UPCOMING EXPO

Mt Hood Emergency Expo 2014 is coming!!!

Friday May 2nd 11:30 am to 7:00 pm
Saturday May 4th, 9:30 am to 6:00 pm

This FREE expo will have over 60 speakers and displays to help you BE PREPARED. Won't you join us?

Monday, February 27, 2012

HOW CAN YOU BAKE IN A BOX?!!

How will you be able to bake without power?  See a demonstration on how to turn a box into an oven at the

EMERGENCY PREPAREDNESS EXPO 2012 on March 16 and 17. 

This article from the Safely Gathered In Blog also shows how to make this oven.

How to: Make a Cardboard Box Oven

Did you know that you can make a cardboard box into an oven that works just as well as your oven at home? You can! And with this type of oven, you never have to worry about what to eat when the electricity goes out.


You need:
1 cardboard box (for this method, it needs to have a slide-on top, like a box that holds reams of paper. See pictures)
charcoal
matches (or a lighter)
aluminum foil
1 round aluminum pie plate (or anything to place your charcoals in)
3 wire hangers
scissors or a knife
pliers
tongs
whatever food you want to bake



Line the inside of your box and lid with aluminum foil. If you'd like, use a sponge and dab some Elmer's glue around the inside and cover to hold the foil in place (this is especially useful if you plan to keep your box oven, and not just make a new one in an emergency).
Once that's done, use some scissors or a knife to poke three holes in a straight line on each end of the box, about halfway down from the top. You'll see what these are for in just a minute.
Meanwhile, straighten out your three hangers.

Put the three straightened hangers through the holes. These will act as a shelf to place your food on.

Next, bend your wires so that they will remain taut inside the oven. We don't want heavy food bending the wires and sitting directly on the charcoals.
This step might be kind of difficult, so you may want an extra pair of hands and some pliers.

It doesn't have to look pretty, it just has to work! Next, poke some other holes in your box so that oxygen can get in and gases can get out. Now, we actually did NOT poke extra holes in this particular oven, because by the time we finished making our wires taut, our three holes we poked in each side had become fairly large, so we figured they were enough. If your holes on the side remain small, use your knife or scissors and poke a few holes on the top of the box, and maybe one or two on each side.

Next, let's turn up the heat!
Place some charcoals in your round aluminum plate. Each charcoal briquette supplies 40 degrees of heat, so 9 briquettes will give us a 360 degree oven.

Light your briquettes with the matches or a lighter (it will probably take a few matches. Be sure that each briquette burns).

Let the briquettes burn for a while...

Until they look like this! Then you're ready to go.

With your tongs, pick up the hot plate of charcoal


And slide it carefully between your wire shelf onto the bottom of your box.


Carefully..
There! Use the tongs to straighten out the charcoals and spread them out a bit.
Meanwhile, put together whatever you want to bake. We're making an apple spice cake that my mother-in-law had in her pantry - just add water!

Place your food on the wire racks
And cover with your oven top.
Now just set the timer like normal, or watch the clock. Note: If your recipe calls for a longer baking time (more than 45 minutes to an hour), you will probably have to switch out your charcoals around the 45-minute mark.

Do not use your oven on a wooden deck or on grass, or anything flammable. We are cooking in a concrete deck. Never use this oven indoors.
Time's up! Let's see how it looks:

And..... It's done! Carefully life the pan out of your oven (use hot pads!) and enjoy!


If your three-month supply consists solely of pantry items like we suggest, you truly can live comfortably with no electricity. Just prepare the (baking) recipes we've provided on our site, use this oven, and you're set! You can bake anything in this oven. My mother-in-law has even baked an entire turkey in one. Be creative! And don't forget, you can store this oven along with your food storage so you don't have to keep making one every time you need one.  Making a cardboard box oven would be a great family activity, or even something that your youth group could do.

Monday, February 20, 2012

Just 25 days until the EMERGENCY PREAREDNESS EXPO 2012!

Here are some of the wonderful presentations you won't want to miss:

Professor Jeanne Brandt from Oregon State University, with 25 years of experience answering food safety and food preservation questions will be teaching classes on how to safely preserve and store our food.  These are the very latest, scientific updates on these topics.
 http://extension.oregonstate.edu/fch/food-preservation
 



Ever wondered if your house would hold up in the event of an earthquake?  Tim Cook, from Earthquake Tech will be presenting a class on how to seismically upgrade your home
http://www.earthquaketech.com/.







