You’ll here a variation of the following: “Well if something happens I know where I am going!” Then a dozen (think I am kidding?) people will be showing up at your house demanding (sometimes violently) that you share simply because you had the intelligence to stock up. There is NO incentive for them to stock up, you already have. “But I am family, you HAVE to help me” Again, real world experience speaking, not something to fill up this paragraph. Seen it, this DOES and WILL happen.

Another variation: “Well if something happens I know where I am going and I will take what I need” If you think for a single second that there are those out there that don’t feel this way then wake the hell up, right now. If you believe that Rob, who lives two houses over, that you know hunts would hesitate to shoot you because you are a nice guy to get at what you have because his kids are hungry you are solely mistaken. Or one of your other neighbors or a family member or, well you get the idea…Folks this is not fear mongering or me being dramatic to get you to do something these are examples from real life of what has happened to people.

People are not rational, ethical or overly moral when they are dirty, hungry and scared. Fear is a powerful motivator, especially when that fear is being driven by a mob mentality. One of the comments I make often to many of my like minded friends is that following a major event it wouldn’t be the criminal elements I would be most concerned about. I know they are out there, so be it. The ones I am most concerned about is a mob of hungry, once middle class, normally decent people coming up the street looking for food. There are a great many more of them than there are criminals. They are my biggest concern.

A mob mentality strips those involved in it of their decency, their ethics and their inhibitions. Toss fear and the lack of information into the mix and the situation will get even uglier. Doubt me? Ask yourself this question and be honest with your answer, it is day six following a large scale event that struck your area and you still have no power, no food and little water and the ability to get any of these things is basically none. What lengths would you go to get your kids something to eat, drink or get them warm? You might not like the answer you come up with but if you are being honest it will give you some idea what people are capable of.

So broadcasting to the world that you are prepared is a bad idea. Low key, low profile. So what are some ways to do that to still buy what you need and keep it in the family? Space permitting in your home, put the bulk of your supplies, equipment in a non traditional area such as the basement (if it is dry), in tubs under the beds or the spare bedroom closet. One friend of mine and his wife stored some items in containers under their couch. Out of the way, out of sight but easily accessible. This keeps it out of view from casual visitors. I get a laugh out of it every time I go over there, how many people have sat on that very couch not knowing they were sitting on supplies…

The truth is most people won’t prep but they will remember that you do. Don’t brag about how long you can survive in an event, don’t talk up your new purchases, and don’t do anything that brings the light of attention onto you and your family.  Have a discussion with your children, what goes on in the house stays at home. My ex-wife and I used this rule with our kids. It is not anyone else’s business what we bought or stored. The neighborhood kids were not allowed in my garage at all since this is where we store large amounts of our supplies. We used the line, “it is not a play area” line to aid with this. When service people come to your home, restrict their movements, keep doors to rooms they are not in closed. What you have is YOUR business, no one else’s.

Why do I have both criteria in my definition? It’s an easy question for me to answer. Why would you try to link up with those who are not of the same mind set and not actively working on improving their situation? You don’t because they will only be a drain on your resources which are already committed to providing for you and yours. Resources following an event, especially if it is a severe one and/or covers a large geographic area may be scarce to non-existent depending on circumstances. What you have on hand might be it, the sum of what you have to survive on for an extended period. Why have someone else with you who is only draining those resources with little to nothing for you to gain in return? Simply because he is a nice guy or you are? Sorry, that is not nearly a good enough reason for me. Not when it is a choice between them and my group/family.

Remember, the preparedness lifestyle at its core is about the safety of your family. Networking is another way of increasing your options. Since you’re either currently expending time, energy and money on preparedness or planning to doesn’t it make sense to do it working with those who are doing the same? You learn from them, they learn from you. How much is it worth to you to have someone telling you not to buy a certain brand or type of equipment because they did and it was a piece of junk? You can consolidate your money with others (in the right situation) to buy in bulk so that everyone saves money.

