Happy New Year

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Happy Holidays!

With 2009's final blast hitting the country, the Chasing4Life team will be busy navigating roads and reporting conditions throughout the holiday. We want to wish you and yours a very Merry Christmas and the very happiest of holidays. If you are in the path of all this weather, please do not let our efforts this year go to waste...stay prepared, stay alert and stay safe.

We want to thank all of you that supported us this year and we are looking forward to what looks to be an AMAZING new year.

As you spend some time with your families this next week, stay tuned to our Twitter and keep us in your prayers.

Happy Holidays!

Time's runnin out!

Aside from transmission work now needed on one vehicle and the alternator going out on another, it was a pretty good day! The Iowa Library Tour for next year appears to be needing more dates as response is better than hoped for, so we'll be spending some serious time in the fields of dreams.
Colorado is a state we have not spent much time in, and now, with bookings filling up- in Colorado we are excited about the prospect of making new friends to the west!
Other tours coming together nicely include Tennessee, Kentucky, Illinois and Nebraska! Wow, what a busy year ahead!
If you have been THINKING about booking an event, you need to at least email us soon. Tour dates and open slots have filled VERY quickly this week and it is possible that you miss your chance if you wait much longer!

Tragic Loss-Henderson, TN

As we tour, we make friends and those friends quickly become family. This Monday was to be the day that we touched base with our new friends and family in Tennessee to arrange for a return tour. It is tonight that we are truly saddened to find that one of the towns we grew to love has suffered a horrible, tragic loss.
Captain Dennis Cagle, a police officer in Henderson, Tennessee (Chester County) was shot on Thursday and passed away this morning. Alannah and I were shocked to hear of the loss and are truly saddened. Our prayers and thoughts are with the folks in Chester County as they deal with this horrible loss during what should be such a joyous season.

Magnum Boots

At the end of year, Chasing4Life trucks and equipment get new graphics, new looks and new equipment. With each new sponsor, our strength is renewed as we know that another company, another organization, another individual has chosen to see value in our effort. With massive goals ahead of us as a team, it is heartening to know that we have so many supporters behind us.
Today we want to thank Magnum Boots for joining the Chasing4Life team of sponsors.

For over 20 years, Magnum, a division of Hi-Tec Sports USA, Inc., has been the leader in offering unsurpassed comfort, technology, and value in uniform footwear used by law enforcement, military, fire/rescue, and emergency medical agencies around the world. These boots are distributed in over 70 countries!

Over the course of the last several years, the team has been in some pretty serious circumstances and the one piece of equipment that always fails is our boots. An old friend told me you don't always have to leg to stand on as long as you have good boots. Its true. While most people look for footwear with a fashion-sense, our world is a bit different. From tornado aftermath to hurricane recovery, from search & rescue to emergency response, from wildfires to floods to blizzards, we needed the right footwear that could hold up to Chasing4Life standards and needs.

We got 'em.

Watch for Magnum Boots and Hi-Tec Sports to appear on our home page within the week and check out their incredible line of products. We're gonna put these boots to the test, believe me.

For more info on Magnum Boots, CLICK HERE.

Nebraska Winter Storm Pictures

Media: Please credit Chasing4Life

Wednesday December 9, 2007

Wednesday December 9

Today's Storm In Nebraska

WEBSITE MIGRATION

In order to account for a failed website and email migration, we will be moving the Chasing4Life websites to a new server sometime this week. We do not want to lose touch with you. During this migration, you may experience difficulties in emailing our offices and staff or you may receive an error message when accessing our website. We are truly sorry for this inconvenience. This will not be a long-term situation, we promise. Please check back here for an update, or contact us by emailing c4lbackup@gmail.com

This migration is being made due to instability in both our emailing system and our websites caused by a migration attempted by our hosting company APlus.net
Our staff has spent countless hours over the last three days dealing with poor customer care, poor technical support, and a lack of response from their legal department. If you have received emails that were not intended for you from a chasing4life address, we apologize. The company has failed to address the problems being experienced by many of their customers and we fell victim to this poor follow-up.

In order to protect yourself from cyber-disasters, make sure you back up your systems, research companies you trust with proprietary information, and stay informed as to that compan's changes in policies, activities, partnerships and mergers. You could save yourself in the long run.

PLEASE NOTE: The problems we experienced were not the result of any activity on the part of QGraphX or MyTedWebs. These are both reputable companies that we have worked with for years and we wholeheartedly endorse them both. This was all due to activities by APlus.net

A SPECIAL THANKS TO QUINCY AT WWW.QGRAPHX.COM FOR HIS QUICK RESPONSE TO THE PROBLEMS WE ENCOUNTERED AND THE PRIORITY PLACED ON EMERGENCY BACK-UPS, REPLACEMENT HOSTING AND RECOVERY OF DATA.

LESSONS TO BE LEARNED

As we watch the almost tropical severe weather on the East Coast, we cannot ignore the shift in weather throughout the plains. For the next two weeks we will be publishing Winter Weather Lessons on our KRVN Radio Blog. You can access these lessons by clicking on the large graphic below.

