Budget Stretcher
Budget Stretcher Articles
There's More to Preparedness than Food!
by: Joyce Moseley Pierce
I read one time that when Frank Sinatra's
son was kidnapped, he couldn't even call for
help from a pay phone because he didn't have
a dime in his pocket. It certainly wasn't
that Frank was broke - he just wasn't prepared
for an emergency that would require dimes!
From that day forward, he always carried ten dimes,
and when he died, they buried him with ten dimes
in his pocket. Just in case.
Usually when we think about being prepared,
we think of having food, fuel, and any other
necessities that would keep us alive while
we are displaced, but what if there was a
national emergency, or a natural disaster?
What if you, your spouse, or one of your children
required immediate medical attention?
In the midst of a crisis, you wouldn't have time to
rummage through drawers and boxes to find
what you need. Even if you have a neatly
organized filing cabinet, you can't strap
it to your back and haul it with you. What
you need is something portable that you can
grab on your way out the door without even
thinking about it.
In my front hall closet I have a backpack
that I bought on sale for $5 a few years ago.
In it, I have a few essentials like a change
of clothes, a small first aid kit, a bottle of
water, a snack, a waterproof bag (Ziplocs work fine)
with paper and pen, my name and address list,
some cash - both bills and change, and a workbook
that has all of my important personal and
financial information recorded in it.
That workbook contains the following:
1. Personal information that would
be helpful to someone else if I couldn't
communicate for myself. Vital statistics,
professional and military records, a copy of
my will and location of the original, a
list of people to notify and last, but not least,
any funeral instructions. I even have a copy of
my marriage license and social security card
so I can prove I'm who I say I am! When a
disaster strikes and an entire area is in chaos,
this information will be important.
2. Financial information that includes account
numbers, phone numbers, balances and locations
of checking and savings accounts and credit
cards; investments, employee savings plans,
profit sharing plans, retirement programs, trust
accounts, loans receivable and payable, automobiles,
insurance - life, health, medical, disability, and medical.
If you've just lost everything you own, or
face the chore of sorting through what's left
and tossing it in the dumpster, you are just
not mentally capable of recalling all of the
information you will need.
3. A CD with pictures of my home as it stands
now and the furnishings inside. I used my digital
camera to take photos of these things because it's
safer than using film that needs to be developed. The
fewer number of people who know the contents of your
house, the better. If you have a video camera, go
through the house, open cabinets and drawers, and
tell about the items as you're filming them. Talk
about how great grandma's china came over on a ship
from France when she came to America. Tell why that
cookie jar means so much to you.
4. A CD with copies of documents and receipts
that have been scanned. Information that fills an
entire 4-drawer filing cabinet can be held on a CD or two.
5. Photos of my family. We invested in the digital
camera a couple of years ago, and as I download photos
from the camera to my computer, I put a copy on CD.
You never know when you might need a picture to
identify someone who is missing from your group.
6. A CD containing a backup of my bank accounts
that are managed in MS Money and Quicken. If my
computer crashes or is destroyed, I can always
find the software to open my accounts. Inside this
backup is valuable information for insurance. As
I record purchases, I do a general itemization of
the receipt, and this would be a great way to
report the contents of your home if you had to
prove it. Especially helpful on large purchase
items, but I also use it for clothing.
7. A CD with a backup of My Documents from
my computer. Since I run my business from home,
I would basically be out of business if I lost
all of my correspondence and other documents.
8. A CD with contact information backed up
from Microsoft Outlook. This would allow me to
continue to not only conduct business from
another location, but would give me every phone
number and email address of everyone in my database.
When I go on vacation, I "borrow" these CDs and
either stuff them in my suitcase, or leave them at
my daughter's house while I'm away. I don't want
the backup copies of my computer stored in the same
location as the computer! What if some emergency
strikes while I'm thousands of miles away?
Call me paranoid, but it makes me feel better
knowing there's another copy somewhere else.
You just never know when you may have to leave
your home in a hurry. Emergencies, like accidents,
are never scheduled. They just happen. If you don't
have a preparedness pack in your home, then what
are you waiting for? Take some advice from
Ol' Blue Eyes himself and be prepared!
Copyright 2003 Joyce Moseley Pierce
Joyce is a freelance writer, owner of Emerson
Publications, and editor of The Family First Newsletter.
To view products that will strengthen your family or to
Joyce is also committed to helping women earn money while
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