PREPARE Magazine: Preparedness Resource

Encouraging, Empowering and Enriching Your Journey

Am I a Prepper?

Being Prepared to Remove the Label

Fear is Driving Your Readiness

Why do we focus on selfsufficiency

They think we’re nuts!

Here’s Why

Dispelling Prepper Stereotypes Cover Photo: Courtesy Nat Geo - Press Release.

August 2014

Letter from the Editor Seriously? Do people take us seriously? There seems to be a real basis behind why they may not take head when we try to impart the prudence of preparedness and it may or may not be your individual fault.

However, there are some things perceived in our society that require our attention in order to fix the now stereo-typing of those who live this lifestyle.

It’s not that we believe the stereo-type but it is that we feel an overwhelming responsibility to counteract the misunderstandings about being well prepared. So we focus this month on Dispelling Prepper Stereotypes mostly so that it is more welcoming and inviting to others around us who need to prepare. No matter how well prepared you are – you’re better prepared if those around you also are. So why not Help Your Whole Community Prepare. The best way to do that is also by Being Prepared to Remove the Label in order not to ostracize others who show an interest.

You may ask yourself “Am I a Prepper?” But are you also ready to ask yourself if Fear is Driving Your Readiness? And honestly, well, the vast majority of the population, They think we're Nuts! Here's why… and it shows up in our Survey: Fixing the Prepper Stereo-Type. Perhaps it’s time we focus just as much on being able to welcome others in, help train and intelligently answer the question of “Why do we focus on self-sufficiency? ” as we focus our food storage, target practice and own skills. Outreach can actually save those around you. Perhaps we can be proactive and be the hero rather than the hermit.

While in this issue we focus on how to alter the perception of others in order to help them, we also have other great information from our featured authors such as a new installment of the series - Apache Knife Fighting & Battle Tactic: Dragon, Dragon Slayer, Thunderbirds and Purity in Water. And although Summer is nearly over, the sea never sleeps so do you know your Portuguese Man-O-War First Aid ? And of course we like to share some great product reviews. This is one is the M48 Ops Combat Bowie a multifunctional tool which is worth taking a look.

While we hope you understand the articles in this issue are the expressed opinions of the authors – our desire is to help inspire the entire preparedness community to reach out and help others around you prepare as well. No, we’re not saying to invite the neighborhood down into your food cellar or display photos of your preps on billboards in town with your address below. We’re just saying that it’s time to tip the scales.

It’s high time that we don’t allow mass media to be the bigger influence to paint an incorrect picture of us all.

Be prepared, proactive and prevail!

Donna L. Miller Managing Editor of PREPARE Magazine http://www.PREPAREMag.com

Table of Contents 1 - Letter from the Editor 2 – Why do we focus on self-sufficiency?

PREPARE Magazine www.preparemag.com Publishing Mainline Marketing Group, LLC Advertising 828-484-4777 advertising@preparemag.com Subscriptions www.preparemag.com/subscribe subscription@preparemag.com Support Services www.preparemag.com/support support@preparemag.com Community Connections contributors@preparemag.com Chief Vision Officer Joseph Miller

3 – Help your whole community prepare 4 – Being Prepared to Remove the Label 5 – Dispelling Prepper Stereotypes 6 – Am I a Prepper?

7 – Apache Tactic 10 8 – Fear is Driving Your Readiness 9 – They think we’re Nuts! Here’s why 10 – Portuguese Man-O-War First Aid 11 – Survey, Fixing The Prepper Stereotype 12 – Product Review: M48Ops Combat Bowie

Managing Editor Donna Miller Legal Compliance J.S. Defner, Esq. Design and Graphics Coolbrees Studio LeverageChile.com Contributing Editors Kelly Thomas Britt M. Additional Contact: P.O. Box 934, Burnsville, NC 28714

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“Why Do We Focus On Self Sufficiency?�

By Tammy Trayer. Trayer Wilderness that practice, but I clearly believe that society as a whole is misunderstanding the intentions of these people choosing to be prepared.

We could very easily be considered "Prepper's" as well.

Is this a bad thing? No! What this means is we are just looking out for our family and are prepared for ANY circumstance that may come our way. We feel that our preparedness efforts are a lifestyle not just a temporary thing.

Each person's circumstances, financial situation and skills sets are different, but everyone that refers to themselves as a prepper or is categorized as a prepper is looking out for themselves and their family as they see fit or are able.

The media and those NOT living a self sufficient lifestyle really don't understand why one, or one's family, might choose to live such a life.

I thought I would take the time to clear up some of the delusions.

Our family lives off-grid traditionally, homesteading by choice. We enjoy sharing and educating on our lifestyle.

The tagline on our website is this: "Homesteading Traditionally Off-Grid Preparedness and Survival for Tomorrow"

Today

~

I think that is pretty clear, but I would love to explore this further. First, let's cover why we live this way.

Really it is a choice and a deep desire to enjoy the simplicity of the lives our ancestors lived. Today's world, it's focus and views, and all the corrupt people really led us to yearn for the beauties of the past! I have always felt that I really belonged in a different era anyway, but to have the ability to create, more or less, our own era in today's society has been a blessing.

While the rest of the world is keeping up with the Joneses we are focusing on the needs of our family and not the struggles of the world around us. Are we out of touch with the rest of the world? No! We are well aware of the world, social and governmental events that are happening and because we are in some ways looking in from the outside, I feel we even have a clearer picture.

So this lifestyle is a choice and one I am very thankful for and blessed to be living.

The word "Prepper" in the media seems to be received negatively. I feel there are many levels to that word and

Many are stocking up on things and preparing for anything from a natural disaster, power outage or basically anything that may come their way. Others are doing the same, but also adding skills to their knowledge bank so they know how to start a fire if their lighter runs out or how to purify water in case there is no longer clean water available. I see the Prepper community getting a bad name and to me this is really sad. Being prepared and knowing how to be prepared is important knowledge no matter who you are, where you are, what era we are in or even what your countries current situations are. In my eyes, this is information everyone should have no matter what. Men, women and children should know how to take care of themselves in all situations and not be programmed to rely on other people.

Our daily lifestyle is using age old skills and knowledge, using our hands and our minds and physically working our homestead. So what does this really mean? It means that we have skills that we are fine tuning every day. We are educating ourselves daily, which is building our knowledge and keeping our minds sharp. We ditched the gym and are getting an amazing work out while molding and shaping our homestead and preparing for the next day. Activities such as building a greenhouse to provide vegetables for our family during the winter months, chopping firewood when we have spare time to save the money from purchasing it, keeping our wood shed full and not having to be in a panic when winter sets in, canning our garden harvest to put on the canning shelves for the winter months and thinking out of the box so that today's chores will in some way benefit our family tomorrow.

This is truly not a new movement. This is an age old skill that all of our ancestors practiced over the years in varying degrees and styles. To me, this is smart living and so much more rewarding than the hustle bustle of today's lifestyle. Our ancestors did not depend on others for their needs, they depended on their own skills, abilities and forethought and somehow this has been lost today.

People view hard work as craziness and view people that are prepared, as worriers and predictors of crazy things.

In reality it is SMART! Smart thinking and smart living.

