Posted By FarmerJ on May 13, 2009

In a most deep state of sleep, I was woken at 2:20 a.m. by the blaring sound of our Emergency Broadcast Radio announcing the onslaught of a severe thunderstorm ~ an abrupt reminder that it is once again ‘that time of year’ in Tornado Alley.  It also reminded me of a project Husbie had asked me to spearhead for our Battalion families this time last year, and that it would probably be a good idea for me to review the status of a few things in our home.  While I’m at it, I thought I would share it with you.

We never know when we will be faced with an emergency that will require us to leave our homes in an instant.  Whether the emergency is a tornado, hurricane, flood or fire, it’s important to be prepared as much as possible.  Powered by adrenalin, you grab the kids and the pets and head to safety, but…what about all of your important papers?  Do you know where they are?  Do you have time to gather them and take them with you?

Welcome to our Family Battle Book section ~ a source dedicated to exploring one method of organizing your family’s important documents.  Once your Family Battle Book is completed, you will not only have peace of mind knowing all of your crucial information is in one location, you will be better equipped to focus on the task at hand when faced with a family emergency.

This method utilizes a large 3-ring binder to store the important papers and information.  You may want to get creative by designing a special cover for your binder, but the most critical thing to remember is that the binder is distinguishable to all responsible family members in your household.

The mere thought of trying to compile every important piece of paper into one location can be overwhelming.  Each week, in order to make the task more manageable, we will focus on one or two sections.  If you’re not able to complete the designated tasks for a specific month, print this page to use as a checklist for completion at a later time.

This week, we will focus on obtaining our supplies and begin gathering our important documents into one location, if need be.  Are your life insurance papers located in a different area than your children’s immunization records?  Grab a box and start placing these documents in it ~ even having them somewhat unorganized in a single box you can grab in an emergency is better than having to leave them all behind!

Supplies you will need, or may be helpful to have, include:

• 3-ring binder – I’ve found that the D-ring style works well if you have numerous documents
• Document protector sheets
• CD/DVD storage sheets – useful to organize and store your computer back-up and/or family photos discs
• Zippered pouch – useful to store cash, negotiable personal checks, extra keys, USB drive, etc.
• Indexed section dividers
• Labels

Once you get your zippered pouch, go ahead and secure items in it like those I’ve mentioned above.  You’ll be amazed at the almost-instant sense of assurance you’ll feel just by getting a few things in place…until next week!

Categories: Preparedness
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