You Jane - Me Tarzan

I have long said that the women on our team are stronger than the men. I have found that in a disaster or a stressful incident situation, women tend to stay calm, more in control of their own emotions while the men tend to clench their fists and run first, thinking second.

While I am not sure how scientific my findings have been, it is interesting to find out that a team from Krakow, in Poland, used functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI) to assess brain activity when 40 volunteers of both sexes were shown various images.

In the study, the men showed activity in areas which dealt with what action they should take to avoid or confront danger but the study showed more activity in the emotional side of a woman’s brain.

The researchers, from Jagiellonian University Hospital in Krakow, carried out scans on 21 men and 19 women. Brain activity was monitored while the volunteers were shown images of objects and images from ordinary life designed to evoke different emotional states.

There are normally three different responses to a sudden shock like a disaster situation: flight, fight or freeze. While the study did not mention the “freeze” option, what it showed was interesting and perhaps backs up my theories a bit.

The images were displayed in two runs. For the first run, only negative pictures were shown. For the second run, only positive pictures were shown.

While viewing the negative images, women showed stronger and more extensive activity in the left thalamus. This is an area which relays sensory information to the pain and pleasure centres of the brain.

Men showed more activity in an area of the brain called the left insula, which plays a key role in controlling involuntary functions, including respiration, heart rate and digestion. In essence, activity in this area primes the body to either run from danger, or confront it head on - the so-called "fight or flight response".

Researcher Dr Andrzej Urbanik said: "This might signal that when confronted with dangerous situations, men are more likely than women to take action."

Here is where I wonder about my own theories. While this study may prove that men are more likely to charge into a situation and take action before a woman, is this really a positive? The study itself of course did not attempt to make a determination regarding negative or positive, but I will. Over the course of the last several years, from disaster recovery operations to the disasters themselves, the women we have had on our team have DEFINITELY responded from that thalamus first, but this gave them the edge overall. The process of recognizing first the horror or need or loss seemed to give them an edge in the long run. While I believe that the study was probably accurate, do not misunderstand me; I am not talking about women sitting on the road crying while men are grabbing ropes and shovels. This study referred to and focused on the way the BRAIN worked, not the way the BODY responded.

While Dr. Urbanik believes men are more likely to take action, I disagree. What I believe is that women take action with an added element.

It has been my finding through years of working with female firefighters, disaster responders, nurses, doctors and paramedics that women, while immediately more emotionally attached to the situation, are just as quick to respond physically. In other words, they have a shovel in their hand just as fast.

What I believe this study really proves is that women operate on a different level than men and this makes them a more conscientious responder.

I have seen a gentle power from women in disasters that is rarely found in a man, and while often a man’s brute force is useful, the heart-driven power of a woman lasts much longer in a drawn-out scenario.

This summer, with a team of half women and half men suddenly thrust in a high-pressure response situation, it was the men that folded first, one of them, with years of experience, folded mentally after 5 days while the women on the team continued on. I believe that this stimulated thalamus may be the reason why I have witnessed all I have seen through the years. Women FEEL the need and therefore tend to attach themselves to the end goal of salvation personally.

All in all, I have no basis for drawing my conclusions save experience, but the study was interesting and I believe bolsters my opinion that women make tremendous responders, and that when disaster strikes, it is good to have at least one Jane around to balance out the Tarzan.

Happy Thanksgiving Everybody!

Our thoughts and prayers are with the family of Jerry Codner of Wood River today. Jerry lost his life in an accident last night near Gibbon, Nebraska.

Grandma kissed me to death

I remember holidays. Still have nightmares. Too much touching, too much kissing.

Now, don't get me wrong, I am not opposed to these things with the right person, but you gotta understand my grandma...she would come at you like a lion stalking a gazelle. You could see her eyes darting about the room looking for a small vulnerable child that still had not gotten a lipstick smear across their face... and the smell...oh the smell. Grandma smoked and ate circus peanuts. She was caked in Noxema.

Nobody was safe.

For the next month, we will be stalked by over-hugging uncles, kissing grandmas and coughing grandpas. If that is not bad enough, there are the younger ones... cousins, nieces, nephews all with runny noses. Try not to forget the one aunt that seems to forget all etiquette after she has had too much eggnog...ugh!

A lot of touching. A lot of kissing.

The failure of a single piece of computer gear in Utah disrupted travel for thousands last Thursday. It was the second time in 15 months that we have had a problem like this and the nation focused briefly on the critical need to upgrade the antiquated system. This past Thursday’s situation took 4 hours to resolve, yet following that 4 hours, flights had to be rescheduled, plans were changed, and airports were full of people for hours that originally had no intention of staying in the terminals that long.

It brings up a glimpse of this week’s travel, which traditionally, with or without a gliche in the system is wrought with delays and crowded airports because of holiday travel. For the next month, thousands upon thousands will take that “once a year” flight to visit relations and spend vacation time together.

Weather will also begin to play a role in airport delays and crowded airports as the winter season begins to dump snow on much of the country.