If you are a college student you study for a test to prepare yourself, if you are an athlete you prepare your body for your sport, if you are an executive in a corporation you are always in preparation for something, so why is it so hard to understand why someone would choose to be smart and be prepared for life?

If you view Prepper's and those choosing a life of preparedness in a negative way, I challenge you today to rethink this and consider your needs and that of your

family in the event of a 10 day power outage. What would you do today if that happened Would you be prepared? If not, what would you do? Would you want to experience that again? Probably not!

I not only love my lifestyle of preparedness, I am proud of it and thankful for the daily gratification I have of knowing that my family will remain safe, well fed and protected no matter what comes our way. Keeping God in the lead, looking out for my family and being prepared for what tomorrow may bring is all I and any of us can do, but remember it is a choice...

Prepare yourself and your family! You may not be able to do what we are doing or to the degree and some of you may not want to,and that is ok, but take the time to be prepared in the way you wish to and can afford to. If you need help in embracing this concept, I encourage you to visit our website at http://trayerwilderness.com for guidance, inspiration and tips.

Help Your Whole Community Prepare

By Bill & Janet Liebsch, FedHealth

Studies and polls continually show that a vast majority of Americans do not have a family emergency plan or grab & go kits, and most say they plan on relying on government in the first couple of days following a disaster.

But natural disasters, disruptions (like power outages or evacuations) and emergencies happen every day. And, although officials will do their best to reach those affected, in some cases it may take days or weeks before help arrives or food distribution and utilities get back to normal.

A question FEMA and others struggle with constantly is “how do you encourage people to get more interested in planning and preparedness”?

There are several nationwide campaigns that encourage teaching individuals, families and businesses how to get more prepared with educational materials and active participation. Below are some examples of creative preparedness projects and ideas.

America’s PrepareAthon!

Ready.gov explains the goal of America’s PrepareAthon! is to build a more resilient nation by increasing the number of individuals who understand…

•which disasters could happen in their community; •know what to do to be safe and mitigate damage; •take action to increase their preparedness; •and participate in community resilience planning.

The spring and fall events are designed to encourage Americans to practice preparedness before an emergency or disaster strikes. For example, each year the Great ShakeOut earthquake drills encourage millions of people to physically practice what to do during an earthquake, and America’s PrepareAthon is modeled on the same principle. Participants must commit to take action and take at least one step (or more!) to prepare for a hazard they may face.

The PrepareAthon will occur twice a year -- once in the spring and once in the fall -- with the 2014 events planned on April 30 and September 30.

Each event will concentrate on specific hazards and themes, but communities, organizations and families are encouraged to use the various resources throughout the year since disasters can happen anywhere and anytime.

A new national community-based campaign for action to increase emergency preparedness and resilience through hazard-specific drills, group discussions, and exercises is called America’s PrepareAthon!

The first National Day of Action happened on April 30, 2014 and focused on taking actions to prepare for four specific hazards: -- Tornadoes -- Wildfires

-- Floods -- Hurricanes

While September is the month for recognizing n a t i o n a l preparedness, the goal is to engage the public to make preparedness a part of their daily lives every day and not one single month.

Our company (FedHealth) has participated as a Coalition member every year since NPM launched in 2003. National Preparedness Coalition members empower themselves to prepare and to coordinate preparedness activities during National Preparedness Month (and year-round) for their families, neighbors, co-workers, and those with whom they may study or worship.

America’s PrepareAthon! organizers provided guides, social media tools and promotional materials for families and groups to use whether you just do the National Day of Action or hold drills or exercises year-round.

This summer organizers will announce four more hazards that will be promoted during the fall 2014 PrepareAthon event but again, all tools and resources can be used anytime throughout the year and be customized to fit your preparedness themes as needed. The key is turning knowing into doing!

Learn more about America’s PrepareAthon at www.ready.gov/prepare

Another tool FEMA launched in 2012 was the National Preparedness Community forum where members can share ideas, events, resources, photos and interact with others. Both the NPC forum and Ready.gov provides tools and resources for families, businesses and organizations to help spread preparedness messages at events and online through websites, newsletters, emails and social media. Visit www.ready.gov or http://community.fema.gov/ to learn more.

National Preparedness Month Citizen Corps and Partners National Preparedness Month (NPM) is an annual campaign to encourage Americans to take steps to prepare for emergencies in their homes, schools, organizations, businesses, and communities. NPM is led by the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) and is sponsored by the Ready Campaign in partnership with the Citizen Corps.

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Another way to support your community is to join a local Citizen Corps or take a CERT class. Citizen Corps was created in 2002 to help coordinate volunteer activities that will make our communities safer, stronger, and better prepared to respond to any emergency situation. It provides opportunities for people to participate in a range of measures to make their families, their homes, and communities safer from the threats of crime, terrorism, and disasters of all kinds.

Through Citizen Corps, individuals can learn about opportunities to get involved and, with proper training and education, civilian volunteers expand the resources available to states and local communities. Many partner organizations offer public education, outreach and training for free. Some Citizen Corps partners include: Community Emergency Response Teams (CERT) – CERT was originally developed and implemented by the Los Angeles City Fire Department in 1985 and became available nationally by FEMA in 1993. CERT educates people about disaster preparedness and trains them in basic disaster response skills, such as fire safety, light search and rescue, team organization, and disaster medical operations. Using the training learned in the classroom and during exercises, CERT members can assist others in their neighborhood or workplace following an event when professional responders are not immediately available to help.

Some CERTs also support Teen CERTs and the CERT site offers a free online study course called Introduction to CERT IS317.

Fire Corps - Citizen advocates can assist local fire departments in a range of activities including fire safety outreach, youth programs, and administrative support.

Medical Reserve Corps (MRC) - MRC volunteers work in coordination with existing local emergency response programs and also supplement existing community public health initiatives, such as outreach and prevention, immunization programs, blood drives, case management, care planning, and other efforts.

USAonWatch - Neighborhood Watch - USAonWatch (a.k.a. National Neighborhood Watch program) provides information, training, technical support and resources to local law enforcement agencies and citizens.

Volunteers in Police Service (VIPS) - VIPS Program provides support and resources for agencies interested in developing or enhancing a volunteer program and for citizens who wish to volunteer their time and skills with a law enforcement agency.

Some Affiliates and Organizations that work closely with Citizen Corps include The American Legion, American Radio Relay League (ARRL), Civil Air Patrol, Corporation for National and Community Service, National Safety Council, National Voluntary Organizations Active in Disaster (NVOAD) and many others. Visit www.ready.gov/citizen-corps to learn more and to find out if there is a Citizen Corps or partner organization near you.

The Great ShakeOut The U.S. Geological Survey estimates over 3 million earthquakes occur globally each year. That’s about 8,000 seismic events every day or 1 every 11 seconds, but a vast majority of quakes is very small. All U.S. states and territories can have tremblers, but again, most are too small to be felt.

Great ShakeOut Earthquake Drills are an annual opportunity for people in homes, schools, and organizations to practice what to do during earthquakes, and to improve preparedness. By participating in the “Drop, Cover and Hold On” drills, you can have peace of mind that you, your family, your co-workers and millions of others will be better prepared to survive and recover quickly from the next big earthquake in your region.

