A senior widow lady I’m close to recently admitted she had sat in the dark during a power outage as she couldn’t find a flashlight, ran her phone battery down with no way to charge it, etc. Kids live out of state. She lives on her own, in good health and drives, just a bit scatter brained as some older folks get.

We sat down and went through Amazon together. I ordered and she paid me back (she’s online but won’t order anything). Battery radio, flashlight that plugs in and acts as a nightlight until you need it, battery lantern, backup battery pack for phone. I standardized the lantern and radio to AA.

She was embarrassed to tell me, but I was talking about getting my emergency stuff reorganized and that prompted her to tell me. Everything is in one place in her kitchen and easy to get to.


There have got to be a lot of seniors like her. She turns out to have been OK for food as she had PB, crackers, lots of fruit, and tuna.

You are a good person, embodiment of an Angel.

Good on ya for helping her out.

That should be good for a few years or so. Problem is at that age and older they get stuck in loops and can't reason their way out of it so go into a sort of mental paralysis and do nothing. Also, depending on their experience with adversity a situation may cause the same paralysis e.g. people who end up drowning in their car in a retention pond when the water is barely above the roof.

Maybe do some "what if" scenarios with her.

Also, since it appears you may be her "guardian" more so than her relatives you might have her provide you with a list of her Dr's and contact info, meds, and relatives with their contact info as well.

Good for you helping the lady out!

My oldest brother is technically a "senior". I've talked to him about needing to have some level of preparedness over the years. All that went in one ear and out the other. Until Kung Flu came along. All of a sudden, there were things that weren't available and lots of places were closed. Now, he boasts about having food, TP, and other "essentials" stored away in the bedroom he doesn't use. I think he may have even finally bought a generator after the big deep freeze (although apparently his power never went out a lot of folks' did).

Easing into preparedness is the best approach, senior or not. It doesn't make sense to panic buy a bunch of stuff all at once. It makes a lot more sense to buy things you already use at a rate that is slightly more than regular consumption. If you normally use a couple cans of veggies a week, buy 4 at the store until you get a few months worth. Then, just use FIFO method to keep them rotated. Around here, we have at least one backup multi-pack of things like TP, paper towels, tissues, etc. When it looks like we're about to use up the pack, we buy another one. That way, no matter what, we always have at least one unopened multi-pack tucked away.

A lot of folks forget about basic toiletries, too, like soap, toothpaste, shampoo, conditioner, etc. We've gone to having two backups for each of those. We've learned over the years that it's really, really annoying to be in the shower and realize you don't have enough soap/shampoo/etc to finish your shower, and especially maddening when you don't have another bottle of it nearby. Basically, we are our own store and we replenish "store stock" as required.

She’s already good at keeping some extra on hand, not a ton, but enough. She has a gas stove and is fine with lighting a burner to cook something simple. I gave her a long BBQ lighter as they’re easier to use and safer than fumbling with a match. I use those myself.

Some of the people I try to get  them to get a few preps together  do make a first aid kit, or even a go bag. Others not so much. Threes people  are smart and have money, but  they just won't plan ahead.  They are smart enough to remember I have stuff. There buy primers by the 100 box and batteries  single pack.  With all the doom  on TV somer are learning. I guess some peoplem are slow learners. Normal Biase kicks in like its hard wired in  some of us.

Are you talking about seniors or just the average Joe?

Person I helped in this instance was an 85 yo widow who just needed a few things to get her through a several hour power outage. Anything longer, she calls one of us on her list and we get her to someone with space for her (I have a 1BR apt and no room for anyone but me).

In my experience it is both.  People in our gun club come to mind.  The younger ones appear to  seem to understand and prep more, not sure why

This is GD Marie, ............ doom, prepping for the zombie apocalypse and tagging everything with "Wolverine" is the main course.

This actually isn’t GD. It’s in the survival sub forum

My bad but, even more apropos

Good on you, Marie.


BTW, you didn’t mention whether she drives, but as far as prepping goes, I like flexibility and multiple redundancy, as it’s more efficient.

To that effect, I have these jumppack/battery packs in each vehicle, and can wholeheartedly recommend them (I have the GT4000 with the pre-heat function which I still haven’t had a chance to test, as I haven’t needed to give anyone a jumpstart in negative temperatures since getting these. The GT4000S version doesn’t have the pre-heat, and is a bit cheaper. The GT4000 is $120 right now, after the $20 coupon. The GT4000S is $110).






I HAVE used them to jump a 6l V8, which it did easily (battery so flat, it didn’t even make a solenoid click when turning the key).

Several features that I especially like over my previous jumppacks:
1) THE biggest factor, especially when using it as a battery pack; it has a 100w input/output USB-C, allowing it to charge MUCH faster than any of my other jumppacks (and the 100w output allows it to charge things like a MacBook/iPad). *** it includes a 12v cigarette lighter 100w charging cable, but I had to get a separate 100w capable USB charger, as my Samsung phone charger topped out at 45w.

I tested using it as a battery pack, and how quickly it would recharge from completely drained and it recharged in just over an hour. My other jumppacks take 4-5 hours to recharge from completely drained. Used it to recharge my phone during an outage while staying at a friend’s house. It recharged from ~80% back to full, plugging it into the Toyota’s 120w rated CLA socket in the short ~15-20 minute drive (total time, to and fro) to a nearby store to get groceries/supplies.