Does what I am telling you mean you can’t talk to your neighbor Ray who is a good friend but refuses to prep? Of course not but searching out and finding others who feel as you do is something that you must do if you want to not only survive but survive and thrive. There is a world of difference between the two.

I’m going to warn you in advance it isn’t easy at times especially when you are first moving into this phase of prepping. There is no great national preparedness test given to our citizens (oh how I wish!) which is then graded and the results sent out. Chances are if you take a careful look around you might already know folks who are quietly living a preparedness lifestyle. Parents, grandparents (never overlook resources), friends, acquaintances from church or work, fellow members of civic groups, local faith based community organizations, Red Cross chapters and yes, internet sources.

A few words on that last one. The internet is an amazing place full of information, some good and some terrible, entertainment and fascinating people. It also unfortunately has its share of liars, thieves and predators. Tread wary when dealing with people online. People can say they are anyone while online which is how many children are enticed away from homes and schools to meet their “friend” which can lead to abuse or worse.

One very tried and proven method of dealing with folks via the internet is to do it slowly. Use the different search engines to look for preparedness groups, forums, etc. Visit these sites as much as you can. Once you have found one or two you like focus you attention on those. If you are paying attention you will see who posts often, who posts good information and who is a manure spreader (there are LOTS  and LOTS of those). Be cynical about what you read and see there. Avoid the “well I know this should work” or the “this is what I heard” types. If they themselves are not out there doing it, actually putting action to their plans, avoid them. Begin to talk to those that seem to have their act together.

Take your time; establish a regular e-mail correspondence with them. Be ever so slow in giving out vital details of your personal life to them. The next step is usually exchanging phone calls with many folks preferring to give out their cell numbers rather than their house number. Then after all that if you feel comfortable with it set up a meeting in a mutually agreed on neutral spot like a city park, library or restaurant. Then you can really start the process of getting to know them. If they are the genuine article then the security steps will not deter them. It is only through demonstration that you can really start to get a handle on who a person really is and they can see the type of person you are. Do they follow up and do what they say they are going to? Is their work ethic a good one? How do they treat their children and yours? It is though their actions, not just their words that they need to be judged on. Can they be counted on to be were they said they would when they said they would be there? Are they drinkers or smokers? The reason for the last question is if there is a disruption in the normal ability to restock those items it could lead to inter-personal issues. Every seen a drinker or smoker go through withdrawals? Not pretty to watch.

I could tell you of a number of true stories about those that I know and are acquainted with that have benefited from being properly networked. Stories of how folks showed up following an east coast hurricane to assist. This help driving in from three states away paying the costs out of their own pocket to help cut up downed trees, repair homes and such simply because a forum member asked. Or how a group of like minded friends gave up time while on a camping trip because they found out that another member who lived nearby was in need of help clearing up some storm damage. This same member had a number of family in the area that he had on many occasions helped out and none of them were willing to come over when he really needed it. The reason that this occurred was because the members of this particular group had taken the time to get to know each other and to prove themselves worthy of trust and respect. My daughter was visiting friends in a state some distance from home. I sent one of the members in that area I had dealt with previously an email asking if it would be alright to give my daughter their contact information just in case. He immediately replied yes and supplied me with a whole series of phone numbers for him, his work, his wife, etc. Fortunately it turned out not to be needed but I can’t tell you how much better I felt knowing that my daughter had reliable help a phone call away.

At that time I hadn’t met this man in person but through interaction via the forum with him and seeing how he treated others I was comfortable with him. Networking is a very important part of life; you do it now with your job and in your home life. You talk to friends to found out who a reliable mechanic is, to seek out competent legal help, find the best place for groceries and more. So all you are doing is focusing your questions. Once again let me caution you about giving away information regarding your preparedness. I don’t believe I can overstate the importance of maintaining a low profile in regards to this. Word of mouth travels much, much further than you might imagine. Caution and awareness will serve you well in this search. You don’t want to be associated with someone who just says they do this or that, if they aren’t walking the walk so to speak by storing food, water, doing training now when something bad isn’t going on why would you expect them to suddenly shift gears and do it when something bad is going on? More than a little late at that point. Is this person the kind you want to trust the safety of your family to? Not me thanks…

Remember to take your time and while doing your search bear in mind that there is likely folks out there that are looking for good, dependable people as well.

