Do you suppose he would abandon those who have kept his commandments? He said, “If ye are prepared, ye need not fear.” (D&C 38:30.) Prepare, O men of Zion, and fear not. Let Zion put on her beautiful garments. Let us put on the full armor of God. Let us be pure in heart, love mercy, be just, and stand in holy places. Commit to have a year’s supply of food by April 1977.

Bishops and stake presidents, let us accept the challenge on behalf of the Saints in our wards and stakes. It will prove to be a very Christlike deed on your part. Follow through and check up one year from now and make certain we achieve results.

In his October 1973 conference address, President Ezra Taft Benson gave some excellent instructions about home storage:

“For the righteous the gospel provides a warning before a calamity, a program for the crises, a refuge for each disaster. …  

“The Lord has warned us of famines, but the righteous will have listened to prophets and stored at least a year’s supply of survival food. …  

“Brethren and sisters, I know that this welfare program is inspired of God. I have witnessed with my own eyes the ravages of hunger and destitution as, under the direction of the president of the Church, I spent a year in war-torn Europe at the close of World War II, without my family, distributing food, clothing, and bedding to our needy members. I have looked into the sunken eyes of Saints, in almost the last stages of starvation. I have seen faithful mothers carrying their children, three and four years of age, who were unable to walk because of malnutrition. I have seen a hungry woman turn down food for a spool of thread. I have seen grown men weep as they ran their hands through the wheat and beans sent to them from Zion—America.

“Thanks be to God for a prophet, for this inspired program, and for Saints who so managed their stewardship that they could provide for their own and still share with others.” (“Prepare Ye,” Ensign, Jan. 1974, pp. 69, 81–82.)

I bear my humble witness to you that the great God of heaven will open doors and means in a way we never would have supposed to help all those who truly want to get their year’s supply. I know we will have time and money if we will commit and keep the commitment. In the name of Jesus Christ. Amen.

Keep Your Eyes and Ears Open

As I've briefly talked with various people about pandemic flu, many comments have centered around what will or won't happen in the event of pandemic illness.   Some think schools and stores would not be closed, others that church or other public events would not be canceled.  If we give close attention to the events following the current outbreak of swine flu, we can learn a little about what to expect governments and other public entities to do during an epidemic or pandemic outbreak.

 Totally Ready is a blog written by Carolyn Nicolaysen who is also a frequent writer for Meridian Magazine.  She is very informative in many areas of personal preparedness but especially seems to focus her blog on being prepared for a pandemic.  She has been closely tracking the events surrounding the swine flu this week and I would encourage you to review her articles.  Keep your eyes and ears open and listen to what you can do to prepare you and your family.  Again, this is not a time to panic, it is a time to get educated, prepared and ready to act when called to do so.

Meal Planning 101

Did you just cringe? wince? get a headache?

I used to (and sometimes still do) when I think of meal planning.  Meal planning can be as simple as (and as stressful as) the 5:00 "what's for dinner?" rush or writing down what you might eat during one week or as organized as (and more complicated as?) planning an entire month's worth of meal menus.

In order to build an accurate one-month supply (or more) of pantry items that your family will actually EAT, you will need to work to a menu planning system (not of the 5:00 "what's for dinner?" type.)  Please know that any system you choose will take some time to put together, especially if you're "starting from scratch" by going from the 5:00 panic system to a well planned, able to build a pantry from system.  But once it's together it will simplify your grocery shopping, daily dinnertime and food storage planning.

Creating a Well Stocked Pantry

Menu Planning for a 3-month supply

All systems have four basic steps

1. MEALS. Create a list of meals (breakfast, lunch & dinner) that your family usually eats

2. INGREDIENTS. From those meals, create a list of ingredients needed.

3. MULTIPLY. Make your 'short' list last longer by multiplying meals, ingredients or entire menus.

4. INVENTORY. You'll need a system to track what you have and what you need to buy to stock your pantry and keep it FULL!

Choose from the plan summaries below to find one YOU like and could work for YOUR family. OR use parts you like from each to create your own system. We will discuss the details at Wheat Watchers.