On Friday I spoke at a conference on H1N1 and infectious disease control and we used the scenario of holiday flight to address awareness and preparedness issues. Before you finish packing that old carpet bag and head out of town, let’s look at what we came up with:

Last Thursday, in the middle of a declared pandemic, we stranded travelers in airports all over the country for hours crowding terminals for much of the day. Once the planes began to catch up with the day’s schedule, we took these people and placed them in metal containers for an average of two hours each practically sitting on top of each other and sent them to different cities.

Those people are presently going about their lives, having meetings, renting cars, shaking hands and kissing relatives.

This week, another batch, much larger than last Thursday’s group, will be gathering once again in airport terminals across the country. These people will experience delays, long lines and close quarters in packed terminals and packed airplanes. Do not forget packed restrooms, packed cafes and restaurants and taxi cabs.

Finally, they will arrive at your house. You will greet them at the door, hug and kiss and shake hands inviting them in to sit with the rest of the family that has missed them all year. The house will be warm from a day of cooking turkey, stuffing and potatoes…the children, now accompanied by cousins will fill every bedroom and playroom of the house. Grandpa will take his place in the living room and the rest of the family will fill the room around him.

The next day, mom, grandma and maybe even some of the little girls will awake at 4 am despite the active day before and they will all jump in the car and head to the stores for the busiest shopping day of the year. The stores will be packed. The lines will long. Cafes and Restaurants will be almost impassible. The day of bargain shopping will finally end and everyone will return back home for a weekend of family and football games, cuddling and sharing good times.

Alas, the Thanksgiving weekend will end and we will all stand in the doorway or at the drop-off lane at the airport and kiss our relatives goodbye. Hugs, kisses and tears will send our loved ones off to a crowded airport and crowded plane. They will be back in a few short weeks but we still hate to say goodbye…

Yes, this is how it is every year. Nothing ever changes except for this year. Go back to the beginning of our story and add one element…the flight attendant that will be working grandma’s flight this week took care of a little boy last Thursday that had H1N1 and has not been feeling very well this morning. She cannot wait for the week to end, her husband has been sick for two days and one of her children is home today not feeling well either.

"Oh well, one last flight and I can take the rest of the week off" she thinks to herself as she gets a small pillow for grandma and the plane taxis down the runway...

Will you be more aware this next week?

Visit http://www.cdc.gov/H1N1FLU/ for ways to protect yourself during your “people filled” holiday.

Department of Homeland Security (DHS) Secretary Janet Napolitano today was joined by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention’s (CDC) Dr. Anne Schuchat and Transportation Security Administration (TSA) Acting Administrator Gale Rossides to promote holiday travel tips and highlight the simple steps travelers can take to prevent the spread of the flu.

“Following these simple travel tips will help expedite the screening process at airports and keep travelers healthy and safe throughout the holiday travel season,” said Secretary Napolitano.

TSA’s holiday travel tips will help decrease the amount of time passengers spend in line at airport security checkpoints, increase the overall efficiency of airport operations and enhance security by engaging passengers in the shared responsibility of watching out for suspicious activity at airports across the nation.

TSA Travel Tips

· Pay attention to your health before traveling

o The best way to prevent the spread of the flu is to stay home if you’re sick or have flu-like symptoms.

o The CDC recommends you get both H1N1 and seasonal flu vaccines.

· Practice good hygiene while traveling

o Cover your mouth when coughing or sneezing.

o Wash your hands regularly to help prevent the spread of germs and illness.

· Ensure your government-issued ID and boarding pass are out and ready

o Getting all travel documents together and ready before you get in line will help security officers quickly verify that you, your identification, and your boarding pass match and are valid.

· Wear easily removable shoes and jackets

o Wearing footwear that can be easily removed helps speed the process for X-ray screening. Be prepared to remove all shoes, jackets and other outerwear for screening.

· Take out liquids and laptops

o Remember the 3-1-1 rule for liquids, gels and aerosols at the checkpoint:

§ 3-ounce bottles or less for all liquids, gels and aerosols;

§ 1 quart-sized, clear, plastic zip-top bag; and

§ 1 bag per passenger placed separately in a security bin for X-ray screening.

o The liquid restriction applies only to carry-on bags. Passengers can pack larger quantities of liquids and gels in checked baggage.

o Be prepared to remove your laptop from its case and place it in separate bin for X-ray screening.

· Use TSA Family Lanes if you or your family needs extra time or assistance

o Last year, TSA expanded its popular Family Lanes to every security checkpoint in the United States.

o Family Lanes allow infrequent travelers, those with small children or passengers who need additional assistance to move through security at their own pace. Officers in these lanes work with passengers to screen medically necessary items like baby formula and insulin.

· Keep an eye out for suspicious activity

o Transportation security is a shared responsibility. The traveling public plays an important role in keeping holiday travel safe.

o Travelers should report all suspicious activities or items to airport security personnel.

· Remember TSA’s new Secure Flight program when booking new airline tickets

o Fulfilling a key 9/11 Commission recommendation, TSA is working with airlines to implement Secure Flight.

o Secure Flight prescreens passenger name, date of birth and gender against government watch lists for domestic and international flights—making travel safer and easier by keeping known or suspected terrorists from obtaining a boarding pass.

o In addition, Secure Flight helps prevent the misidentification of passengers who have names similar to individuals on government watch lists.

o When booking airline tickets, use your name as it appears on the government ID you plan to use when traveling—along with your date of birth and gender. Providing this information will clear 99 percent of travelers to print boarding passes at home.

o Airlines are phasing in this program; if you are not prompted for this information when booking travel or if there are small variations between your name and your reservation, don’t worry—you will still be able to travel.