One way of reducing that feeling of frustration is having an accurate way to measure that progress you are making. What that way is depends on each individual point of view. The  thought I am putting across is that the concept of progress needs to be examined by all of us in this lifestyle.

A very smart person that helped me through a difficult time in my life told me that what I was after was small victories. The big victories would be too few and too far between to sustain me so concentrate on the small victories. Prepping is the exact same thing. At the end of the week for example you sit down and look at all that you got done that week…went jogging twice, read five different prep related articles, put another five gallons of treated gasoline away – that’s not a bad week at all!

You combine those weeks with the occasional big victory and your progress really stands out. Bear in mind that some weeks you will simply not be able to do much in the prep mode. That is life and that is reality. The single most important aspect of measuring progress is to be consistent, keep at it. Slow and steady really does work.

The notion does seem counter-intuitive I know. With world events the way they are and so on it feels that slow and steady isn’t enough but it is. Better to take your time and do it right than rush and miss something important or worse spend your hard earned money unwisely. I often state that preparedness is a lifestyle, not a fad, not a weekend project and I truly believe that. Being more self reliant helps to bring on a sense of accomplishment, pride and confidence.

I mentioned above that there was an underlying reward to what we do. To me that reward is exactly what was just covered, confidence. To be able to say that you have a plan in case of… or to have the ability to provide warm food during a severe storm, etc is very rewarding indeed.

So understanding what progress is and how you measure it is in your hands.

Having an up to date inventory provides you valuable information of several different types as well as other information. Doing an inventory:

1. Means that you now know how much you have. This provides you the means to put together a buying plan.

2. What condition your overall stocks are. You may find out that you have more of something that you thought you did but two of those items are not working because they need new batteries, insert new batteries and problem solved.  It also allows you to better organize what you do have.

3. Gives you a feeling of better control. If you now know what you have and what condition it’s in that can help with piece of mind. The times we live in are stressful enough, wouldn’t it be nice to have a bit less stress?

A few suggestions regarding inventory. Don’t try and do it all at once It can be a very involved task, try doing one area of the house a day or break it down by inventory category such as food, fuel or medical supplies. Get the wife/girlfriend/kids involved and make it a family project. Make sure to write it down, doesn’t matter what format you use just ensure it is written, don’t try and trust your memory because it will fail you.

Once you have it written down and those numbers organized it is much easier to keep it updated. I do an inventory every third Saturday of each new month. Takes me about half an hour. I print out a copy of the spreadsheet and go shelf by shelf noting any additions or deletions. Then enter those changes on the spread sheet and save. I leave the hard copy of the inventory on the clipboard until the next month so that I have a written copy handy.

How an inventory helps with your buying plan works like this. Since you are now able to look over the hard numbers of what you have you can better determine what you don’t have. Then what spending you are doing in regards to your preps can be focused, I call it “targeted spending”. If medical supplies are a weak area then say 80% of this months prep buying goes toward that. Not all of it because you want to keep increasing the other areas as well. Now you have more supplies in one area that helps to bring that one category closer to what the levels of the others are.

Keep at it and it becomes simply something you do regularly. Inventory is a great tool to keep in your preparedness tool kit. Stay safe.

More and more people in America are waking up to the fact that having more food, water and such on hand is a good idea. There is a growing sense that being more self reliant and better prepared is the right lifestyle to adopt. It is important to point out that it is a lifestyle, not a fad, a weekend project that you can quickly finish up and be done with. It is about making substantive changes in your thinking and actions.

This way of thinking isn’t universal in its acceptance. But here is the question that you need to ask yourself and answer objectively: Its now twenty minutes after the end of a serious incident such as a tornado, earthquake or blizzard. What are you going to do right now to make sure that you and yours are safe and provided for?