24 to go – Follow the Basics

Make a menu list of 12 dinners, 6 breakfasts and 6 lunches that your family enjoys (24 menus total.) Make a list of ingredients needed for each meal. Multiply those ingredients by 3 (1 month), 5 (2 months) or 8 (3 months) Use basic have/need inventory tracking. Pros: Provides plan for breakfasts, lunch and dinner, Simple & Flexible. Cons: Least variety

Marilyns' Plan – A month of menus

Create a comprehensive list of meals your family enjoys. Decide how frequently to use each meal during one month. Create ingredient list multiplied by frequency of meal per month. Multiply ingredients by one, two or three for your pantry stocking Use basic have/need inventory tracking. Pros: Most variety, most accommodating to tastes. Cons: More initial time to organize. From Marilyn Call

Safely Gathered In - Weekly Rotation

Start with dinners only, add breakfasts and lunches as you grow. From a list of meals your family enjoys often (family favorites) Create 2 or 3 weekly menu plans for rotation. Create ingredient lists for each weekly menu plan. To plan 13 weeks of meals, you will rotate your weekly menu plans 6 or 4 times (plus one) so you will also need to multiply your ingredient lists by the same rotation number. Use basic have/need inventory tracking. Pros: Simple to get started, easy to build on to. Cons: less variety. www.safelygatheredin.blogspot.com – how to (top) (Forms useful for this method found at lds.about.com)

Food Storage Made Easy

Calculating & Tracking Spreadsheet

Food Storage Made Easy has built an Excel spread sheet that will calculate your needed quantities as you enter data about your menu plan, ingredients and frequency. You may want to use one of the above systems to plan your menus, then plug your information into their spreadsheet for the calculations. Pros: Calculations complete after entering little data. Built-in inventory & price tracking. Cons: Some may find overwhelming and/or complicated. www.foodstoragemadeeasy.net – baby step 3

• Decide on a purchasing plan for your family. Try spending $5-10 each week on adding 'extra' groceries to your pantry or choose 1-2 meals per week to purchase a 3-month supply of those ingredients.

• Once you have an ingredient list it becomes your MASTER SHOPPING LIST. Using your INVENTORY TRACKING and MASTER SHOPPING LIST, you know what you need and you can purchase items at their lowest price as they are on sale at local stores or online. Using coupons can save you even more money when combined with store sales :)

• Since you have created a plan that includes meals your family already eats and likes, you will naturally use (rotate) the items you purchase for your 3-month food supply in your well stocked pantry!

  
  

  I will send other documents through e-mail for your use.

Family Home Evening

Clean-up time!  Here's another one I thought I had scheduled to post sometime in December!  A great goal for the new year is to make a plan for family home evening so it's easier for you and your family to stick to it!

An important part of personal and family preparedness is being spiritually prepared. Attending church meetings and classes are important and even more important is teaching our families in our homes.

For some reason, FHE is something that is easy for me to put off. But, this is my most important calling, more important that Cub Scouts, Nursery, Wheat Watchers, Visiting Teaching and any other teaching I do in my home. I think it is easy for me to let it slide because I do take the opportunities every day to teach my children true and correct principles. However, that is not enough. We have been told repeatedly since 1915 that it is of utmost importance to hold Family Home Evening once a week. Our families need a specific time when they know we are teaching them the gospel of Jesus Christ.

This is most easily done when we have a plan. Even if your plan is only centered on a specific day, time and place to meet together, that is a good plan. To make it even easier, I suggest to make a lesson schedule or topic plan. Then you already know what to prepare when it's time to teach. Aside from the standard "assignment wheel", here are a few ideas I've learned about:

Monthly theme - Choose a gospel topic or principle to focus on for an entire month. Divide your weekly activities between lessons/activities/service all centered around that theme. This can develop testimonies of that principle in many aspects of daily life and give opportunities to each individual to feel the spirit in their own way. You could use this idea with a weekly schedule too.

Weekly schedules - Follow a schedule similar to Sunday lessons. This idea is more fully explained HERE. Choose your lesson source/topic according to the week of the month. First week: Church magazine, second/third week: Gospel principle, fourth week: scripture story, fifth week: secular topic (finances, emergency preparedness, household help, fire drills, first aid, service project, super activity.)

