As pictures pour in from the catastrophic conditions in Houston and Southeast Texas, naturally, the nation and the world want to help. It’s hard to hear the dire warnings and see the people who are “luckily” escaping with their lives and maybe a family pet or garbage bag of belongings. Thankfully, fellow Texans, emergency response teams, the American Red Cross, Salvation Army, Catholic Charities, and others, have called upon every resource available to help.
Perhaps like you, watching the aftermath of Hurricane Harvey and the torrential rains that followed, leave me wondering how I can help from 2500 miles away. From a physical standpoint, the most needed resources are money (to legitimate charities), blood (to the American Red Cross), volunteer hours (if you are nearby) and of course goodwill and prayer. Here are a few organizations that are participating in hurricane relief efforts:
- American Red Cross. To donate visit redcross.org, call 1- 800-RED CROSS or text the word HARVEY to 90999 to make a $10 donation.
- The Salvation Army: To donate visit givesalvationarmy.orgor call 1-800-725-2769.
- Catholic Charities USA: Visit catholiccharitiesusa.orgto donate.
As a life coach, I’m also asking what I would have done if I had been in their shoes – or how I would have coached a client to prepare for a pending disaster, even before the warnings sounded.
Here’s one way to prepare yourself: Set aside two weekends to disaster-ready your life. The first weekend, create a drill whereby you (and/or your family) receive evacuation orders, assuming you will have nothing physically left when you return. What is most important? What will you need? How will you prioritize it? What is your game plan for evacuation? Make a physical list. Don’t worry if you can’t find something on it, just make a list of what you need / want.
The second weekend, pull together everything on your list. What important documents you will need? Are there photos or meaningful family items that you would be devastated to lose? Scan them, buy a jump drive and save them. Try to get as much of your life as you can on a jump drive or pulled together in a small safe or special place. Take pictures of items you will want to turn into the insurance company.
Earlier this year, my home was robbed. I was gone an hour and eight minutes. This summer, the region where I live was heavily impacted by fires and my sister’s property was within a mile of properties being evacuated. In 2015, my parents’ home caught fire. Crimes, accidents and natural disasters happen quickly. As a life coach, I help people prepare for the worst so that if it happens, they have the resources to recover the documents, memories, photos and other items they need and that mean the most to them.
Debra Yergen, Author 