There is a saying in the field of emergency management that “all disasters begin and end locally.” This is truer now than ever; at the same time the number of disasters is increasing, the global financial crisis is forcing governments around the world to cut funding for programs, including once untouchable defense and emergency budgets. Populations of many developing countries are accustomed to doing without significant government assistance during disasters, but conversely, in the United States many have come to expect prompt outside aid. Hurricane Katrina began to change this perception and it has been validated again and again, most recently by the BP oil spill in the Gulf and the nuclear reactor meltdown in Japan. People in the U.S. are now painfully aware that their Government (or any government or institution, no matter how powerful) cannot be all things to all people all the time.

With this in mind, we created Always Ready LLC to help families and communities build their capacities to plan for, mitigate and respond during times of crisis. Always Ready LLC provides preparedness training, project design and evaluation services, and equipment and supplies to help families and communities become more resilient.

Always Ready's founder spent nearly a decade working in South America, where he designed, managed and evaluated numerous emergency preparedness, disaster relief, and sustainable development projects, and led medical brigades to indigenous communities in the Andean highlands and Amazon rainforest. Through these experiences he learned to appreciate how quickly modern amenities and basic services and supplies can disappear, leaving families and communities to fend for themselves.

Always Ready's founder is also an instructor for the Wilderness Medicine Institute of the National Outdoor Leadership School; studied Community Preparedness and Disaster Management at the Gillings School of Global Public Health of University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill; earned a BA in Government and Spanish from Franklin & Marshall College; and, has a Graduate Certificate in the Design, Management and Evaluation of Sustainable Development Projects from the Latin American Faculty of Social Sciences.

Please take a moment to check out the gear and supplies sold on our web store and peruse the blog and Internet preparedness resources. If you want to learn more about Always Ready training or consulting services, email us and we will respond promptly.