The ShakeOut began in California in 2008 and has since been organized in many other states, regions

and countries. Learn more about the annual Great ShakeOut drills and find resources like drill manuals, broadcasts, videos, flyers and games at www.shakeout.org

Whole community approach to preparedness Since 1999 our company has worked very closely with agencies, volunteers, nonprofit organizations, faith-based groups and businesses across North America to help educate communities using our customizable disaster preparedness and first aid manual. We encourage volunteer groups and K-12 schools to collaborate with local partners and sell advertisements inside books (or CDs or eBooks), and FedHealth will print the ads and other data for free and throw the value in as match on paperwork. The coupons and savings basically “pay” people to get involved and be prepared.

This innovative project can help build partnerships between the public and private sectors … fund volunteers, schools and First Responders … provide tons of resources and match for groups … and educate local communities while saving them money on supplies and day-to-day products and services. It’s a whole community approach to resilience that can expand year after year. Learn more at www.itsadisaster.net/ppp.html Again, these are just a few examples of preparedness projects and programs. All disasters are inherently local affecting families and their communities, businesses and their customers, and organizations and their members. It takes all aspects of a community – not just the government – to effectively prepare for, respond to, and recover from emergencies and disasters. There are many basic preparedness steps we can share and practice with our kids, families, neighbors, co-workers, friends, seniors and pet owners. And if more people learn what to do, it could alleviate a lot of problems, fear and anxiety, plus it could lessen the burden on our nation’s Emergency Services during a crisis. We all

http://www.itsadisaster.net/preparemag.html can make a difference in our local communities by sharing information and by being an example for others.

Being Prepared to Remove the Label

By Mike Douglas, The Maine Primitive Skills School Survivalists, Preppers, even people with gardens and a plan to put things by for the winter; you can almost hear the dramatic music as the producers work to get the right camera angle for just the right quote.

The more sensational the imagery, the more advertising money rolls in. Truth does not sell. I think folks are finally getting tired of the fear based portrayals of Ma and Pa Hick hoarding, prepping and covertly making pickles from cukes they grew from seed. I know there’s a zombie angle that could be worked in here, but you get the idea.

I should have read the writing on the wall when I learned that a popular Survival show I advised for used farm bought animals for their hunting scenes, and that the hosts didn’t sleep in the shelters they built. No. I had to learn the hard way about producers and the story they bring to the field.

The label was even engrained in the title of the s h o w , “Doomsday Preppers”. Silly me. I was going to show them how sane it really was to work hard with your own land and build strong community through healthy interactions with the landscape. When they were through they had an episode in ridiculousness. They even made listening to birds a scary prospect, complete with dramatic voice overs and music! It became a horribly inaccurate portrayal of our school and our skill sets. To illustrate the interpretive power of labels, simply compare this portrayal of our school by a Boston Style show, against the Doomsday Prepper Episode we were featured in.

The label these folks have in their heads doesn’t fit what any of us do. Perhaps at some point we started on this journey of self-sustainability with fear in our hearts, but it was most likely put there by the media. Once we start working at ensuring our family is ready to get through hard times, it doesn’t take long for our landscape to

change. Before long we find ourselves networking and bartering. Soon a community emerges where each of its members are resilient enough to support themselves and each other. Often, strong bonds are made. Confidence increases too. Friends are made as skills are learned. We begin to experience things we’ve had a direct hand in.

We regain our personal sovereignty by making change happen. Meaning and authenticity become part of our daily existence.

The labels we hear and see expressed on “Reality Shows” come from the mob mentality of those still locked in the institutionalized mindset. Fear and frustration are the base themes of folks who throw labels upon those who dare to live their lives in a meaningful way.

The dream of a better life “some day” is much easier to accept than someone actually working to make that day today. Once you commit to action you no longer fit the template.

This makes you u n p re d i c t a b l e , weird, easier to marginalize. The term “Prepper” is an easy label to express this level of fear and ignorance about folks who are generally happy, empowered, and doing something to better position themselves during hard times.

We can’t control the labels others choose. They’re hardly ever accurate and they change faster than we would want to. We can live beyond the labels by choosing one for ourselves. Usually that involves engaging our world and the ones we care for with the best versions of ourselves we can muster at any given time of any given day. We may fall short often. Yet, from my experience, we thrive with a meaningful, passion directed life with a wake of bounty, health, and security for the ones we love. Now that’s bigger than any label, and it will last for generations.

Dispelling Prepper Stereotypes

Reality centered, reality based, and logically derived preparation

By Don Alley, Bu Tactical The Zombie Apocalypse Survivor, the Gun Bunker Denizen, the Bug Out Operator, and dozens of other stereotypical “preppers” have been highlighted in mainstream culture. Most of them are a temporary adversary in some story, or outright vilified in a real life context. Truly, the preparedness community suffers from these characters even as the mainstream media highlights them as an example of paranoia. Shows like “Doomsday Preppers” do little to help the perception of preparedness since they highlight the quirkiness of the featured family for ratings’ sake rather than the real concerns or legitimate preparations they make.

This is why when dealing with non-enthusiasts to the preparedness paradigm, each of us who chooses to make preparedness a public topic must act as an ambassador to the mindset that preparedness is wisdom in action and not some irrational mental preoccupation. It is not enough to prepare ourselves and our families. We must look at how to prepare our neighborhoods and communities. Every family that plants a garden, stores a month of food, and learns to shoot straight is a family that won’t be knocking on our door for food or draining the local resources of emergency responders. With the knowledge that we are truly ambassadors to the wisdom of preparedness, it behooves us to project the proper image, use truths and realities to frame our concerns, and demonstrate rational and coherent thought processes.

Reality centered.

If preparations are farfetched and unsupportable, then the prepper merely casts more stigma on himself and the entire preparedness movement. If a prepper has gone off the deep end and swears the Sleestak will be returning from the past to reclaim the world that was originally theirs, with absolutely no proof or supporting evidence, the prepper has significant stigma to overcome, and even ‘facts’ used to support the new Sleestak temporal invasion will be viewed entirely with skepticism. In this instance, the threat is based on pure fantasy and includes the erroneous conclusions and biases of the individual. Any other personality quirks will simply be used as extra justification of the prepper’s lunacy.

Preparedness efforts should be reality centered, and as an ambassador to the preparedness mindset, the concerns of threats that we make public, highlight to watch out for, and prepare for must be reality centered as well. Even if they are Doom and Gloom in nature, there must be some reality backing them up. For instance, if hyperinflation is high on a prepper’s list of threats, having real information to discuss it will be very helpful. Understanding how money is affected by supply (how much of a currency there is in the world) as well as demand (how many countries are using it as reserve currency and how many people are using it for trade) can showcase it in terms that LINKS most people can understand. Then, when the conversation moves on to more and more countries shedding the US Dollar as trade and reserve currency, the point can clearly be made that supply is rising at the same time demand is falling. They have framed their concerns in such a way that uses real world issues and headlines coupled with well-understood mechanisms for cause/effect. At the very least, the concerns will not be dismissed as whacko, and best case the points resonate with the audience and the seeds of new preppers are sewn.

Reality based and logically derived solutions.