For more information on these and other helpful travel tips, please visit www.tsa.gov.

ATTENTION

Over the course of the last two years we have developed over 50 new programs for libraries and schools. During the last 9 months of touring, there were dozens that asked to be put on the list for next year in order to secure dates with these new programs and promotions, but as of today, many of those that we have attempted to reach have not gotten back to us. With the large following of this blog and the activity we have had in the last several weeks, we wanted to place an open letter here to get your attention if you are one of those folks.
Because of the increased demand for tour dates, we are no longer able to hold any dates open without hearing from you NOW.
If you wanted a specific date and are one of the event sponsors that we spoke to in the last 9 months, you need to contact our office immediately by phone or email as we cannot guarantee any dates which means that you will have to adjust to a tour schedule rather than have your choice. We are close to being forced to discontinue our promotional deals as well due to the increase in demand for these dates so hesitating could mean the difference between having your event and not having your event.
Do not wait any longer. We want to hear from you and cannot wait to visit you again!
Please CLICK HERE to contact the office.

2010 is the year!

We are pretty excited about what has been happening around the office. New sponsors are calling, and more importantly, more schools, more libraries, more agencies. It looks like 2010 could be the best year we have ever had here at Chasing4Life and we know it is because of the many friends that we have made and met over the last two years. Your recommendations, your word-of-mouth advertising on our behalf is spreading the word like a wildfire in high winds.
Our blog numbers are up, our homeschool numbers are up, our web hits are up.
If you have not yet called or emailed to see when we are in your area, NOW IS THE TIME to do it! Our tours are filling up and the new programs for 2010 look better than any we have ever had. So far, we have dates lining up in at least 20 states (see map)! We have NEVER had interest this widespread this early in the season before!
Looking forward to a great year with more opportunities than ever before...creating a more resilient America one community at a time!

SciTech and Dorothy...and Dorothy...

We are now getting pictures from the SciTech unveiling of Dorothy in her new home. We have posted a brief story up on the website if you would like to see it. Just CLICK HERE.
We would like to thank John Gudenas, David James, Mayor Tom Weisner and the other folks from Aurora that helped make this possible.
Special thanks this week goes to Dan Bocklund who has worked very hard the last week at the museum and will be completing construction of the display alongside of the museum.

They Did Their Share

On Veteran’s Day we honor
Soldiers who protect our nation.
For their service as our warriors,
They deserve our admiration.

Some of them were drafted;
Some were volunteers;
For some it was just yesterday;
For some it’s been many years;

In the jungle or the desert,
On land or on the sea,
They did whatever was assigned
To produce a victory.

Some came back; some didn’t.
They defended us everywhere.
Some saw combat; some rode a desk;
All of them did their share.

No matter what the duty,
For low pay and little glory,
These soldiers gave up normal lives,
For duties mundane and gory.

Let every veteran be honored;
Don’t let politics get in the way.
Without them, freedom would have died;
What they did, we can’t repay.

We owe so much to them,
Who kept us safe from terror,
So when we see a uniform,
Let’s say "thank you" to every wearer.

By Joanna Fuchs

On Monday of this week, Chasing4Life’s Jim Dills was named Emergency Manager of Doniphan, Nebraska. In an effort to introduce Jim to you and to give you the opportunity to get to know him better.

Doniphan, Nebraska is a small town of just under 800 people and is located in Southern Hall County near Interstate 80.

Here is our interview with Jim:

Was the decision to accept the job of EM a difficult one?

Yes, being an effective emergency manager takes time and education. The field is changing almost everyday. (Example: the H1N1 information keeps changing by the minute it seems like.)

How long have you lived in Doniphan? I moved here in 2000 so going on 10 years.

What is your opinion of Doniphan? Doniphan lives up to the community sign: "it’s a good life.

What is your opinion of the READINESS of Doniphan? Like all communities Readiness can always be improved no matter how ready a community is.

What do you hope to accomplish as EM in Doniphan? As EM I hope to establish the community in being prepared and to create an effective disaster recovery team if a disaster were ever to happen to our fine community.

What do you think the obstacles will be? Like all things change and new ideas sometimes takes time.

Why were YOU chosen to be EM? The prior EM was stepping down, he chose me because of my interest in Emergency Management, and experience working three major disasters with the Red Cross and the Nebraska National Guard..

Of all the disasters that could hit Doniphan, what is your GREATEST fear? Like most communities in Nebraska we are a farming community, we have two major suppliers of anhydrous in the city. My Greatest fear is a major rupture or a major leak during the night when everyone is a sleeping.

What do you remember as your biggest success or best story from your history doing disaster response work? I don’t consider my success so much as the organizational success of the people that work the disasters. I guess if you need a story I would have to say seeing how an effective and organized disaster team makes a difference in those that are suffering from the disaster.

The worst? Seeing how people suffer during a disaster whether it is a major or individual disaster.

