Zombies. Sure they're terrifying, but they're not a real threat, right?

Zombie Preparedness Month in Kansas

Well, the state of Kansas is taking a different approach.

In today's Scout, we'll dive into the reasons why the governor of Kansas has declared October Zombie Preparedness Month.

I think what's going on in Kansas gives us some interesting insights into how and why we prepare and how to pass that tradition on to younger generations.

READY FOR ANYTHING
- ZOMBIES AND THE PREPAREDNESS JOURNEY

As many frequent readers of Survival Scout will attest, we think devoting a month to preparedness kind of misses the point, because preparedness and self-reliance are things we work toward every day of our lives.

That's why we don't really discuss National Preparedness Month (September) much. However, something interesting has come out of Kansas, perhaps in response to the ineffectiveness of a generic National Preparedness Month.

Kansas governor Sam Brownback recently signed a proclamation making October Zombie Preparedness Month. (Of course, there are no such things as zombies and it's not something we say you should your should prepare for.)

While Brownback and the Kansas Division of Emergency Management (KDEM) acknowledge that Zombies are very unlikely to be a real threat, their contention is that if you're prepared for zombies, you're prepared for anything. It's this self-reliance message that seems to cut through and capture the attention of younger generations.

Let's explore that assertion a little further.

Zombies, The Ultimate Preparedness Test

If we were to build a preparedness plan that teens and 20-somethings would follow to protect against a zombie crisis, what would it look like?

Prepare for a biological outbreak

• Based on what we know from movies and TV, we'd have to have plans for:
• Biological outbreak containment
• Home defense against both zombies and desperate survivors
• Long-term off-grid living
• Complete collapse of the economy that brings us food, water and basic necessities
• "Bugging out" with a go-bag to a more stable long-term shelter These plans just begin to scratch the surface of what preparing for a real zombie crisis might look like. So it turns out, Kansas is onto something. In fact, KDEM is preparing Kansans for 22 different kinds of emergencies, from natural to man-made, and their campaign is bringing light to all of them.

But there's another reason why their Zombie Preparedness Month idea is so interesting and effective for our youth.

Zombies Make Preparedness Interesting

Before they came up with Zombie Preparedness, the concept of emergency preparedness was difficult to talk about with some generations of citizens.

Devan Tucking with KDEM says she used to ask people if they were prepared for tornadoes, and people would just look at her; but now with zombies it's easier to talk with people.

"It's just a really fun way to have conversations," she said.

We hear similar concerns coming from loyal customers like you, who are always looking for ways to get younger children and grandchildren to take up the call for preparedness.

Well, since Zombie TV shows and movies are extremely popular among younger audiences, it makes sense that zombie preparedness gets their attention.

Sometimes, to get someone to see your point of view, you have to start with a common point of reference, something that's relevant to everyone having the conversation. Bringing zombies into the conversation does just that.

So next time you're talking with a younger, perhaps underprepared loved one, you might ask, "Hypothetically, how would you plan to survive a zombie apocalypse?"

This should get you talking. You might ask what would you do differently from the characters on a popular TV show. What survival skills did they get right? What did they do wrong?

Then you can point out what we covered earlier - that preparing for zombies is essentially preparing for everything. See if this doesn't get the light bulb to turn on in their head.

The ultimate point is, that we can simultaneously take preparedness seriously, and have a little fun in how we approach it.

Let's face it, too many "experts" in the preparedness world take the gloom and doom approach. It has always been our opinion that this is not the most effective way to help hard-working Americans get prepared.

Zombie preparedness is just one way to bring a little fun and levity into the preparedness journey. You can use it as a guiding example to share the importance of preparedness with your loved ones. Find something interesting and fun related to preparedness in some way, and you're guaranteed an interesting conversation.

Halloween Survival Pizza

Since Halloween is only a couple days away, I'll leave you with one more example. Want to teach an important lesson in preparedness and have some ghoulishly-good fun at the same time? Cook up a Survival Pizza in a coal-fired Dutch Oven to keep the zombies (and growling stomachs) at bay. You can teach the off-grid cooking skills needed in a crisis, and enjoy some delicious pizza at the same time. Our Survival Pizza kits have a shelf life of up to 20 years, so you can enjoy pizza in a crisis tomorrow or decades from now.

I hope you found today's preparedness advice both fun and insightful. We'd love to hear from you if this helped in talking to your loved ones about preparedness. You can call our preparedness experts at 866.229.0927 with any questions, needs or concerns you may have.

Stay alert - and prepared for zombies - out there friends!

In Liberty,

Scott Kerrigan
My Patriot Supply Preparedness Advisor