Having a relevant plan to deal with a threat is important, and must be logically supported. If the threat is tornados, and the prepper is spending $10,000 on a sniper rifle to defend his mobile home from post-tornado looters, the

receiver of this information is going to come to the obvious conclusion that spending that money on a structure with a basement or at least some type of underground shelter would be the wiser course of action.

Even if the prepper has this in his plans, if it is not the first thing talked about, then all other facts will be assigned a negative bias by the receiver. If the prepper’s brother Earl is coming by next weekend to dig out a shelter, the listener doesn’t necessarily know this, and the prepper has just caused himself to be labeled a gun nut.

We must not only have logical plans, but must sequence the answers we use appropriately to maximize relatability to the listener. In this example, had the prepper mentioned the more relevant shelter to be dug out next week, the conversation would be far different.

Once the threat is properly framed and articulated, the prepper is likely to get the response of “We should do something about that,” or “What can I do about it?”

Using the same well-reasoned and articulate approach,

preppers can explain how to prepare for certain threats.

It helps to involve the prospective prepper in their own journey of discovery rather than just blurt the answer.

For the example of hyperinflation, preppers know that having stored food, water, and supplies is a great thing, but having some money in the form of precious metals helps to preserve wealth and disassociate it from a state currency. So, rather than the answer being “You need to buy a bunch of junk silver”, explaining helps the person along with their problem solving.

If the question is “What do I do about hyperinflation?”, then a possible answer is “The very same thing happened in Argentina. People had to negotiate twice a day in some cases for new wages because by the time they got paid, the money was worthless. Finding ways to get compensated in wealth that is not tied to the state currency would help”. The would-be prepper can then

come to the conclusion of getting paid in supplies needed, which would help in the short term, then guided to the idea of long term wealth preservation mechanisms such as precious metals.

We are ambassadors to the preparedness concept, not prepper gurus just handing out answers. This difference is a very important thing. If the information is merely given, then it is ‘our’ answer and that answer will be assigned whatever biases the receiver has associated with us. If we lead the recipient to the answer, rather than give them the answer, then they have arrived at this conclusion ‘on their own’. The answer will have more weight associated with it and it will be a better idea because it came from them.

Remember, being articulate, respectful, well mannered, and dynamic is important to helping dispel prepper stereotypes. Having an excellent vocabulary helps because it adds a ‘learned’ bias to the speaker’s information. With all of these traits, we must remember that we are ambassadors of the preparedness community when we are speaking on such topics or are in the public eye, and owe it to ourselves and to society to help ‘normalize’ the preparedness movement. Every new prepper is one less hungry neighbor or desperate wanderer in the next big crisis. Every prepper is therefore your ally in keeping your family safe. Respect yourselves, respect them, and help us all to keep a very positive image going forward.

Am I a Prepper?

Debunking the stereotype

By LaMar Alexander, Simple Solar Homesteading Prepper just stands for someone that believes in their personal responsibility to take care of themselves and their families by having the skills, tools and resources available when hard times hit.

Sure there are people that take it to the extreme even by my standards (cousin Billy Bob is building a tank in his garage) but I think the majority of Preppers just recognize the reality that personal, economic or world disasters do happen and they want to have a chance at surviving it and to be less of a burden on society if/when it does happen.

When new people see my off-grid cabin, ATV in the yard, garden, animals and hunting dogs, most assume I am one of those radical extremist Preppers they have seen on TV.

The short term benefits of prepping is healthier food for your family, a more secure home, awareness of the risks in your area from natural and man-made disasters and (if you are smart) getting rid of your debt and became more sustainable, making you and society safer and healthier.

I know this because I hear it in comments left on my website and vids; and in some ways my lifestyle probably does seem pretty radical and extremist compared to the city life they are used to.

The long term benefits of being a Prepper are the more people that are prepared, the less burden it will be on society and prepared people are more likely to help others if needed.

The reality though is my lifestyle is pretty much the same as everyone else's in most respects. I pay my taxes (and wish they were lower), I sent my kids to public schools (and regretted it), I work (for myself) and I respect the law (except the stupid ones) just like most people.

So you can call me a Prepper if you want and I will wear that title proudly because the opposite of that is to be unprepared. Now if LINKS you will excuse me I have to clean my rifle.

This is the lifestyle I was raised in from the time I was a kid. My folks were farmsteaders, and skills like growing a garden, storing food, raising animals, hunting, and fishing were a way of life and was necessary because you never knew when hard times would hit but you could count on them hitting.

Prepper is a relatively new term and usually applied in a positive way by other people that believe being prepared is important and as a derogatory term by people that want that label to mean more than it does.

Dragon, Dragon Slayer, Thunderbirds and Purity in Water Apache Knife Fighting & Battle Tactic 10

By Snake Blocker, Lipan Apache Tribe of Texas Many moons ago, when Dragon waged a series of wars against the Apache Nation, the Apache people prayed for aid from the One Creator. The Apaches had played drums and flutes, danced, sang, and meditated for blessings from above. During the first four seasons of war, the One Creator sent the Great Eagle to teach and aid the Apaches in battle.

For a time and a season, the Apaches and the sky creatures kept Dragon and the land creatures at bay, beyond Blood Valley. For a time, there was peace. Then Dragon came back with vengeance and he had taught the land creatures to make many violent sounds, for the land creatures had forgotten how to speak as the Apaches did.

Dragon had forbidden such language to be spoken shortly after they had arrived from Underworld to Turtle Island.

The day of Dragon’s return was once again upon the Apaches in a battle that destroyed not just many Apaches, but many of the sky creatures and the forest, which sheltered the Apaches’ home front. The giant red trees were being destroyed, which awakened the great Thunderbirds. The Thunderbirds began battling Dragon and his land creatures, but Dragon made a great trap with the torn bushes and fire which killed every one of the Thunderbirds.

Although the Thunderbirds and the Apaches never were allies, the Apaches honored their memory by placing their images on the rocks and in their pottery after this battle.

Dragon and the land creatures had chased the Apaches to the edge of a precipice and the Apaches were about to be slaughtered. The Apaches knew their end was near, and formed a great circle, held hands and began to dance as one. They submitted to the will of the One Creator who had control of everyone’s destiny. This submission pleased the One Creator and he sent His Son, the one they called Dragon Slayer. Dragon Slayer came down from above and appeared in the circle of the dance, as the Dragon was approaching. Dragon Slayer pointed to the mountain, and the mountain moved. The mountain was covering a great mass of water. Then the water, which was no longer contained by the great mountain, flowed at Dragon and the land creatures. The great water pushed Dragon until he came to the opening, from which they

came up from Underworld. Dragon fell into Underworld as the waters subsided. The Apaches covered the entrance with many stones as well as gold and silver, which sealed it up. The Apaches rejoiced and water was known as the purity of salvation, given from above. The water of Turtle Island would be the cleansing of many illnesses and wounds. Water would take away many impurities, including impurities in the spirit world.

LINKS When going to bed, some Apaches place a cup of water next to their bedding. At night, as impurities of the spirit world set in to influence the mind, the purity in the water pulls it in and holds it in the cup. When the Apache wakes up, fine particles are seen in the cup, which are representative of the impurities. The Apache then throw out the water to South Wind to take away. The practice is similar to the concept of the Dream Catcher, which many Native Americans place above their bed.