How do you plan on being the BEST EM you can be? By education, training and working with other Emergency Manager and their teams.

FARM SAFETY

The past few days have been great for getting things done. It was encouraging to see the trucks and combines along the roads wasn’t it? The great weather is going to hold and that means we are going to get those fields picked!

I noticed on Saturday that the fields were FULL of families. EVERYONE was pitching in to take advantage of the balmy weather and clear skies. It is a farm tradition, isn’t it? No matter what the family does, when the fields are ready, the family gets together. That means that even the folks from out of town show up to pitch in!

This weekend we all got a lot done, and we were lucky. Some folks had weekends that did not end so great.

An 8-year-old boy was airlifted for treatment of significant leg injuries after a farm accident Saturday in Indiana. Police say the boy was scooped up by machinery cutting corn in a field near County Road 35. Investigators say he apparently was playing in the yard and ran into the field, in front of the farm equipment. Both of his legs were crushed.

Should I bring up the 2 year old boy killed Thursday by his own father who ran him over with a skid loader?

Just so you don’t think machinery is the only problem, how about the 9 year old run over by a horse drawn hay wagon this weekend?

Folks, this blog is supposed to be about safety, not just weather-related factoids and trivia, so seatbelt cause I am gonna yell…

Tractor accidents are the number one cause of farm fatalities, and unfortunately, many of those victims are children. There’s a million ways for a kid to die in this world, and most of them are on a farm.

Tractor safety is something that I have never been good at. I grew up with my Uncle giving me rides on the fenders…after all, that little oblong “handle-hole” is for underage riders, right? WRONG! Perhaps one of the oldest traditions since the invention of the steam engine is to give your kids or your grandkids a ride on that tractor. Nothing is more fun than to watch the kids come in for a weekend from the city for a “piece of country living”, but statistics say they stand a good chance of leaving in pieces if you’re not careful!

Do not think for a moment that tractor cabs keep riders safe. A cab is designed to protect the operator and does not prevent the rider (ANY RIDER) from being thrown and/or run over.

The rule is this:
NO SEAT-NO RIDER.

Now maybe you would never think of grabbing your kid or grandkid and swinging them up to hitch a ride, but are you being careful to make sure that the family does not play near the tractor?

“Grandpa! Grandpa!”

She bounces across the field with that jug of tea. She only wants to help; to connect with you… to visit for a moment and to have you tell her that she is getting bigger every day…

Unfortunately you did not see her. A flash of pink gingham and you know something is wrong but you never heard her and you certainly never felt the wheels as they rolled over her small and fragile body…

What would you do? Could you live with yourself?

Tractors are responsible for 41% of the accidental farm deaths of children under 15 years of age yet 4 out of 5 children regularly ride farm tractors! While riding the tractor may be a family tradition, remember…it is easier to bury a tradition than to bury a child.

Please visit The Child Agricultural Safety Network website to find out more about kids and tractors. http://www.childagsafety.org/

Update

In light of the facts that I am on the road, we left the blog up for John Bernardi's services and have concentrated on the Fort Hood incident in other blogs today, we will not be updating this blog until next week.

We want to make short mention here, however, that we appreciate our sponsors that have renewed or have begun commitments for 2010! Make sure you stop by our new FAVORITE PRODUCTS page on the website. We want to thank KRVN Radio, GoLight and FoxFury (click on the picture above) for their commitment and their encouragement!

We also want to congratulate our own Jim Dills for his appointment to the office of Emergency Manager in Doniphan, Nebraska! It is a well-deserved appointment and recognition Jim should be proud of. We will be focusing on Jim's new job, his goals and future next week right here in this blog!

Please watch the site next week for new changes being made to our MEET THE TEAM page, the TRACKING TEAM page and more!

We will miss you, John

A good friend of Chasing4Life passed away this weekend and we are truly mourning his passing. John Bernardi (Nov 21, 1950-Oct 31, 2009) was the Branch Manager of the Washington Branch Library in Omaha. He was also the editor of NLAQ, board member of The Literacy Center of Omaha, member of the American Library Association and also the Public Library Association. John believed in Chasing4Life and did his best to promote our events and the message of disaster preparedness. He was fun to work with, scattered in many directions at all times, and made learning fun for everyone he came in contact with. John was one of those librarians that REALLY believed in the power of a book and that passion is what we will miss the most.
Rest In Peace, John.

Changes and changes

Have you been watching the website? The blogs? If not, you have been missing out on a lot! Make sure you stop by and take a look. Our new Favorite Products page is up and growing, sponsors are changing, the layout is changing, things are being updated, we have a KRVN Blog now, a homeschooler's blog and our store will hopefully be up soon!
The end of the year is the time for changes and before we go into 2010, we will be making a lot more! Watch for the new trucks, new focus, new people, new tour promotions and more.
Are you a potential sponsor that missed out on 2009? Right now is the time to contact us to make sure you get involved for 2010. We have an all-new sponsorship package program, loads of opportunities and cannot wait to see how you fit in to it all!
Stay tuned...it's a new Chasing4Life.