Join an FHE group - If you're children have moved away or haven't yet joined your family, create or join a Family Home evening group with neighbors and friends. You can decide to meet every week or only once a month. This is a great way to get to know your neighbors and to put some fun into your FHEs.

Invite your family back - In my family we gather on the first Monday each month with my aunts, uncles and cousins for a Family Home Evening. Each family takes a turn providing a lesson or activity along with a simple meal. It's a fun tradition that my kids LOVE. I love that they know my aunts and uncles and cousins' children too. Invite your grown-up kids and their families back to your home for an evening.

Join an FHE packet group - Think of it as plug and play for FHE. Although there is usually some preparation involved. Packets can give young families a great head start. Make multiple copies of one packet and exchange with other families. Our enrichment group should be starting again after Christmas - watch for sign-ups in RS.

Suggested topics/resources that can keep you going for a few months - A very short list, it could be un-ending! Please try to use Church produced materials as much as possible :)
My Gospel Standards
Faith in God
Duty to God
Personal Progress
Pres. Hinckley's 9 Be's
Articles of Faith (great missionary tools for grown-ups too!)
Preach My Gospel
True to the Faith
Book of Mormon Stories (now on DVD too!)

The Public Library has some CD's and DVD's available to use as well.  Of course there are many, many online resources available too.  Please make sure what ever resource you choose to use, that it follows gospel doctrines and uses church resources as much as possible.  Here are a few of my favorites

sugardoodle.net

mormonshare.com

lds.about.com

yahoo!groups

the idea door

Just do something more this year to prepare yourself and your family to meet the challenges and opportunities ahead of us!

Macey's Case Lot

Just a REALLY quick note . . .

ONLY 6 DAYS LEFT! 

I haven't had time to review the prices of product available at Macey's this week (and last) but Prepared LDS Family has recently posted price comparisons on dry goods for food storage.  Get out your store ad to compare Macey's prices on #10 cans and buckets of baking goods and dehydrated/freeze dried foods.

Prepared LDS Family Pricing Comparisons

You can check the case lot prices for canned goods and other items at grocerysmarts.com (FREE!)

Good Luck!

A Well Stocked Pantry

Creating a well stocked pantry

Church guidelines

1. 3-Month Supply – Gradually build a small supply of food that is part of your normal, daily diet until it is sufficient for 3-months.

2. Store drinking water - 2 week supply per person (One gal. Per person per day – cooking only, two+ gal. Per person per day – cooking & hygiene.)

3. Financial reserve - Establish a financial reserve by setting aside a little money each week, and gradually increase to a reasonable amount.

4. Longer-term supply – Once families have achieved the first three objectives, they are counseled to expand their efforts, as circumstances allow, into a supply of long- term basic foods such as grains, legumes, and other staples.            (Pamphlet: All is Safely Gathered In and Ensign Mar 2009, pgs. 57-8)

Thoughts to ponder -

• To have greatest benefit from your stocked pantry, decide on a menu planning system THAT WILL WORK FOR YOU and follow it. This will ensure you have the proper amounts of food required to cook your meals.

• Create a shopping list from your menu plan. Purchase those items gradually as they go on sale.

• Shop store sales, use coupons, take advantage of promotions and group purchases to get more and spend less.

• Check expiration dates on EVERYTHING. Only purchase the amount your family will use BEFORE that date.

• Try to store one quantity more than you need (store 8 if you need 7) then you will never “run out”.

• Use items from your storage daily and replenish your supply as those items are on sale again. This creates a natural rotation of your food storage.

• Initially, DO NOT purchase or store foods your family will not eat. FOCUS on increasing the amounts of the foods you already purchase each week at the grocery store. Your current shopping list is your greatest building tool.

• Learn to cook with longer term storage items. Gradually include these items in your meals and food storage purchases. These truly are the building blocks of a healthy diet and long term food storage solution.

• Be creative (and correct) with your storage methods and places. You may not be able to store ALL your water in blue barrels or soda pop bottles. Use a variety of safe methods.