In modern times, the Apaches would take portions of lakes and rivers and place spikes and spears at the bottom of the waterbed and place un-passable barriers around the entrapment. The Apaches would lure their enemies into such areas to meet their end. As the entrapment destroys the enemy, so the water drowns out the impurities of the battle, and covers the wrongdoings of mankind.

Fear is Driving Your Readiness Fear is Driving Your Readiness

Fear is driving you…driving you to waste your time and money. You are on the brink of paranoia, and for what? To save yourself? Your family? Your neighbors and the world? Perhaps you need to step back and revisit how you got in this condition and what motivated you because, my friend, you may have squandered resources for nothing when you could have led a more full and productive life.

Sounds preposterous and negative for a publication about preparedness, but you need a wakeup call. I’ve been there; spent thousands on food that sat in cans for decades that I didn’t eat, and never intended to eat unless I had to force it down my gullet in a post-apocalyptic world. I’ve have tents rot in closets and garages. There were the bullets that became too old to be safely fired. Parkas became moth eaten. Bottled water filled with slime. Maps of city routes were useless as decades of new construction and destruction made them antiquated, and then replaced by GPS. Must I go on?

I recall 1973 when I was so sure the U.S. was on the doorstep of nuclear war that I had my Plymouth Belvedere packed with camping gear and supplies so I could escape to the north and Canada from graduate school in Wisconsin. My few friends believed I was insane. Now we know the truth…that we really were close, but all that planning and readiness truly meant nothing if I had come to face the real event. A book—a terrible, vile publication— put me on a path even then to consider the end of my civilization. It was titled, simply, “Will You Be Alive in ’75.” Ever since that startling disappointment as I was driven by a dismal perpetuation of disaster mentality, I have seen the culture go through a series of mind blasts of the same kind, whether from

international crises, economic downturns, political upheaval ,or just plain wackiness. These waves of passionate concern railed at our sanity. Whether the calls came from the far left or right that soon the federal government would declare martial law and put us all in camps (that goes way back before FEMA even existed… and unfortunately the Japanese felt the real thing in WWII), or the fringe crowd that readied at every celestial event: blood moons, Kahoutek, Spacelab, the Great Convergence, Y2K, 2012 and so many more. The most painful to watch were the victims who gave up everything because of religious fanatics declaring the exact time of the Second Coming, or the cults that took their own lives, like those in San Diego, ready for the space beings to take them away to Heaven’s Gate.

Here is the new normal you need to accept. When a real catastrophe comes, you probably will be in any one of the following conditions: Too badly injured to help yourself, or even dead Cut off from your bug-out gear, your hidey hole and your cache of goodies (or they are destroyed) Forced to be surrounded with people you don’t know and don’t trust Isolated from communications with those you love

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That’s real world. When a tornado rips your house to smithereens, you don’t have a gun locker anymore. When the floodwaters destroy your storage locker, the quake swallows your hidey-hole, and the wild fire turns your hidden cabin into chars—you are on your own.

“So, Mr. Tobin. You think you’re so smart. Should we just all roll over and die?”

I’ve heard that before. I always revert to David Gerrold who said, “Life is hard. Then you die. Then they throw dirt in your face. Then the worms eat you. Be grateful it happens in that order.”

If you want to prepare for the worst, forget all the trappings and extravagance. When the fan really hits, it’s

all about what you have inside—integrity and skill. What can you do, right now, that makes a difference with whatever you have at hand? You need valued capabilities above all else. Here’s the order I’d press you to obtain, before you pack your closet with what may be useless:

How to find your way—path finding, with basic ground tracking knowledge;

Urban survival tactics (since most of us are in cities), from building evacuation to avoiding riots;

Finally, a mantra to hold inside to repeat constantly, like, “I can survive anything.” Or, “I can get through this.” You must have this embedded and believe it, whether it is a personal phrase or one from your faith of choice, you have to hold it strong and keep going.

Medical skills, even just basic first aid; How to find water that is safe to drink, no matter where you are; How to find/make shelter to keep you safe from the elements, and from the two-legged, four legged, and sixlegged trouble makers;

Basic self-defense with some formal training from a knowledgeable instructor; and

Instead of making monstrous lists and purchasing piles of everything for your assault on Everest, or your jaunt on The Road with Cormac McCarthy, build the interpersonal skills that require no closet, no storage bins or burrowing in the ground. At the end of the day, the best prepared are those who have skill sets, not bazookas or a treasure trove of someday stuff. As you obtain new skills, remember you are building your inner house of brick, not straw.

How to use a quality pocket knife (a basic Swiss Army knife, not the two pounder you probably won’t have with you) to open cans, use for defense, and killing and preparing food;

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They think we’re Nuts! Here’s why…

By Donna Miller, Your Preparation Station They think we’re nuts. They do, you know? A bunch of certifiable, tin-foil hat wearing, conspiracy theorists, that’s what we are; the whole lot of us. I can remember so many times trying to explain the self-sufficiency aspects of our life only to be labeled “alarmists.” Then along came the word “prepper” – which I shy away from after the media blitz of the word – and it holds the same negative connotation as the often heard phrase: “Oh, you’re one of those people?” or my other personal favorite: “You don’t look like you’re a prepper.” To which I’ve asked, “Really?

Thanks! I think… but what does a prepper look like?”

The answer to which often varies from extremes to simply being clad in camouflage at all times.

But should we care what they think? Now that’s a loaded question. On one hand, we shouldn’t give a hoot about what others think of us, especially if we’re not hurting anyone else.

Ah, but therein lies the rub.

This perpetuated stereo-type very well may be hurting others.

If it is a stumbling block rather than an encouragement to prepare, it hurts them. Thus we should care, to a certain extent, how preppers or the preparedness community is viewed as a whole.

I want to address three things that we and our cohorts are doing that may just be shooting ourselves in the foot and solidifying the negative stereo type if the behavior continues.

Seeking Fifteen Minutes of Fame.

Think what you want about some of the ‘Reality’ Series that feature preppers – they do it for ratings. And ratings come from viewers. No one views boring real life. They live it so why watch it. But the more sensationalized scenes, the outlandish sound bites and the over the edge characters – yep – folks will watch that. Even if it has hidden gems of good things to think about – the noise of the extreme will shout louder than any education.

Even if the intention of those who get/got on the shows is/was to help spread the word about the need to prepare (which I know many of the real cast and know that is their desire), the days of taping will be snipped away to 15 minutes of extremes. It is also painfully apparent that some folks are not this ‘wholesome’ in their desire to be on these shows. With their new semi-celebrity status faces plastered on vehicles and billboards it comes across as a means to turn their 15 minutes of fame into larger

speaking engagement checks or promote their products.

I’m pretty sure the skeptical population sees right through someone with those intentions. The sad part is that they also use that narcissistic prepper postal child as the norm and turn the other way…and fast. I don’t particularly blame the skeptic.