Dorothy's new home

After many trials and delays, Dorothy made it to her new home this week at the Sci-Tech Children's Museum. While she was delivered on August 18th of this year, changes and delays kept Dorothy in a locked facility across town from the museum until this week. The museum will now be completing work in the new weather science area around Dorothy and we cannot wait to visit her. Click on the film strip to watch Dorothy enter her new home. Many thanks to Mr. Gudenas!

HAVE A TWISTED HOLIDAY

Website problems?

Aplus, the company that hosts our website, has been at this for 30 hours. Our website is still not working properly and we want to apologize to everyone that is trying to reach us via the site. Use info@chasing4life.org as an address and please be patient. We are not getting solid answers from the company and we know that many of you are attempting to access the web site pages. So are we.

Wednesday is like a Monday

This morning our server is having issues so our website is down for a bit this morning. If you went to the site and saw that we don't exist, it's just an ugly rumor, they say they will have it up again soon. 2 ways of looking at this: #1. Inability to work this morning #2. Inability to work this morning.
Hmmmm. Gotta find that coffee cup...

Halloween Safety

While we all want Halloween to be just as scary as possible, there is no point in making it dangerous and there is no reason to make the danger REAL.

This blog is supposed to be about safety and preparedness, so with the Halloween holiday upon us, let’s get down to business.

Growing up, Halloween was one of those holidays that we did not always participate in. The family bounced back and forth between the history of Halloween and our religious beliefs so it was a pretty confusing time for me as a kid. By the time I became an adult, I had decided that I was going to celebrate Halloween like nobody had ever done before. I went to every haunted house, every maze, and went to several Halloween parties. As for my kids? I sent them out trick-or-treating with the biggest plastic pumpkins I could buy!

We cleaned up! We had candy for two years! A year later, while sitting around eating stale Bit-O-Honeys, I began to think about how irresponsible I had been all in the name of “celebrating”.

Parents of trick-or-treating kids can get so caught up in the fun themselves that they might forget some simple safety ideas that could save everyone some trouble. Here are some things to remember…

Know where your kids are at all times. Have you been watching the news? What a great night for child abductors, huh? Unattended kids distracted by mobs of other kids and adults, decorations and candy… they are quite a target. There has been some sad stories in the news lately, so know the route your kids are taking, accompany them if at all possible, or make sure they are in a group.

Make sure the costume is safe. Can your child safely look both ways before crossing the street with their mask on? Can they run in their costume? Defend themselves? I know, I am sucking the fun right out of your idea to dress your kid in a large silver balloon costume like he’s from Colorado, but think safety!

Know what activities your kids may be taking part in. I have some older kids that will not be trick-or-treating and I want to know WHERE they are going and WHO they are going with! As the father of several teenagers, I have figured out that the older the kid, the dumber decision.

Do not assume that the mall functions are safe. GO WITH YOUR KID.

Set a curfew. Make it very clear that you expect your child home at a set time. Any tardiness will indicate a problem so you can act quickly. Take a picture of your child in their costume before they leave the house so you have one should anything happen.

Explain to your children the difference between tricks and vandalism. Spooking people can be fun, but vandalism is not acceptable.

Think about the weather. Make sure that you do not sacrifice health for a cool costume. The forecast for 32 degrees has TOTALLY ruined my plans to go as a belly dancer.

Lastly, make sure your child has a flashlight with them. The way it looks to me, the night should be partly cloudy which will obscure the coming full moon on and off.

Be safe, enjoy the holiday. Give out cool candy. Peeps left over from Easter are NOT acceptable.

Elizabeth was found today

The body of missing 9-year-old Elizabeth was found in a wooded area near Missouri's capital city today, two days after she was last seen walking from a neighbor's home. According to the latest news, the suspect is a juvenile.

The sheriff did not give any details on how Elizabeth died or about the juvenile in custody except to say that the person lived in the area west of Jefferson City and was older than the girl. Police said Elizabeth's body was found just before 3 p.m.

A bog of Blogs

Wading through the daily grind of this organization can sometimes be quite tiring. We try very hard to keep you all informed as to what we are doing, where we are, and what we have been doing, but time only allows for so much.
We are in the middle of our 500 4 Life Campaign.
What this campaign entails is 500 events in 4 months. Can you imagine? Yep, there is no sleep available right now. On top of that, this is the time of year we look for supporters for next year. With our calendar horrible out of date, the blogs are really the only way to track us right now.
This year's sponsors seem to have forgotten to check in, which is frustrating, and we are looking for very key sponsorships for 2010. We need a wireless sponsor, a tour title sponsor, a Chasing With Heart sponsor, a merchandise sponsor or partner, a vehicle sponsor, a mechanical sponsor and a tire sponsor.
If you know of an opportunity or interested party or corporation, let us know and help take the load off!
As I said, the blogs are the very best way to keep track of what we are doing. We have something for everyone...
For our Homeschool Blog, CLICK HERE.
For our Team Blog, CLICK HERE.
For our Fan Club Blog, CLICK HERE.
For our new KRVN Radio Blog, CLICK HERE.

Oh yeah, before I forget, you can always Tweet your heart out and get up to the minute news from the road on our Twitter.

No, we do not have a FaceBook. I do not like being poked.

