Emergency Preparedness / 2023 / March
March 2023 Message
Dear Brothers and Sisters,
As members of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, a message we hear over and over again is to be prepared. We know that having food storage and money set aside for emergencies is an important thing. At the same time, it can be expensive to buy supplies and prepare for everything in one big step. Luckily, www.ready.gov has a lot of great tools and resources for emergency preparedness, and a great one is this page about low or no-cost preparedness.
It's never too late to set a 2023 goal to become more prepared, and you can start without spending money. A great place to begin is to simply become more informed. Disasters common to our area are hurricanes and ice storms, so learning about them and what to do when they happen is a great place to start. Another great place to start is to make a plan with your family or loved ones about what you will do in various emergency situations. Talking about these things regularly as a family will help everyone feel more equipped should an emergency happen, and also helps identify things that can be done to become even more prepared.
Some low-cost ways to prepare for an emergency can also serve others. In our neighborhood, Chris has always made it his job to keep the storm drains on our street clear of leaves and debris. This is a task that can be difficult for the city to keep up with, but a clear storm drain makes a big difference in a heavy rainstorm, not to mention one that may accompany a tropical storm or hurricane. Also, when preparedness a regular practice, progress can be made in small, easy chunks. Clearing the storm drains and gutters on our street frequently, in good weather, means that we are much less likely to need to clear them out of desperation in the middle of a storm.
We encourage you to keep preparing in small (or large) ways—however you can! Your efforts will be blessed as you seek to follow counsel given by scripture and by prophets about being prepared.
Sincerely,
Chris and Holly Earls
Stake Emergency Preparedness Coordinators