It is YOUR responsibility to take of you, not the government, not FEMA, not the church or any one else, YOU.

Workshop topics will include How to prepare on a budget, Building a first aid kit and much more. See below for the complete workshop listing.

Excitement and interest in the show keeps growing. We have more than doubled the number of vendors that were present at the Fall show and are still growing. We will have door prizes and a raffle for your choice of a silver one ounce coin or four silver quarters. Come and join us for a day of learning and some fun!

Workshop Schedule

9:30 – First Aid Kit needs

10:15 – Essential Oils

11:15 – Pet Care

12:15 – Long Term Storage Food

1:00 – Shortwave Radio

2:00 – If I can see you, hear you or smell you I will kill you

2:45 – Prepping on a Budget

3:00 – Bug Out Bags

View Larger Map

Spring Expo Brochure

This is part of an ongoing series discussing preparedness issues. This segment will deal with one of the key areas of self reliance, food and water. For the purpose of this discussion food and water are considered equally vital because one without the other is self defeating. In order to survive the human body must be nourished and hydrated. Failure to do either for the appropriate length of time and the body will slowly cease to function, that is an unequivocal medical fact. No hype, no spin – fact. Without nutritious food and clean water we cannot long survive.

The struggle to grow enough food to survive goes back to recorded history and beyond. Working the soil to enrich it, planting, fertilizing, weeding, irrigating then harvesting is a full time occupation that millions of people around the world do every day. The methods used to accomplish this can vary widely. From the small hand worked plots up to the large corporate farm which might have thousands of acres of crop land under cultivation all which is worked with Swiss clock like scheduling to maximize land use.

During the time of the Great Depression a much higher percentage of people grew gardens, raised livestock and poultry to meet the needs of their own families. Family groups were also usually much closer together geographically which allowed for support of all types. Today neither of these factors are the same. More people now live in urban areas than ever before and do not have the ability to grow sufficient food to live on. A telling number is that depending upon whose figures you use only one to two percent of the US population feeds the rest of us!

Often times the food we purchase comes to us from a significant distance away including a sizable percentage from foreign sources. Here is an example; wheat is harvested from a field in Oklahoma. It is then transported to a grain elevator and from there to a mill. The wheat is ground into flour then sold to a bakery who turns it into dinner rolls. The rolls are packaged and shipped to a distribution center. From there they are sent to a retail outlet in say, Mobile Alabama. If there is a delay or break anywhere in this supply chain then there are no rolls on the store shelf.

With the widespread use of the JIT (just in time) supply system grocery stores like so many other businesses no longer maintain large stocks of goods in the back of the store. For the business it reduces the amount of on hand inventory they have to have so it reduces operating costs. JIT allows them to resupply every few days to keep on hand amounts up. The key to this is a complex tracking system that automatically reorders items as they are sold. This system isn’t foolproof, if there is a disruption in deliveries the store is not able to replace certain items or if something triggers a larger than average shopping rush such as a storm or other event stock will be depleted quickly with resupply not possible for several days or longer.

All of the previous points brings us to the central question. How do we acquire the food/water in order to stockpile and replenish what we need to consume? There are several methods available; the most common is to purchase commercially prepared food from a variety of sources. Another is raising it yourself using greenhouses, gardens or hydroponics. An important point to remember we cannot store enough food for us to live on indefinitely. At some point we must grow more food to replace/supplement what we have stored. This is one of the most overlooked concerns among those who live a preparedness lifestyle. You cannot stockpile a lifetimes worth of food, you must prepare an infrastructure to grow additional food. This entails having a supply of non hybrid seeds, fertilizer, the tools to work the soil for production and willingness to work hard. Gardening or if you will farming is hard, hard work. Doing it in order to survive under conditions far less than ideal would be even more challenging.