No kidding we aren’t all on a show. No kidding some folks on there have good intentions. But when we become ‘star struck’ ourselves and follow blindly because ‘he/she was on a show so they must know everything’ it only feeds the semi-famous status but may not help another single person to prepare. So many people are living quiet, unassuming, self-sustained lives and have more to share than the ‘big name’ semi-celebrity. Be careful not to overlook those who don’t draw attention to themselves. They are often the rarer gem and are their wealth and worth are far more than the shinier, flashier alternative.

No one likes a know-it-all.

A side of me is to be a fact checker by nature. When my passion buttons are pushed however, (positive or negative) that portion of my natural make-up is often compromised.

I become, like most people, more reactionary. I’ve been known to too quickly share a tidbit of info that seems right at the time because it hit upon a passion of mine only to retract it after checking the facts.

This is something I am aware of more lately so I pause before spouting out some new tidbit of wisdom. What I’ve found out may not apply to anyone but me and my family. So, I wait to see how it might serve someone else later.

Preppers are notorious for telling people what they should do. We have a vast array of people in the preparedness industry now that are self-proclaimed experts. I’m sorry but the word “self-proclaimed” reminds me of a scripture (Proverbs 27: 2 Let another praise you, and not your own mouth; a stranger, and not your own lips.) Inflated egos, one-upping, imposing ‘your way’ and badmouthing the perceived competition have no place in the mission of helping other people prepare.

Honestly, the above negatives are nothing more than checking matters of the heart and ridding ourselves of inflated pride. Now, after potentially making some enemies in the preparedness world, I’d like to offer a few constructive suggestions. My hope is that they will help us to be proactive and productive in effort to remove the negative stereo-type that has developed about preppers.

Develop Positive Peer Pressure.

Be happy about what you’re doing! There is no better way to draw folks in who think you’re paranoid, or fearful than to show them you’re not either one!

If you focus on the negative reasons to prepare very few people will join your party. Sure there are real reasons that are negative – but negative repels. Instead of saying you’re stocking up for the terrible ice storm – maybe you’re getting extra to enjoy some time at home. Instead of learning food foraging to keep from starving to death when/if the grocery stores close forever, you’re gardening without the extra work or saving money on greens.

Cultivate Unconditional Compassion Shut up already.

What an odd statement from a Preparedness talk show host who also loves to teach. So how’s that for some selfchiding? But seriously, we talk way too much about prepping until the eyes of all others have glazed over.

There is more to life than this. In fact, isn’t it that we prep so that we can live life? Yes! Then live LIFE not preps.

There is a time and a place and a limit. For the sake of those uninvolved and those involved in prepping – it’s time to learn where, when and how often to talk about it.

Where, when and how often to talk about prepping are not the only things that deserve our attention, but what we talk about. Preparedness is far more than a few isolated areas of attention so with the vast array of life areas that you can prepare for – it should help put some variety into a prepper’s vocabulary…shouldn’t it?

If it’s guns, guns, guns, then you’re not straying too far to talk about ammo and targets. Besides – the more you talk in that arena the bigger the target on your own head.

And how many people do you think take someone seriously who believes in Zombies and Aliens? Do we need to add that to the already odds stacked against this lifestyle?

We all come into this world delicate, vulnerable and dependent. Interestingly enough, most of us will leave it in much the same condition. It’s the in between time and place on the same journey that either we judge others or they judge us based on accomplishment, education, status, income, skill, etc.

Were you born fully prepped for any disaster? I seriously doubt any one of us was. Practicing and cultivating unconditional compassion for someone else that doesn’t yet see the need, or is just beginning is vital to their growth. Telling them what they should do, must have, do wrong or are not yet doing in any manner that is unsolicited or demeaning will not help them. Remember to share with others in a way that meets them at their point in the journey, with a language that speaks to their needs. At one time, you weren’t on this road at all either.

The Rabbi and the Pastor…

No. This is not the beginning of an irreverent joke but rather a very poignant 21st century account which I once heard not long ago. It may be more of an illustration to the point above and I likely won’t retell it as well as it was told to me but I hope the meaning behind the story has the same impact.

There had been a violent bombing of a Jewish Synagogue in a suburb. Shortly thereafter, many of the laypersons of the Synagogue and the Rabbi were digging through the rubble to find the Torah Scroll and many other lost items that they hoped and prayed they would be found in tact.

On the same street as the Synagogue was a Christian Church. That same day the Pastor called many of the congregation to join him and they gathered at the rubble of the Synagogue. They asked if they could help search and repair what they could. Their help was graciously accepted.

away my reasons for not believing that Jesus is our Messiah.”

Before starting to dig – the Christian Church gathered to pray and offered that anyone else who wished to join them could do so. I’m not sure if or how many others joined but they prayed to God to find what their neighbors needed and ended “in Jesus’ Name – Amen”.

Ask if you can help before you offer an opinion. Take someone’s hand if they extend it. Take them right where they are. Walk with them – don’t drag them or force them. Be real. Be honest. If you don’t know and find out together what works best for their journey.

After many hours which turned into days – side by side the Pastor and the Rabbi – and members of each congregation – sometimes in tears, sometimes in silence and sometimes in conversation - they were able to recover much and rebuild the Synagogue. As the Rabbi shook the hand of the Pastor he told him: “You are taking

We’ve not been called alarmists for almost a decade. The funny thing is, those who called us “alarmists” have since seen that we might just have a pretty good plan. But please don’t call me a prepper. At least not until we’ve all been able to change the stereo-type. I’m a person, like you and anyone else, who does more than just prepare.

In closing after this example I’d like to impress that the end phrase was still not the finality of the story. There is always a work in progress as we live our lives in front of others. But reasons for not believing can be taken away if we show compassion for where others are, if we are still firm and joyful in our beliefs but not arrogant or selfseeking in them. The same goes for prepping.

Portuguese Man-O-War First Aid By: Ken Youngquist, Survivaltek meat tenderizer which contains enzymes for the purpose of breaking down the toxins to neutralize them.

Eventually, the pain subsided, but lasted for hours.

The stings left marks where they struck and can last for weeks. The photo shows the marks that remained after 5 days.

After researching various sources, my recommendation for Man-O-War stings First Aid is to remove tentacles and stingers with a neutral object like a towel or credit card, rinse with salt water (warm if possible), use cold compresses to alleviate pain, take Benedryll if you are not allergic to it to lessen the allergic reaction to the toxins, and watch for signs of anaphylactic shock, if in question, be sure to seek medical attention.

As I reached for my ringing cell phone, I saw that it was from my sons who were vacationing in Florida.

Would it be an emergency, or simply a greeting? My younger son announced himself and told me that his older brother had "just been stung by a Portuguese ManO-War... what should we do?". Speaking from personal experience, most stings can be alleviated by applying urine. This was my recommendation.

As my distressed son looked for an appropriate place for this treatment, he was notified that there was a Fire Station close by and so proceeded there with haste.

Fortunately, he had already removed the attached tentacles by using a towel and flippers, thus avoiding injury to his hands. The Firemen looked for any remaining stingers and began to spray a vinegar/water mix to neutralize the venom. Subsequent research suggests that this treatment tends to work for many jellyfish but might be counter-productive when used for Man-O-War stings. This may vary regionally.

Some paramedics arrived and began to monitor my son for typical symptoms of severe pain, cramping, shortness of breath, and any signs of anaphylactic shock.