Latter-Day Prophets Speak on Preparedness

Latter-day Prophets Speak on Preparedness

“Latter-day Prophets Speak on Preparedness,” Ensign, Aug. 2007, 33

Gordon B. Hinckley (1910–) 
Fifteenth President of the Church

“The best place to have some food set aside is within our homes, together with a little money in savings. The best welfare program is our own welfare program. Five or six cans of wheat in the home are better than a bushel in the welfare granary. …

“We can begin with a one week’s food supply and gradually build it to a month, and then to three months. I am speaking now of food to cover basic needs” (“To Men of the Priesthood,” Ensign, Nov. 2002, 58).

Ezra Taft Benson (1899–1994) 
Thirteenth President of the Church

“The revelation to store food may be as essential to our temporal salvation today as boarding the ark was to the people in the days of Noah” (“Prepare Ye,” Ensign, Jan. 1974, 69).

Spencer W. Kimball (1895–1985) 
Twelfth President of the Church

“We encourage you to grow all the food that you feasibly can on your own property. Berry bushes, grapevines, fruit trees—plant them if your climate is right for their growth. Grow vegetables and eat them from your own yard. Even those residing in apartments or condominiums can generally grow a little food in pots and planters. … Make your garden as neat and attractive as well as productive. If there are children in your home, involve them in the process with assigned responsibilities” (“Family Preparedness,” Ensign, May 1976, 124).

Harold B. Lee (1899–1973) 
Eleventh President of the Church

“We expect the individual to do all he can to help himself, whether it be an emergency for a single family or for a whole community, that the relatives will do all they can to help, then the Church steps in with commodities from the storehouse, with fast offerings to meet their needs that commodities from the storehouse will not supply, and finally, the Relief Society and the priesthood quorums will assist with rehabilitation” (Teachings of Presidents of the Church: Harold B. Lee [2000], 171).

Joseph Fielding Smith (1876–1972) 
Tenth President of the Church

“[The pioneers] were taught by their leaders to produce, as far as possible, all that they consumed, and to be frugal and not wasteful of their substance. This is still excellent counsel” (“The Pioneer Spirit,”Improvement Era, July 1970, 3).

Wilford Woodruff (1807–98) 
Fourth President of the Church

“We feel led to caution the Latter-day Saints against forming the bad habit of incurring debt and taking upon themselves obligations which frequently burden them heavier than they can bear, and lead to the loss of their homes and other possessions. … Our business should be done, as much as possible, on the principle of paying for that which we purchase, and our needs should be brought within the limit of our resources” (Teachings of Presidents of the Church: Wilford Woodruff [2004], 232–33).

George Albert Smith (1870–1951) 
Eighth President of the Church

“How on the face of the earth could a man enjoy his religion when he had been told by the Lord how to prepare for a day of famine, when instead of doing so he had fooled away that which would have sustained him and his family” (Deseret News, Mar. 4, 1868, 26).

Brigham Young (1801–77) 
Second President of the Church

“If you are without bread, how much wisdom can you boast and of what real utility are your talents, if you cannot procure for yourselves and save against a day of scarcity those substances designed to sustain your natural lives?” (Deseret News, July 18, 1860, 153).

Pandemic Preparedness

(repost from Oct. 24, 2008)

Please view the Pandemic Preparedness Video produced by BYU-Idaho to prepare their students and faculty. The video is 17 min. long but is very informative. Thanks Sis. D for finding and sharing this with us.

BYU-Idaho Pandemic Preparedness Video

There are many ways to learn about pandemic flu outbreak. You can find several informative and instructional documents from providentliving.org to know what we have been counseled to prepare. The pandemicflu.gov web site site gives more information about what the national and local governments are doing to prepare. Please visit and click around to inform yourself further.

I would like to focus on what we need to do to prepare. Each of our homes should have a pandemic kit including items similar to those shown here in this commercially available kit.


(New Post March 3, 2009)

OUR SUPER SATURDAY kits will include the following: (click links for more info)

20 N95 Respirators

100 Nitrile exam gloves (nitrile to avoid latex allergies)

Chemical splash-guard goggles

Hand sanitizer

OPTIONAL:

5 Isolation gowns

30 Shoe covers

Heavy duty cleaning gloves

Gatorade (patient hydration)

This kit is more expensive than the other SS kits offered, the respirators and exam gloves are the bulk of that cost.  It is still less than what is available through retail stores.