For water it a different story, here in the United States the overwhelming majority of homes have municipal water plumbing that delivers potable water at the turn of a faucet or spigot. As with food there are a variety of governmental agencies at several levels charged with ensuring that the water that is provided to the general populace is clean and safe to drink. Water is bulky and hard to store long term. One method of obtaining more is to have a high quality filter. This can help you to purify the water you need from a variety of sources.

Adding to your food supply isn’t as difficult as you might think or as costly. The key to this is consistency. Each time you make your regular grocery purchases you add a few items. If you normally buy three cans of green beans, buy four. Add an additional pound of rice and beans to your cart. As you do this on a continuing basis the amount on your shelves and in your pantry increases. Soon you have added a full week’s worth of food and so on. One way to ensure to proper rotation of your stored food is to use the FIFO method; this means First In First Out. By placing the older product to the front of the shelf you are using it before the one purchased more recently. This helps to maintain quality and saves money since you are not forced to toss out something that was accidently shoved to the back of the shelf and lingered in the darkness for too long.

One very important factor to remember and this can’t be overstated is to only buy what you already eat regularly. If you are in a post event situation that is not the time to try and give your system a whole new menu. Your body will be under stress already due to the situation, a radical departure from what it is customarily used to will only add to the stress which could result in digestive irregularity. Test out various recipes and meal ideas now to see if you like them or if the food agrees with you. If it does – great! You’ve added another meal to your repertoire and expanded your own capabilities but if you don’t like it or if the meal doesn’t agree with your system that too is a learning experience. Better to find out now what does and doesn’t work. Also make sure that the meals you do like you can still prepare post event / without grid power.

In a post event environment you may be struggling with having no municipal power and water available as well as dealing with cleaning up from a major storm or other disaster. Your body MUST have nutrition that it is able to process and turn into the energy you will need to do what is required.  There is a psychological factor to consider as well. Consider this scenario; a major storm has rolled through your area leaving some serious damage behind. Your home is still standing but there is a threat of flooding and some large trees are down near your house that need to have some large limbs trimmed to avoid damage to the house.

The power grid is down and will be for some time. Authorities are doing everything they can but the devastation is over a wide area and resources are stretched beyond thin. You’ve been working steadily for most of the day trying to protect your home, your hands and arms are aching and sore, you are tired and know that there is much more to that still must be accomplished. Your spouse / significant other tells you to take a break and offers you a bowl of warm stew heated over the propane camp stove and a bottle of water. The smell of the stew takes hold and you realize how hungry you are. Finding a reasonably shady spot you get off your feet and begin to eat. The taste of warm food in your mouth reduces your stress, your body takes in the fuel it needs to keep itself going. Savoring the bite you close your eyes and lean your head back as you chew. What is that moment worth to you? How much longer will that warm, tasty and nutritious meal keep you going? Hard to say but certainly much longer than if you didn’t have it. An additional facet to consider is the psychological aspect. Eating helps keep us going and it reinforces an element of normalcy into what is now a very unnatural situation.

As a preparedness consultant the most prevalent question I am asked is “How do I begin?” and that is what I will talk about in this section.

What I tell people is that I have one proven piece of advice for you, do an inventory. Until you KNOW what you have you won’t KNOW what you need. Doing a written inventory (use a computer, crayons, a pad and a pen, doesn’t matter – just write it down) does several things for you.

1. Let’s you physically see what you have and what condition it’s in.
2. Gives you an actual count of items compared to “Well I think I have this many…”
3. Helps you to better organize what you do have (I’m coming to that)
4. Allows you to save money

As your counting things and by that I mean every last can of vegetables, bandage, gallon of gas etc. you are helping to lay out a plan. Don’t let the task intimidate you, don’t make it an all day project. Count some today, do more tomorrow and then finish it the day after or make it a family event, get the kids involved, get the spouse involved. Once it is done organize your list the way that makes the most sense to you – Food / Medical / Ammunition / Fuel / Camping equipment, etc.