Man-O-War stings are seldom fatal, but are extremely painful. Of course, people with severe allergies are at great risk and should be treated immediately. Another treatment used by many locals is by applying powdered

Needless to say, this is a case where I prefer having "second hand" experience, whereas my son will have a story for a lifetime.

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Survey about The Prepper Stereo-Type PREPARE Magazine took a survey of people who do prepare and this is what we found: When asked: “Most people I come in contact with agree with prepping.”

44% say yes they do come in contact with people who agree with prepping.

56% say that most people they come in contact with do not agree with prepping.

When asked: “Has the Mainstream Media has helped or hurt Preparedness?”

4% say it has Helped 96% say it has Hurt Right or wrong, it appears that those who don't see the need to prepare think the following:

Answer Choices A Prepper is good citizen A Prepper is fearful A Prepper is a food hoarder A Prepper has a lot guns and ammo A Prepper will shoot first, help later A Prepper believes conspiracy theories A Prepper believes in actual zombies A Prepper is a recluse, hermit or socially separate A Prepper is uneducated A Prepper is generous A Prepper is paranoid

Responses 0.00% 72.00% 66.00% 86.00% 56.00% 86.00% 28.00% 70.00% 54.00% 0.00% 94.00%

When asked: “What can realistically be done to change the perception of those want to be prepared for an uncertain future?” We received some great suggestions! Here are some of the following anonymous suggestions: “… Outreach and networking expands the reach to more people. The more people who take on a prepper lifestyle more others will follow suit.”

“Prepping is not a new concept just a new name for responsible living. My grandparents always had extra food, water, alternative cooking and heating sources.”

“Instead of acting paranoid toward outsiders who express only a passing interest in being prepared as though they are a potential future threat who will rush in and steal your preps unless you maintain some clandestine illusion of OpSec (I could write a whole essay on what a joke and self-defeating element OpSec is in modern prepping), we need to take them under our wing and teach them as much as they're willing to learn to take proper steps toward

disaster preparedness. We need to show the public that what we do has practical applications toward real-world disaster preparedness and take the focus away from the fringe nut-jobs who a prepping for a 1:10000000000000 chance of some corner-case disaster.” “…Stop focusing on zombie apocalypse end of the world Armageddon and focus on everyday emergencies: fire, flood, tornados, mudslides, earthquakes, pandemics and other natural disasters.

We all have a greater chance of survival if a world changing events happens if everyone is prepared for "any day emergencies" “You can lead a person to knowledge but you can't make them think. The best approach is to be down to earth and explain how it is just common sense to not

want to rely upon an outside agency to come to your rescue.”

I used to belong to, except that I cleaned up the grammar)”

“Get away from the "militia" persona and highlight the practical aspects of "prepping". Saving money, health and so on. Encourage community and sharing rather than being paranoid.”

“Stop spouting anti-government, anti-establishment rhetoric...even if they believe it whole heartedly.”

We asked: “What do preppers need to STOP doing that is hurting their message of preparedness?”

Again some great ideas! Here are some of the following anonymous suggestions:

“Stop combining personal politics with prepping.

Political discussion, more than anything else, is extremely detrimental when talking about preparedness.”

“Preppers need to STOP saying things such as ‘If you're not already prepped, you're already dead.

That means it's not worth my time to explain it to you’ to newcomers, ESPECIALLY on public forums. (this is an actual example from a FB prepping group

“Stop trying to be famous and go on TV shows.

They’ll just rip you to shreds and hurt the rest of us normal folks in the process”

“Stop doing interviews in fatigues and armed to the teeth this why I feel most Americans think we are so radical and some type of fringe group to be feared.”

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Product Review: M48 Ops Combat Bowie

By Jason Hunt, Camp Craft

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My first impression of the M48 Ops Combat Bowie was “Great, another cheap knock off”- but that was before I got one in hand! The M48 Combat Bowie has a vaguely familiar design which was no doubt inspired by the Hellion made famous by Survivalist Mykel Hawke. This knife has a similar 17o or so forward cutting edge with an incised, tanto like tip which provides a secondary cutting surface and striking point on the pommel, but unlike the Hellion, the M48 Combat Bowie has a saw-back spine and integrated serrations on the blade along with an integrated glass breaker with a heavy rubberized ABS handle material and heavy nylon sheath.

Once I was able to get this beast in hand, I was really impressed with how it felt and the quality of the item overall. It's 16” overall length and 1/4” thick 440A Stainless Blade that is Titanium plated made for a nice presentation that was also well balanced and conducive for chopping. So, I took this tool right into the woods to

give it a solid test and overall, I was well pleased, with a couple caveats.

First off, its chopping ability was spot on- it acted much like a Kukri and made quick work of up to 5” logs with LINKS minimal effort. I also batoned down a 4” log that was 4 feet tall and it again made quick work of the project. As a throwing weapon (you know, just in case) it performed quite well taking little effort to achieve consistent results.

I did not have the opportunity to test the glass breaker, but having used similar tools in the past as a Firefighter, I have little doubt about its effectiveness. I used the pointed pommel to break up some hard, 2”-3” thick limestone rocks and again, the full tang blade performed admirably taking no damage to speak of.

Here's where I did have a problem. Once I tried the sawback spine I was not impressed. It did not perform as a real saw would and this is primarily due to the teeth on the saw being in a straight line. While I can understand that from a production sense on a knife, I do not understand it from a saw sense; if it's made to be a saw it

I did use the blade as a draw knife with some success and even after all the abuse, the titanium coating on the blade remained fully intact and the knife looked just as good as when I pulled it from the box. The heavy nylon sheath is MOLLE compatible and does include a nice plastic insert to keep the blade from damaging the material.

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should at least behave as a saw would. This did not, and at best it would be used for notching into a tree or other wooden object to create a tie off point or purchase point for leverage. The serrations on the blade also performed in a similar fashion, being too large of a serration to really be useful for much more than notching or scraping.

Overall, I believe United Cutlery did a good job producing this blade; it's certainly a great chopper fully capable of camp chores, brush clearing or protection.

And you can watch my youtube review in full here to see it in action.

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THANK YOU! The Launch of PREPARE Magazine has been a labor of love, sharing of helpful training and ideas, and a partnership with some wonderful people. We are so thankful for the support and kindness of so many people who have joined with us in the journey and contributed to the creation and growth of PREPARE Magazine. We want to share our sincere and humble gratitude for everyone who has shared their support and encouragement. We simply could not have launched PREPARE without you!

On behalf of our readers, subscribers, advertisers, and staff, we wish to extend our heart-felt appreciation to all of you. We believe there is a very special mission for PREPARE Magazine, and are so pleased to be yoked with wonderful people who wish to sow encouragement and help to others in the Preparedness Journey.

Again… To all of you who have contributed and shared financial resources, preparedness training, advertising, testimonials, and encouragement, please know that we greatly appreciate you – and look forward to serving on your behalf.