Carb Load!

I've updated the calendar items on the sidebar to include our next few months of Wheat Watchers meetings.  In the spirit of more DOING and less TALKING at the meetings, we're focusing on a couple of 'how-to's as suggested by the group in February.  (They just happen to be carbohydrates-GOOD ones!)

Wednesday, March 18

HOW TO MAKE HOMEMADE PASTA!  

We will start with the basic ingredients of flour, water, oil and egg and finish with DELICIOUS fresh pasta noodles and various shapes.  ANYONE can do it and you DON'T need a pasta roller (although that does make the job easier)  More on that later.

Saturday, April 25

SUPER SATURDAY!  

Details are everywhere, but e-mail me if you still have questions-I'm happy to answer them!  We're also combining this activity with the requested TASTER'S TABLE.  EVERYONE is invited to prepare and bring a dish to share that has been made with food storage items (remember anything shelf stable is food storage, not necessary to use wheat, rice, powdered milk or eggs!)  Also bring 1 copy of the recipe, we'll combine them into a recipe file for you!

Wednesday, May 20

HOW TO MAKE WHOLE WHEAT BREAD

 in just over an hour.  This is a repeat class using Becca's well known recipe.  You will get to see the entire process, feel the dough and learn other ways to use your stored wheat!  (Plus we eat the fruits of our labors!)

Becoming Self-Reliant

In the March 2009 Ensign, there are several articles centered around becoming self-reliant, building your food supply and preparing yourself and your family for an emergency situation (not necessarily a natural disaster, but also loss of employment and other life changes.)  The links for these articles are posted below.  I strongly encourage you to pick up your Ensign today and read through our modern-day scriptures concerning these topics.

The Parable of The Ten Virgins, Ensign March 2009, p. 48-49

Family Home Storage: A New Message, Ensign March 2009, p. 56-60

Becoming Self-Reliant, Elder M. Russell Ballard, Ensign March 2009, p. 51-55

The Celestial Nature of Self-Reliance, President Marion G. Romney, Ensign March 2009, p. 61-65

WW Super Saturday

They're BACK!!

***COMING IN APRIL***

Due to popular demand (and new ward members that didn't have this opportunity last fall :)  I am planning a Wheat Watchers Super Saturday activity with the following projects available:

• BASICS 72 Hour kit - This does NOT include any food or clothing.  Learn more about kit contents HERE!
  
• Portable Toilet kit - Includes bucket, seat w/lid, filled w/sanitary needs.  Learn more about kit contents HERE!
  
• Pandemic Protection/Care kit - Learn more about Pandemic preparedness HERE!  (I will post a list of actual kit contents soon)
  
• Shelter-in-place kit - Includes plastic sheeting (cut to your measurements) and 2 rolls of duct tape.  Learn more about Shelter-in-place HERE!
  

Watch for displays and sign-ups in the next few weeks.  Sign-ups will be available through the end of March. 

• Sunday, March 29 - Orders CLOSE
  
• Sunday, April 5 - Money due
  
• Saturday, April 25 - We will meet at the Stake Center for you to assemble your kits.  There will be sisters available to help guide you through the assembly process for each kit.
  

This was a HUGE success and VERY popular last fall - I hope as many of you will take advantage of my work and service for you with this opportunity to get your home and family more prepared!

One Final Lesson

William G. Hartley, “Sturdy Shoes and a Waterproof Tent,” Ensign, Oct 2001, 38
Church history teaches us many lessons about personal preparedness
“If men could learn from history, what lessons it might teach us!” wrote Samuel Taylor Coleridge in 1831. While it may sound surprising, a look at Church history can teach us about preparedness for our day.

One Final Lesson
Along with all of the practical lessons history teaches, one more lesson comes through: maintain good attitudes during troubled times. A sense of humor is like salve on a wound.