Once you have that done then you will have an accurate, up to date listing of what you actually have on hand. Also by finding everything and counting it gives you the opportunity to examine it all at the same time, “oh that’s right I need to put batteries in this flashlight” or “oops, where is the flashlight?” Could be that most if not all of the material is in good shape but by counting everything you KNOW what shape it is in.

Above I mentioned helping to get your stuff organized. Well if in the process of counting you discover that you do have four camping lanterns but they are scattered all over the place you can collect them up and put them together which means they are easier to find when you need them. Could be you want to go camping, a strong rain storm knocked out the power so you need some light, ah ha I know right where the lanterns are!

Saving you money, in this economy that is a huge issue and inventory actually helps with that. Once you have finished your inventory you can identify areas of weakness in your supplies. Say you realize you only have one flashlight and no spare batteries, now that you KNOW that you can address that by buying another flashlight and a pack of batteries which will serve both of the lights. Your money is being spent on what I call ‘targeted spending’ which means it is going to a very specific purpose.

Once you have finished the inventory it will be easier the next time you do one. Set yourself up on a schedule, reinventory as often as you are comfortable with, monthly or bi-monthly, etc. Now you can sit down and look over what you actually have versus what you thought you did. It is now much easier to identify weak areas in your preps and allows you to move forward knowing what you have on hand.

All of those are valid questions but the first question that requires an answer is: how serious are you about being better prepared. It needs to stated here, now that preparedness isn’t a weekend project, it isn’t a fad or even a destination. It is a lifestyle and bumpy road to undertake at times. You can choose the level living more self reliant you are comfortable with and you certainly don’t have to go all the way to being completely off the power grid on a producing farm in the middle of nowhere. Living a preparedness lifestyle is about making some sacrifices, learning new skills and changing how you live your life to a degree. All of these things are a part doing what you need to do in order to increase the odds of survival for you and your family. It bears pointing out that there are NO guarantees with preparedness, being better prepared or prepped as some call it does not mean you are immune from harm, tragedy or disaster. Being better prepared is about increasing the quality and quantity of your option when something happens.

The reasons to be better prepared are as varied as the people in the lifestyle itself. For some it is a hedge against economic concerns such as the loss of a job or a market downturn, others are more concerned about natural disaster. Still others fear a more restrictive government. It is perfectly acceptable to be concerned about more than one type of threat and that way of thinking is very intelligent. It would be terrible to spend vast amounts of time and money preparing for something that you fear only to get hammered by another type of event or tragedy.

On a piece of paper list out 1 through 10 then beside each number in no particular order put down a realistic threat for your region. Each area of the country has its own particular threats and concerns while are regions do share a few common ones. Take a look at the list after have completed it. No matter the severity of the threats there are a few constants that are in place. You still need to eat, stay hydrated, clean and have a usable shelter. If due to your preparing you can meet even the rudimentary bodily needs you will stand a better chance of surviving. Lose your job, suffer a tornado damaging your home, martial law you still MUST eat, drink and sleep. Being better prepared allows for this. If you can keep yourself fed and hydrated it makes doing all the other tasks needed easier – please note I said easier not easy.

If you are willing to prepare it is up to you. A thought to bear in mind and remember is that no one is responsible for you and your family. It is YOUR responsibility to ensure your well being and that of your family, no one else’s.

So having said all that, how do you get started?

The beginning of preparedness

So let’s talk about where to begin. So you’ve decided that it’s a good idea to have you and yours better prepared, good for you! Might not have been an easy decision but the main thing is that you are here now.

You might be wondering how to get started in a preparedness lifestyle. I have two proven pieces of advice for you. Don’t be a hurry is the first one. This lifestyle is about the long term so a few pointers about it. Do NOT put yourself in debt to prep, this is a bad idea. Think of the Rabbit and Turtle fable, preppers need to adopt the turtles strategy. Slow and steady but always moving forward. Don’t get anxious about it and that helps avoid “spree” spending which takes us directly into the second piece of advice.