Stay in touch, we'll try to do the same.

Attention Homeschoolers!

If you have not checked out the new homeschool blogsite, stop on over and see what is going on! CLICK HERE to take a look. Gotta link you want to share for the new site? Send it our way!

Update

This leg of the tour is coming to a close today in Mundelien, Illinois. The last several weeks have been incredible and the schedule for next year is filling rapidly. We want to thank everyone that has patiently been waiting for meetings and phone calls and we want you all to know we appreciate understanding the heavy schedule we have been under.
Beginning next week we will be working hard on next year's tour dates and will be updating the tour schedule. If you are considering a date for the months between January and June of 2010, NOW is the time to send in an email- Monday we will be solidifying much of that time period's schedule!
Many thanks to folks that have been so wonderful on this leg of the tour!
Watch here for the pics from this run- we'll have them up within a few days.

Stop in the name of the law!

What a 24 hour ride.
Last night, after a full day of great events, Alannah and I returned to our favorite little lodge for a good night's sleep before our long drive to Illinois. As we started to drift off, there was a sudden banging on the door of our room. Only the police can knock on a door the way they do...they must have a class on that at the academy.
Two officers awaited as I opened the door.
Yep. Just our luck. Turns out they were hunting a couple almost matching our description and driving a Jeep Grand Cherokee...same year, same color.
We did not get a lot of info from them, and they nicely apologized for disturbing us after a few tense moments, but after getting back into the room, we checked online to see just who we were mistaken to be...
Wow were we pleasantly surprised! Turns out that authorities were hunting a 22 year old male and a 24 year old female!
I was so excited I said to Alannah, "HEY! I looked 22 today!"
I was not the only one excited.
"And I looked 24!" she said.
I went to bed feeling younger. She went to bed feeling older.
All in all, a good but very strange day.

From the road...

(Photo is from Decatur County Public Library)

Every once in a while you find a librarian that stands out amongst the rest. today, at the Henderson County Public Library in Lexington, Tennessee we met such a woman. Dinah went all out in promoting her events today. Upon arrival, the first thing we noticed was a pile of disaster kits behind the counter. What a suprise! She gave away 50 kits today to the first 50 folks that walked in the door! The entire day we were escorted by emergency personnel and our morning event was great with a receptive audience of not-so-senior citizens!

It was good to have someone that caught the vision of partnering in an educational effort and truly made an effort to connect the community using their library. We are looking forward to being back in Lexington soon.


Tomorrow we head on down the road for Central Illinois, but for the night we will recuperate a little at our favorite spot in the woods, the Terrace Woods Lodge in Paris, Tennessee. Dale and his wife are great people and this has become one of those "havens" for us. We want to thank them for their hospitality and kindness every time one of our team stays here.


It is hard to be away from home for such great lengths of time and it is nice to know that when we travel, we are among family still. That family is definitely growing.


Due to the demand when we tour, we have created a new homeschool blog which you can find in the left-hand menu of our main site (http://www.chasing4life.org/). Our goal is to begin posting the links, tips and advice we have been handing over as we tour. The number of homeschooling families taking advantage of our tours is growing and we have so much to share it just made sense to create a new place just for them.


In the wake of this weekend's bad weather and tornadic activity, please remember that there is only two tornado seasons: this year and next year. Take cover when those sirens blow, don't let the holidays distract you from what you have learned. Take some time this week and have a tornado drill with your kids, check your home disaster kit, and make sure you drop us a line when you have chance. Always good to hear from family.


Stay safe

Tour Update

We're tired, but very pleased with how the tour has gone in Tennessee. We have made new connections and we have booked several weeks in 2010 where we will return here to tour once again. If you are interested in finding out how effective and powerful these tours are and why our team is continually touring, make sure you contact us via the website soon as dates are limited and special tour offers exist right now!
Are you looking at becoming more involved in disaster response work or in volunteering your skills or time toward an educational effort? We are looking for you too!
Snow found its way to Nebraska this morning so we won't lie to you and tell you that we wish we were on our way home yet...let it melt first. Record snow fall was recorded in North Platte this morning so its hard to believe that we are almost to the anniversary of the Oconto tornado and the ground is white like Christmas!
The storms here yesterday were a handful and navigating the flooding streets of Clarksville proved a challenge but it will be the cold snap throughout Illinois this week we will dread the most...
As this tour draws to a close next week, we have already begun to work on the next leg of the tour in Iowa. Watch for news about the 72 Hour Experiment, the tours and new members all coming soon.

Click for glimpses at the tour

DUE TO A SCHEDULING CONFLICT WITH THE FILMING OF "CHASING WITH HEART" THE 72 HOUR EXPERIMENT HAS BEEN RESCHEDULED FOR LATE OCTOBER. FOR FURTHER UPDATES KEEP CHECKING THIS BLOG.

Omaha Police Mounted Patrol

This week I got to spend some time with an officer from the Omaha Police Mounted Patrol. In an age of high speed police chases and cutting edge technology crime-fightning, it was a real experience to speak with a police officer sitting atop a large Morgan horse.