On 6 April 1846 about 2,000 Saints with about 400 covered wagons were bogging down in Iowa rains and mud, trying to reach campsites beside Locust Creek. “I was in the rain all day,” President Young noted in his diary, “arranging the wagons, pitching tents, chopping wood until all were comfortable.” That dreary day most members had good excuses to feel miserable. However, Patty Sessions noted in her diary that “[Brother] Brigham came up with his company driving his team in the rain and mud up to his kne[e]s as happy as a king.”

We would do well to follow Brother Brigham’s example, as well as that set by other Latter-day Saints who have had to deal with disasters and crises. By learning from the lessons of the past, we better prepare ourselves for the future.

Self-reliance
“The responsibility for each person’s social, emotional, spiritual, physical, or economic well-being rests first upon himself, second upon his family, and third upon the Church if he is a faithful member thereof. No true Latter-day Saint, while physically or emotionally able, will voluntarily shift the burden of his own or his family’s well-being to someone else.”
President Spencer W. Kimball (1895–1985), Ensign, Nov. 1977, 77.

Be Prepared
“While it is sincerely hoped that members do not get caught up in any hysteria or obsessive preparations for disasters, the Church continues its long-standing practice of encouraging members to be self-reliant and reasonably prepared.”
Bishop H. David Burton, Presiding Bishop, “Conversation,” Ensign, Sept. 1999, 78.

Coming Soon!

Wheat Watchers

This Wednesday, February 18 @ 7:00 pm

Primary Room @ Stake Center

A well stocked pantry

We will be learning a few different menu planning strategies and other ideas to plan and acquire your 1, 2 or 3-month supply (A well stocked pantry IS food storage)

Please join us if-

• Starting a 3-month supply intimidates you

• You lack motivation to build a well stocked pantry

• You don't have a menu plan working for you

• You don't know what to purchase for a 3-month supply

• You'd like to have better organization for your food storage

• You do have a menu system or other plan working for you and you'd like to SHARE with us.

This class in conjunction with Christine's COUPON SHOPPING class on Feb 25 will help your family create a well stocked pantry (or food supply!) on a tight grocery budget (with or without coupons!)

Lessons from the San Francisco Earthquake

William G. Hartley, “Sturdy Shoes and a Waterproof Tent,” Ensign, Oct 2001, 38
Church history teaches us many lessons about personal preparedness
“If men could learn from history, what lessons it might teach us!” wrote Samuel Taylor Coleridge in 1831. While it may sound surprising, a look at Church history can teach us about preparedness for our day.

Lessons from the 1906 San Francisco Earthquake and Fire
The U.S. earthquake against which all earthquakes are still measured is the San Francisco earthquake of 18 April 1906. The great quake caused terrible damage to buildings, roads, water systems, law enforcement, communications, and transportation. Fires broke out and caused more damage than the quake. Separations were common. Food, water, and sanitation became terrible problems.

Some 120 Church members—branch members, missionaries, and city visitors—were in the city at the time. Some wrote about how they survived the quake.  Their accounts identify several problems we could face if caught in a major earthquake or other catastrophes, such as hurricanes, cyclones, tornadoes, or fires, and they provide several preparedness ideas.

Lesson 1: Have sturdy shoes and durable clothing nearby in case of a sudden nighttime emergency, whether at home or away from home.
The 1906 quake struck before morning while people were sleeping. Frightened people ran into the streets in nightclothes and barefoot. Mission president Joseph Robinson hiked all over San Francisco trying to locate and help Church members. Broken bricks and glass quickly shredded his shoes.

Lesson 2: Have fire extinguishers in our homes.
Less than four blocks away from the Church’s mission home, a woman cooking breakfast accidentally started a fire. Firemen were too busy to respond to this “ham and eggs” fire. By the early afternoon, in order to keep the fire from spreading, firemen had to dynamite the area where the mission home stood.

Lesson 3: Have emergency water on hand in sturdy, non-glass containers.
Faucets went dry when the water mains broke. Thirsty people broke into stores and bars to find liquid. Thirsty members, who flocked to the mission home, were glad to be offered bottled fruit (fortunately the bottles had not broken).