Every two seconds, someone in the United States needs blood.  Plan to donate at the walk-in blood drive held at the Expo.
http://www.redcrossblood.org/






Dana Robinson, Director of Clackamas County Emergency Management will present a class on "Pets and Disaster"
http://www.redcrossblood.org/


Saturday, February 18, 2012

DOCUMENTS TO INCLUDE IN YOUR 72 HOUR KIT


This is an excellent article listing the important documents we should all include in our 72 hour kits.  It came from:

BePrepared.com is brought to you by...

Be sure to attend "EMERGENCY PREPAREDNESS EXPO 2012" on March 17 and 17 at the Mount Hood Stake Center.  There will be workshops about this topic.

Preserving and Proving Your Identity and Worth in an Emergency

There are four areas of documents that you should consider when planning your 72 hour supplies. Those are a record of material possessions in the home, identification, cash and irreplaceable family mementos. Following a brief explanation of each of these subjects is a complete list of documents you should consider storing in your 72 hour kit.
Taking an Inventory of Your Home
In the event of a natural disaster or fire, you may find your home and everything in it badly damaged or destroyed. This is traumatic enough for any family, but if they don't have a photographic record of their possessions, they may find a battle for reimbursement with the insurance company even more horrific.
Barry and Lynette Crockett, co-authors of 72-Hour Family Emergency Preparedness Checklist, Family Emergency Plan, and A Year's Supply urge families use one of the following methods to keep track of items in the home:
  • Make a list of every item in your home and try to include serial or identification numbers, when and where purchased, the receipt and its estimated value.
  • Use a tape recorder and make an audio list
  • Supplement a written list with photographs of furnishings and other valuables in their normal setting in the home
  • Videotape a tour of your home and garage
After you have taken inventory, store one copy with your 72 hour supplies and then give a back-up copy with a relative or family friend (preferably in another town). Or, you could store the back-up copy in a safe deposit box; just make sure you keep a copy of the key in your 72 hour kit.
It's important that you make your inventory list as complete and well documented as possible. This will ensure a fast and fair settlement with the insurance company.
Identification
In an emergency situation, being able to prove who you are is critical for receiving help, both from government agencies and insurance companies. Some of the documents you should have copies of in your 72 hour kit include:
  • Social Security cards and/or numbers for each of your family members
  • Drivers license
  • Passport
  • Birth certificates
Again, it would be wise to have these in water-tight bags or containers and to also have another copy in a safe deposit box or in another town.
Cash
After a natural disaster such as an earthquake, hurricane or flood, many of the convenient ways we spend and get money no longer exist. Automatic teller machines, credit card networks, even the banks themselves are often inoperable. It is then that towns become "cash only" societies for goods your family may desperately need.
Having enough cash on hand to get you through the first 72 hours following a disaster will bring peace of mind to you and your family. Here are a few suggestions of storing money:
  • $100 - $200 in cash, small bills
  • Rolls of quarters, dimes, nickels and pennies
  • Checking, savings and credit card numbers
Irreplaceable Family Mementos
Some of the worst things a family can lose in a disaster are those that can't be replaced: photo albums, family histories, journals, the list could go on. Chances are not everything that your family cherishes will fit into your 72 hour kit to be taken with you at a moments notice. There are some alternatives, however, that will bring you peace of mind in an emergency.
  • Make copies of photographs, pedigrees and personal histories and store them with a trusted relative or friend in another town
  • Store them in single location--in a closet or on a bookshelf near an exit, so if needed, they could be taken out with your 72 hour supplies
  • Store family mementos in a safe deposit box