Conduct an inventory of your supplies and equipment. What I tell my clients is this – Until you KNOW what you have you don’t KNOW what you need. Doing a written inventory (use a computer, crayons, a pad and pen, doesn’t matter just write it down) does several things for you.

1. Lets you physically see what you have and what condition it’s in. 2. Gives you an actual count of items compared to “Well I think I have…” 3. Helps you better organize what you do have (I’m coming to that) 4. Allows you to save money

As you’re counting the various items and by that I mean every last can of vegetables, bandage, gallon of gas, etc. you are helping yourself to lay out a plan. Don’t let the task of inventory overwhelm or intimidate you, don’t try and do it all in one day. Do some areas today, do more tomorrow and then finish it the day after or make it a family event by getting the kids involved. Once the inventory is finished organize your list the way that makes the most sense to you Food/ Ammunition / Medical / Fuel / Camping equipment and so on.

Once you have done that then you will have an accurate, up to date listing of what you actually have on hand. Also by finding everything and counting it gives you the opportunity to examine it at the same time, “oh that’s right I need to put batteries in this flashlight” or “oops, where are the flashlights?” Could be that most if not all of the material is in good shape but by counting everything you now KNOW what shape it is in and where it is.

I mentioned above helping to get your goods organized. Well if in the process of inventory you discover that you have four working camping lanterns but they are scattered all over the place you can collect them up and put them together which means they are easier to find when you need them. Could be your want to go camping, a strong rain storm knocked out the power so you need some light, ah ha I know right where the lanterns are!

Saving you money, in this economy that is a huge issue and inventory help you with that. Once you have completed the inventory you can identify areas that you are not as well off in as you would like to be. Say you realize you only have one flashlight and no spare batteries, now that you KNOW that you can address that by buying another one and more batteries which will serve both of the lights. Your money is being better spent on what I call “targeted spending” which means its going a very specific purpose.One of the keys is to add to all your categories as evenly as possible. It does you no good to have three hundreds gallons of gasoline treated and stored but only have a weeks worth of food on hand.

So welcome to the lifestyle and keep at it, it is worth it.

Admission will be $5.00 per person or $8.00 for two – Children 14 and under are free!

If you attended the May 2011 Preparedness and Disaster Contingency Expo, we will have more vendors present, bigger workshops and even better raffles this fall, including drawings for silver coins, first aid kits and non-GMO seeds!

If you’re a vendor and want to reserve a table or have questions, please use the Contact page or email us at Mark@SouthernPlainsConsulting.com!

The Expo is located indoors this time, in Del City, which is in the eastern part of the Oklahoma City metro.

Event schedule

ITINERARY *

9:00 am           Open Show

9:30 am           Workshop – The Basics of Preparedness

11:00 am         Workshop – Shelf Reliance cooking from storage food

12:30 pm         Workshop– Essential Oils

1:00 pm           Raffle – Silver coin

1:30 pm           Workshop – Non GMO seeds

2:00 pm           Workshop – How to find other preppers

3:00 pm           Raffle – Silver coin

3:15 pm           Workshop– Raising chickens and bee keeping

* (more workshops added as of 9/21/11)

Vendor List

Southern Plains Consulting
Homespun Environmental
Essential Living Oils
Vets Septic and Storm Shelters
Shelf Reliance
Patriot Seed

Also present will Del City Fire Department, the American Red Cross, the owner of TruthisTreason.net and more! Come join us

Directions to the Expo

Directions to the Expo – Take I-40 to the Sooner Road exit. Go south to the first light which is 29th. Take a right (now heading west) stay in the right lane. Then take your first right which is Linda Lane, stay on that going north. After a few short blocks through the residential area you will come to a stop sign. Take a right and that road will take you directly in to the American Legion Hall. Additional parking will be at the school right there at the stop sign. I will have two parking lot staff to assist in parking to keep the flow going as smoothly as is possible. PLEASE do not park on the grass there at Legion Park beyond the tape markers that will be set up.

Hope you can join us.