Lesson 4: Have minimal cleaning items, such as moist towelettes, toothpaste, deodorant, face towels, and even small bags of detergent.
“It was a real trial,” said missionary Elder Leo Gardner, bound for the Pacific islands, “to endure our thirst and to go without washing our faces and hands which were getting blacker with the dust and smoke.”

Lesson 5: Have emergency food as we have been taught.
San Franciscans rushed to local markets to buy up bread, creating panic buying. By noon, as fires spread through the city, martial law was declared, and anyone trying to enter stores, even store owners, were shot on sight as looters. Within a day or two the city provided bread for people who stood in breadlines that were four people wide and blocks long.

Lesson 6: It is important to have two or three meeting places where family members can find each other in case disaster strikes and the family is scattered.
President Robinson’s toughest task for about a week was reuniting families separated during the disaster. Evacuations had become necessary. With homes damaged and the Church’s mission home dynamited to create a firebreak, members scattered. President Robinson tried to let members know where other members were camped out by posting in the mission home ashes a sign indicating where the main Latter-day Saint camp was located.

Lesson 7: Be prepared to leave cherished belongings.
Fleeing the fires, many families grabbed belongings and tried to haul them on foot. One trunk “weighed a ton,” as Harold Jenson described it in his diary.  One family member pushed a wheeled sewing machine. Harold strapped family belongings to his bicycle. Too burdened, the family eventually left some of their belongings on the roadside.

Lesson 8: Ignore wild rumors that spread in panics and don’t pass them on.
The earthquake severed the city’s communications with the outside world, so rumors spread that Los Angeles was destroyed, New York was no more, and that the Great Salt Lake had inundated Salt Lake City!

Lessons from the Pioneer Famine

William G. Hartley, “Sturdy Shoes and a Waterproof Tent,” Ensign, Oct 2001, 38

Church history teaches us many lessons about personal preparedness
“If men could learn from history, what lessons it might teach us!” wrote Samuel Taylor Coleridge in 1831. While it may sound surprising, a look at Church history can teach us about preparedness for our day.

Lessons from the Pioneer Famine of 1856
Members in Utah suffered through a harsh famine in early 1856 caused by a drought, grasshopper plague, and severe winter. From April to October 1855 no rains fell. Grasshoppers cleaned county after county of grain and fruit. Dry forests burned that fall. Deep winter snows and cold killed thousands of cattle. By January 1856 the pioneers faced starvation. Their efforts to survive suggest lessons about food storage, food shortages, and food rationing.

Lesson 1: In times of dire food shortages, we should be willing to share our personal food storage with others.
By mid-March 1856, wards were taking inventories to determine how much food was left in the community. It became clear that everyone would need to share what they had. Presidents Brigham Young and Heber C. Kimball of the First Presidency, as well as many others who had supplies, reduced rations in their own families and helped those who were suffering. “I sell none for money,” President Kimball wrote, “but let it go where people are truly destitute. Dollars and cents do not count now.”

By July 1856 the Church’s tithing office and the people were running short of supplies. One city bishop “found 5 lbs of flour on three blocks and no meat.”

One sister recalled that during the famine she gave away flour. As her supply dwindled, she gave away a loaf of bread. Finally, with little flour left, she gave away slices of bread. People picked up crumbs when she cut the slices. “Women would offer me their jewelry, fine clothing, anything they had for bread,” she remembered. 7 Some people paid speculators $24 per hundred pounds of flour, when the normal price was $6. Bishop Aaron Johnson of Springville, Utah, sold flour at the going price of $6 and refused to raise his rates, even though people would pay four times that price.

Lesson 2: During times of famine we might choose to fast more often to provide for the needy.
In 1856 fasting made more food available for others. In April, President Brigham Young said that his family saved a considerable amount “by frequent fastings,” which they gave to the poor. One bishop whose ward was “very poor” said he “had nothing to begin with, but he immediately called a fast and the brethren have done pretty liberally."

Lesson 3: When the course of our normal life is disrupted, it helps to fill free time with constructive activities.
A history about circumstances in Spanish Fork, Utah, in 1856 includes this description: “Having no crops to gather, the settlers built bridges, made fences, opened a road up the canyon for the purpose of getting out wood poles and all the men turned out for weeks on these public works, donating their labor.”