She gave you life. So you’re going to get her a scarf on Mother’s Day? Well, maybe that’s exactly what she wants! But here are some other choices for that prepper/survivalist mom that will help her be even more prepared. Or, if mom is a beginner in the emergency preparedness field, these tools will help her get started.
by Leon Pantenburg
Here’s a chance to support American small businesses (like mine) while getting mom a gift she’ll really appreciate and use.
I developed and sell some of these products; I regularly use, and highly recommend, all of them:
Survival Mom: Written by Lisa Bedford, author of the wildly-successful TheSurvivalMom.com website, the book gives readers an I-can-do-this approach to getting a family prepared. (Disclaimer: I am mentioned in the expert sources credits.) If you want a good, entertaining read, as well as a book chock-full of information, give this book on Mothers Day.
The SurvivalCommonSense firestarter is completely waterproof and will burn on snow, or when the weather is wet and nasty.
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Firemaking tools: The idea for credit card-sized firestarter came years ago, when I worked on a news story about several lost snowmobilers. They had no survival equipment or training, and ended up trying to start a fire using credit cards, money, and a snowmobile title. A small piece of firestarter would have made the difference between an uncomfortable night huddled around a campfire, or risking hypothermia without a fire. If you can carry a piece of survival equipment conveniently, you probably will.
Order your firestarter directly from the SurvivalCommonSense.com store. Check out Scott B. Williams’ firestarter review in “Bug Out Survival.”
You might also consider a ferro rod firestarting kit for emergency firemaking.
Soap from Heart of Iowa Soapworks: Karla Moore is a professional soaper and instructor of all things regarding homesteading. Today, she sells specialty soap products over the world. I’ve been using her products since Karla established Heart of Iowa Soapworks about a decade ago.
Karla was featured in “The Book of Dream Jobs” by Martha McCarty, and specializes in custom, non-allergic soaps and shampoos. Check out her website at Heart of Iowa Soapworks.
“Surviving a Wilderness Emergency:“ This book, by wilderness survival expert Peter Kummerfeldt, is my go-to book for basic common sense wilderness survival.
I met Peter several years ago at the Deschutes (OR) County Sportsman’s Expo after attending one of his seminars. My motivation for attending was more curiosity than anything else. Afterward, we chatted at his booth, and I bought a copy of “Surviving a Wilderness Emergency.” Give the gift of information with this book.
Key Chain survival kit: This kit has a Swiss Army Knife Classic, a Boy Scout Hot spark ferro rod, LED light with an on-off switch, whistle and fingernail clippers on a ring, with a carabiner for easy attachment to a belt, backpack or another keyring. This handy collection of survival tools is small, compact and easy to carry, so Mom might include it with her everyday carry items.
A 100-percent cotton bandana: Here’s that scarf I mentioned, but with a twist. A bandana can be used for a multitude of tasks, but here is a free promotion for a good cause.
Let your bandana color show your support for cancer treatment and victims. (My standard carry bandana is lavender, with grey and dark blue making frequent appearances.) Then, for whatever purpose the bandana is used for, you help raise awareness.
Know the colors, and the variety of cancer they represent:
Here are a few of my bandanas that show support of cancer victims. (Pantenburg photo)
Pink: Breast Cancer
Light Blue: Prostate Cancer
Teal: Ovarian/Uterine Cancer
Gold: Childhood Cancers
Grey: Brain Cancer
Green: Kidney Cancer
Dark Blue: Colon Cancer
Yellow: Liver Cancer
You can get bandanas anywhere for about a buck.
Swiss Army Classic: This is the smallest, and one of the most useful, Swiss Army Knives imaginable. I’ve carried one constantly on my keychain for at least 20 years, and it gets used virtually every day.
The Swiss Army Classic is incredibly useful.
The knife features a small blade, scissors , toothpick, fingernail file and screwdriver tip. Most importantly, it has the best tweezers in the world for pulling splinters out of kids’ fingers. First impressions of: “What good is that tiny thing?” will soon change to: “How did I get along without it!” You can also get special colors in the handle.
Small, Keychain LED light: This will be one of the most-used items on your keychain. But make sure you get one that has an on-off switch. Otherwise, you’ll get really tired of pinching the light to keep it going!
BIC Lighter wrapped with duct tape and attached pop top: I don’t smoke, but I always have a small BIC lighter, wrapped with a couple feet of duct tape, and with a can pop top attached, in my pocket. In a survival situation, I hope to “Flick My BIC,” and take care of any firemaking needs. Duct tape is useful for everything, and makes a pretty decent firestarter. A pop top to the lighter attached allows you to secure it to a lanyard or piece of cord, so it doesn’t get lost. You can make this gift for Mom at a cost of under a dollar. Here’s how to Pimp Your BIC.
Small laminated photograph of family and/or note in gear: I opened my duffel bag at elk camp in the middle of nowhere, Idaho, several years ago to find little notes from my 10-year old daughter stuck in pockets, rolled-up socks, and in my book.
I put all those notes in my survival gear before heading out into the backcountry. Sentiments such as “I love you, Dad” and “Dad! Come home safe!” reminded me to be safe, and how much I had to lose if I got lost or injured in the backcountry.
These little reminders may keep you from giving up, and may be the deciding factor in any survival situation. The cost: virtually nothing. Value: priceless.