The Omaha Police Mounted Patrol Unit began in 1989 as a part-time Unit on a trial basis when two community leaders, then Omaha Mayor P.J. Morgan and area businessman Donovan Ketzler, decided to implement a horse patrol. The Unit started with two Officers, two donated horses, a donated trailer, and all the accompanying donated tack. The original Mounted Patrol Officers assisted with big events such as Septemberfest and River City Roundup along with patrolling the downtown area, responding to disturbances, and playing a crucial role in crowd control situations. The new horse patrol exceeded expectations and was such a success in all areas of law enforcement, special events, and public relations that the Mounted Patrol was made a full-time Unit in 1990.

Mounted Patrol Officers perform all aspects of police work from horseback including traffic and crowd control; they conduct traffic stops, write citations, and make arrests. Horse Patrol Officers are often utilized during searches for missing persons, evidence, and suspects in open fields, wooded areas, and rough terrain.

The Unit has a state-of-the-art equine facility downtown and the patrol operates nearly year 'round, riding the city in even the coldest of temperatures. The powerful well-trained horses are really amazing and it was a pleasure to watch these fantastic animals.

There is a cool video of the horses in training at http://www.ketv.com/news/18882179/detail.html#

Omaha trip over

Well, another week has passed and with it some of the best events of the year. After having just finished a tour through some Omaha Public Schools, I am feeling really good about the new year's new school programming. Every grade was an absolute blast and we met so many great teachers (and a few great principals) on this trip and cannot wait to return to Omaha.

It was good to see David and Shari again at the Conestoga Magnet School and the turn-out for the evening event with the parents was really awesome!

Now, as the week ended with Hamilton, it ended on a VERY positive note...what a great school! The teachers were really fun to be around and Shawn (the principal) is definitely Chasing4Life material. How cool is a school where you can take riding lessons from the Omaha mounted Police? Congrats on a successful walk-a-thon you guys and I am looking forward to coming back!

Your kitchen and disasters

I found this cool article on About.com...

Natural disasters are a reality that the entire world deals with including hurricanes, floods, blizzards, and even simple short-term power outages. It is important to be prepared in the kitchen. Those who are used to severe weather storms most likely already have an emergency food plan in place. Find out what you can do to prepare your kitchen for natural disasters or any state of emergency with tips and recipes.

For the rest of the article, visit http://homecooking.about.com/od/disaster/a/disasterpantry.htm

By Peggy Trowbridge Filippone

There is a GREAT list of cooking tips, foods to stock for disasters and a lot more! Best article I have seen in a long time! Seriously people, read this article and check out the links!

A season of change

It has been a week since the last leg of the tour ended and we are still not fully recovered. Trucks to fix, paperwork to do, filming to prepare for and we leave again on Monday for a tour in Omaha of public schools! Not really time off!

There are a lot of changes coming up ahead with Chasing4Life, the educational foundation, drivers, instructors, tours and the website. You will begin to notice (and might have already) that the website pages are being re-written. Banners will change, sponsors are being changed, moved and added, and the overall feel of things is changing. You will be noticing new pages, a new focus, more educational materials and hopefully more blogging!

The film, Chasing With Heart, could be very well on its way to completion with the arrival of Verita Pictures from Canada in 7 days to finish shooting. This is exciting and will put us into the next phase of Chasing4Life's changes.

We are excited that our old crew has almost completely returned and the disaster recovery focus has definitely returned to Chasing4Life bringing with it memories of the ice storms, tornadoes, hurricanes and blizzards of a few years ago.

Christina is working hard on the recovery team and recruitment along with tour packaging and grants while Nikki has begun to work on personnel and protocols for the restored team. Chad is presently working on a new truck and will be working on victim relations procedures while we hope Dan can complete a communications plan for the coming year. It is our goal to send Cory to school this year; a move we feel would give us one of the finest forecasters any team could have, and Jim is looking ahead to disaster recovery coordination and will be meeting with Nikki over the weekend. Cathy is hard at work on tours and scheduling events while Alannah is preparing for more involvement as a presenter on the next few tours while keeping up on her studies.

Chasing4Life's metamorphysis will be massive over the next few months as we focus more on severe weather monitoring and training, research and education, disaster recovery and community restoration. You will see fewer references to stormchasing as the months progress as Chasing4Life begins to make changes that will separate the organization from the perceptions that follow stormchasers around the country.

Looking forward to seeing all the changes? We are!

Want to be involved?

Now is the time to email us and request a disaster response team application. Now is the time to grab an available date for your organization before the tours are full, and now would be a great time to step up as a sponsor.

It's almost the end of the year, and sponsorships all expire at the end of the year so if you are a company, entity or organization looking to attach themselves to a national team with national exposure and a cause worth backing, email us right away.

Well, enough for now, but watch for more and more updates...

Oh yeah...don't forget!

The 72 Hour experiement is less than 10 days away!

City of Lebanon

Today was a really cool day. Alannah and I had time to drive around historic Lebanon, Tennessee and we were allowed to privately tour The City of Lebanon Museum and History Center all by ourselves. It was a great opportunity to have the museum all to ourselves and to spend time studying the history of this unique town. The disaster history of the town and surrounding area is actually pretty incredible! We'll post some pics of our day and week over this weekend.