Joseph and Donna Miller

Special Partners

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Dr. Bones and Nurse Amy Ronald G Wittig H Michael Rauscher Kirk Illian Joe and Amy Alton Tracy Singer Steve Mileusnich Karyn Rios Jonathan Violassi Donna Henken Rats Overton Shannon Dulawan Douglas Drury Kelly and Stanley Gaddy CoolBrees Designs

Raymond Freeman Heather Balentine Frank Gregg Joy walker Leslie Moore Peter Sedlak III Mark Firehammer S. Ryerson John Fairchild Bryan Van Hook Kathleen Roberts Bobbie Nelson Bill Liebsch Gail LaCroix Vaunell Temple Velda Solomon Jared Novotny Seth Johnson Vickilynn Haycraft Benjamin Geleynse Steven Jones Brandon Rains Rebecca Sanchez Teri Roberts Jeff Rowland Dr. Kaly Sellers Jim Kennard

Special Thank You Footsloggers – for Sponsoring our friends at Turtle Island Preserve

Trent Powers Ken Youngquist Jason A. Hunt Vickilynn Haycraft Rick Austin Evan Folds Bryan Miller Bill & Janet Liebsch Pierce Jacobson Vina8 Eric Waters Charles Belitz Lynette Frye Kelly Thomas Nigel Jones Dale W.Montgomery Kim Lippy Steve Mistretta Aaron Berwick Valarie Brown Scott Angell Caryn lee Wayne Spencer N. Campbell Judith Hooley Founding Subscribers

Our Contributors...

Bill & Janet Liebsch are the founders of FedHealth, a publishing and marketing company formed in 1999 to help the public focus on preparedness and health-related issues. We also are the authors, copyright owners and publishers of "IT'S A DISASTER! ...and what are YOU gonna do about it?" and are dedicated to developing programs that primarily benefit First Responders, schools and volunteers. Get a sample of the content with this free mini-ebook HERE.

Donna Miller is a teacher, author, sought-after speaker and trainer. She has been both a guest and host on internet and broadcast radio talk-shows and in television interviews. She enjoys teaching online and local classes & ladies retreats. Donna is happily married and has three adult children, and a daughter in-law. She and her husband (Joseph) are the founders Millers Grain House and YourPreparation Station.

Snake Blocker is a member of the Lipan Apache Tribe of Texas, is an accomplished martial artists and Apache Historian. He has served in the U.S. Navy since June 2001 and did tours in Kuwait, Iraq and Afghanistan. He is the featured instructor in several videos and promotes his signature line of survival products and knives. Snake has been featured on Deadliest Warrior “Apaches versus Gladiators” and Doomsday Preppers “In the Hurt Locker”. He hosts “Snake Blocker Survival” on Preparedness Radio Network.

Donald Alley

is a martial science practitioner with over 10 years’ experience. He is a black belt in Jujutsu and a brown belt in Aikido. He is an instructor with the ISBF and a Level 1 Instructor for the US-MTA as well as program coordinator / instructor with Martial Tactical Training of Michigan. He is a certified NRA instructor for Basic Pistol and Personal Protection in the Home. His product line, Bu Tactical, provides everyday carry options for martial devices.

Dr. Jason Hunt is the founder of Campcraft Preparedness Ministries and Frontier Christian University. He leads an active life teaching others about Survival and Preparedness from a Biblical perspective. Jason also serves his community as a firefighter and SAR team leader, and is a Wilderness-EMT and Wilderness First Aid Instructor. He’s also an instructor at Dave Canterbury’s Pathfinder School and is a weekly host on Pathfinder TV. Visit him online at www.campcraft.us

LaMar Alexander

is an off-grid Homesteader, author, videographer and designer of offgrid cabins and solar projects. He has dedicated his life to helping others to live a simple and sustainable lifestyle. You can connect with LaMar at his website: Simple Solar Homesteading and his Youtube Channel

Rick Tobin

has 37 years of emergency experience. As President of TAO Emergency Management he served government, industry, small business and non-profits. He is an author, public speaker and former elected official. He recently restarted the Road to Ready radio show at www.theroadtoready.com. The Road to Ready ran from 2008-09 each week and won a national award. Rick has numerous books on Amazon and is an active professional artist and photographer.

He lives in Texas with his wife Cinda.

Ken Youngquist

is the creator of Survivaltek, a website dedicated to teaching the ways and means to survive. From his youth, Ken was captivated by primitive living skills, and in his adulthood was intrigued by the television Series MacGyver. The result has been the study and practice of survival skills and the desire to pass on the mantle of preparedness to others. You can visit and learn more at: http://survivaltek.com/

Tammy Trayer

is a freelance writer, soon to be author, radio show host on the Survival Mom Radio Network, web designer specializing in the outdoors, entrepreneur, pioneer, avid hunter, outdoorswoman, homesteader, homeschool mother and wife. She, her husband & Mountain Man of her dreams and family live traditionally off-grid and enjoy educating on autism, gluten free and dairy free cooking, self-reliance, wilderness survival, natural health, gardening and so much more. Find out more about Tammy and her journeys at:http://www.TrayerWilderness.com

Mike Douglas

has taught survival since 1983. He's studied with Paul Rezendes, Tom Brown Jr., Jon Young, and others. After the Marines he began The Maine Primitive Skills School. Mike's run programs for the military, schools, camps, and businesses. He's advised for Discovery Channels’ “Dual Survivor” and was featured on National Geographic’s “Doomsday Preppers”, receiving the highest “Survivability Score” of the shows first season. His programs draw people from around the world to participate in Tracking, Survival, Awareness, and more.

Community Connections These groups have meetings in Aug-Sept 2014

PACIFIC Survival Preparedness Escondido, CA Saturday, August 23, 2014 - 9:30 AM Family Hydroponic Summer/Fall Garden Workshop Protective Bunker & Survival Center Lake Elsinore, CA Sunday, August 24, 2014 - 9:30 AM Home Invasion Prevention/Defense

SOUTHWEST North East Houston Preparedness Group Humble, TX Saturday, September 6, 2014 2:00 PM First Aid: What's Next?

NORTHWEST Greater Denver Urban Homesteading Group Arvada, CO Thursday, August 28, 2014 - 6:30 PM The Art of Bowl Making - Wooden Spoons

MIDWEST Indiana Disaster Preparedness / Survival Indianapolis, IN Fire and Water Thursday, July 24, 2014 - 7:00 PM to 8:30 PM Cincinnati Survival/Preparedness Group Cincinnati, OH 101 Land Navigation / Orienteering Saturday, July 19, 2014 - 12:00 PM to 3:00 PM

SOUTHEAST WNC Preparedness Group Burnsville, NC Saturday, August 30, 2014 - 10:00 AM - Noon CLASS: Solar Cooking Do's & Don'ts

NORTHEAST Back to Basics: Sustainable Self-Sufficient Healthy Living Sanbornton, NH Friday, August 22, 2014 - 6:00 PM to 8:00 PM How to build a Liberty Generator Survivalism & Preparedness of Maryland Frederick, MD Sunday, August 24, 2014 10:00 AM Medicines from Mother Nature

Kitchen Gadgets, Lessons, Recipes, Grains and More

MILLERS Grain House

"Preparing you and your kitchen with tools, tips, skills and encouragement."

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WonderMill Jr. Deluxe

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Excalibur Dehydrator

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PREPARATION BLOG (800) 824-4655 (828) 536-4988 www.millersgrainhouse.com/store

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