        A Complete List of Vital Documents
                 -as advised by Barry and Lynette Crockett in their book, Family Emergency Plan
  • Household and place of business inventory (recorded using photographs, videotape, or stored on a database manager computer program).
  • Important information and records stored on computer back-up software
  • Duplicates of insurance policies (life, health, auto, home, hazard, etc.)
  • Mortgage documents
  • Real estate deeds, investments
  • Property settlement agreements
  • Title papers
  • Motor vehicle titles and bill of sale, serial or VIN numbers, driver's license numbers, registration, and plate numbers (including boats, RVs, etc.)
  • Wills and trusts
  • Safe deposit box: location, number, inventory of contents, location of key, authorized persons to access box
  • Investment portfolio
  • Record of hard assets (precious metals, gems, collectibles, etc.) jewelry appraisals
  • Net worth statement
  • Stocks, bonds and other securities
  • Accounts receivable information
  • Purchase contracts
  • Other contracts
  • Bank loan agreements, other obligations
  • Bank, checking, savings account numbers or certificates
  • Credit card accounts (company and account numbers
  • Permanent tax records
  • Important guarantees, warranties and sales receipts
  • Voter registration
  • Family health and medical records
  • Employee benefits information
  • Letter of instruction in case of death
  • Funeral and burial plans (pre-arranged)
  • Name, address, phone number of attorney, accountant, executor, trustees, stockbroker and insurance agents
  • Photocopy of documents carried in wallet or purse
  • Location of spare house and car keys
  • Birth, marriage, and death certificates
  • Divorce and separation decrees
  • Adoption and custody decrees
  • Citizenship papers
  • Military papers
  • Passports, visas
  • Social security card (or card numbers)
  • School transcripts, diplomas
  • Patents, copyrights
  • Original manuscripts
  • Employment records
  • Membership cards or records
  • Important church records
  • Cherished family recipes
  • Cherished family Photos, slides, videotapes, etc.
  • Important books
  • Journals, diaries, scrapbooks, etc.
  • Person and family histories,
  • Genealogies

Saturday, February 11, 2012

POWDERED MILK FOR EMERGENCIES



Having a three months supply of food on hand for any emergency is a good plan for every family.  But . . .what about milk.  How can a family store milk for 3 months?

The answer: Powdered Milk!  You might not be so excited about powdered milk, but there are many creative recipes using powdered milk that will excite your family. 

Learn more about them at the EMERGENCY PREPAREDNESS EXPO 2012 on March 16 and 17.  There will even be samples!  In the meantime you might want to try this web address to get an early start on some yummy recipes:
http://preparednotscared.blogspot.com/2012/01/january-2012-powdered-milk-recipes.html

Thursday, February 9, 2012

ABOUT OUR FEATURED SPEAKER

James Roddey will be our featured speaker at the "Emergency Preparedness Expo 2012"
 Author and Well Known Lecturer.
His past experience includes:

Director of Communications at Oregon Red Cross, Earth Sciences Information Officer, Tsunami Outreach Oregon Program Manager at Oregon Department of Geology
He has been a:
  • Writer, Producer, Videographer, Editor, Graphic Designer, and Owner at Micro Marketing
  • Producer, Director at Television Services, Northern Arizona University
  • Creative Services Director at KATV (ABC)
  • Marketing and Public Relations Director at KOLD-TV (CBS)
Mr. Roddey will speak about the massive earthquake predicted in Oregon's future.

His advice to each of us is:
"I encourage everyone to take personal responsibility in getting prepared for an event like this  The white hats are not coming.  The police and fire departments are going to be really busy.  You're on your own."

Come to this expo and learn how to be prepared to be on your own.

Saturday, February 4, 2012

EMERGENCY PREPAREDNESS PRESENTATIONS

Don't miss these informative emergency preparedness presentations:
There will be over 50 different presentations at the Emergency Preparedness Expo 2012. 
March 16 and 17 at the Mount Hood Stake Center
There will also be over 30 displays.
Topics include:
            If You Ain’t Got It! Don’t $pend It!
            Emergency Action Plan for Your Home
            Basic Food Preservation Updates
            Could Contagion Really Happen?
            Together We Prepare
            Mapping Your Neighborhood
            Look At Me! I’m Debt FREE!
            How to Store Food
            Organic Backyard Gardening
            Will Your House Hold Up?
            Preparing for the Big One
            Enrich Your Garden With Compost and Fertilizer
            Small Garden – Big Harvest
            Canning Tomatoes
            Save Seeds - $ave $$$
            Grow Your Plants from Seed, Cutting or Bulb
            Water Storage and Purification
            Build a 72 Hr. Emergency Kit
            Create a Family Emergency Plan
            Emergency heat, light and fuel
            Emergency Sanitation
            Children and Disasters
            Emotional First Aid
            First Aid and CPR
            Emergency Cooking
            Ham Radio Communications
            Pets and Disasters
            Using Powdered Milk
            Using Beans
            Using Grains
            Edible Plants
            Food Storage – Menu Planning
            How to Sprout
            Protecting Valuable Documents
            Buying the Right Insurance
            Using Social Media in Times of Disaster
            And More. . .