Emergency preparedness event set for April 29 in Island City

Apr. 16—ISLAND CITY — British novelist John Galsworthy, who won the 1932 Nobel Prize for literature, once wrote, "If you do not think about the future you cannot have one."

Galsworthy's words were not meant for those putting on a "Be Prepared for the Future" program on Saturday, April 29, in Island City, but they resonate just the same. The focus of the free event will be on preparing for future emergencies with the aid of strategies, including proper long-term food storage.

The event will run from 10 a.m. to noon at the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints building, 11206 McAlister Road, Island City.

Two presentations at the event will be given: at 10 a.m. by a representative of the Center for Human Development, and an 11 a.m. presentation on how to handle stress during an emergency.

Also, more than 20 booths will be set up to provide information on many things that address emergency preparedness, ranging from food storage to communication.

"It will be well rounded. Everyone coming will get something out of it," Chris Quebbeman, the event coordinator, said.

On the nutrition front, there will be booths providing information on edible plants in Northeastern Oregon, raising chickens, processing wild game, fishing, growing grapes, the Community Connection of Northeast Oregon's food bank and how people can help it, how to store food staples, growing small gardens, cooking with wheat, alternative cooking resources and mushrooms in the region.

A booth at the event will provide information on how to assemble a kit that will put one in a position to get through an emergency for 72 hours. Such kits should be readily accessible at all times for times when a home has to be evacuated, according to the event's organizers.

"You should be able to grab it and go," Quebbeman said.

On the communications front, a ham radio booth will be set up and individuals will be encouraging people to become ham radio operators, according to Quebbeman. Ham radio operators can be indispensable in an emergency when other means of communication, including telephones, are not operating.

"It is so important that we get more people involved in ham radio," she said.

Quebbeman said the COVID-19 pandemic has heightened local interest in emergency preparation, because the region was hit by shortages.

"We could not get some things," she said.

Quebbeman said that while all preparation can make a difference in an emergency, it should never be regarded as a short-term process.

"You cannot do it all at once," she said. "It is a huge undertaking."

Dick Mason is a reporter with The Observer. Contact him at 541-624-6016 or dmason@lagrandeobserver.com.