2) it has an LCD display with BIG numbers that show battery life in percentage vs the more common 4 LEDs where I don’t know if 2 LEDs = ~50%, ~27%, or is complete BS. The big numbers are very helpful for seniors and old coots like me, who need reading glasses for smaller type/numbers 😝.

The display also shows either input wattage when charging (which is how I realized my USB phone charger wasn’t capable of the maximum 100w charging rate), OR discharge current, when used to charge/power other devices (which allows me to estimate runtimes).

3) each time I’ve gotten a new/different jumppack (I have a BUNCH of them, the oldest being 8+ years old, now relegated to power pack for the LabRadar), I stick them in the vehicles and check the battery life every month for a year, to see how they hold up being left in vehicles exposed to the weather 24/7/365. The GT4000 was at 97% 1 year after being left in one vehicle that’s outside 24/7/365, in temperatures that ranged from 120+f in the summer sun, to -12f in winter.

The GT4000/4000S are rated at 99 watt-hours.

4) they include a CLA adapter socket for powering CLA devices. I’ve tested and keep both a Sylvania Rapid tire inflator, and a 12v powered scissor jack in the compact daily driver. The GT4000 easily powered both (IIRC, one of them drew up to 170-180w in use. The other drew 120-130w. They might potentially pop the vehicle’s CLA fuse, if plugged directly into the port, which is why I kept an alligator clip to CLA socket extension in the car, for use with those accessories. After confirming that the GT4000 easily powers them, while still retaining 70-80+ battery life, I don’t need to take up space with the alligator-CLA extension anymore).

The GT4000 not only had no issues powering those; raising and lowering a corner multiple times, only dropped the battery life to 8x%, which recharged within ~15 minutes of driving, with it recharging via the fast-charging CLA cable.

Whenever I have a power outage, I bring over a ‘Care kit’ for my senior neighbor on a limited income, with one of these jumppacks to keep her phone charged, a battery operated fan, and a D-cell battery operated UST 30-day lantern. A few years back, I brought them (her husband has since passed away) a Big Buddy heater and propane as well, during a winter outage, as I knew they were too stubborn to leave, and had limited funds for a hotel room. Then I bought them their own Big Buddy for Christmas.

••• Hmmm… since this IS a prepping thread, I might as well include links to the other items I mentioned, for any reader’s consideration.

Here’s the Sylvania tire inflator. Small enough to fit under many vehicle’s front seats, but it’s actually quite fast, not obnoxiously loud, and has auto-pressure stop (turn the yellow knob to desired pressure, and push the big start button).




Here’s the 12v powered jack. It’s not that much bigger than a manual scissor jack, but will raise a corner/wheel off the ground for a tire change in about 20-30 seconds with the push of a button, vs minutes of cranking away. Also a big factor for anyone not in physical shape to be cranking away with a manual scissor jack.

Importantly, placing it is what takes the most time (i.e. not long at all). The controller cable is long enough so you can stand out of the way (instead of potentially being on the dangerous side, next to the road/highway), so you can maintain situational awareness (for inattentive drivers, OR unsavory types) while raising the vehicle (instead of being hunched over, cranking away for a few minutes with a manual scissor jack).




*** I initially tested this jack by just raising and lowering a front corner of the car it was going to be placed in, multiple times. I’ve since used it to do the front brakes of the car, just to continue testing it. No problems. Also used it to change the tire by the roadside, when the SO popped her tire on a pothole, at night, in a not great part of town.

P.S.
Don’t forget wheel chocks, when using a jack. I forgot to use the ones I carry. She forgot to engage the parking brake. The car moved and toppled the jack (while  the car’s weight was on it) as it was being raised (fortunately, while I was standing to the side, pushing the button. Might’ve been bad, if my hands were anywhere around the wheel). Told her to make sure the parking brake was engaged. Repositioned the jack, raised the corner up just fine. The jack was undamaged, aside from cosmetic scuffing. I used the jack to change the front rotors and pads AFTER the incident above, to ensure it still worked fine.

She drives (mentioned in OP) and has AAA. She just goes around town. She’s a frail little thing. All of this stuff is just overkill for her.

Understood.

Depending on the price of the other battery pack, the GooLoo is still worth considering, simply for the fast charging capability (and double duty as a vehicle jump pack). Amazon orders make returns a lot easier, too. *** also potentially helpful info for other folks reading the thread.

In for a penny, in for a pound. Since it’s a preps thread. Here’s another item I’ve tested, and leave in all the vehicles ***I toss ANY included alkaline batteries, and either use Eneloops, or in this case, Energizer Lithium Ultimate batteries

LED safety flares




This listing is even cheaper, for an 8-count. Pretty sure they’re all made in the same Chinese factory.



Magnetic base, allows you to pop one on the roof of a standard vehicle, without even exiting the car.

I used the set to warn other drivers of an accident around a curve (intoxicated driver slammed his Mercedes into a tree), while waiting for responders and the ambulance to arrive and setup.

Pros:
They have MUCH better visibility than the ‘hockey puck’ type LED flares that I previously had. They can run continuously for hours, unlike the Orion 15-minute or 30-minute emergency flares.

I got a text from my senior friend that she’s sharing my info about emergency preps amongst her senior friends. I was asked to send her links to what items we got from Amazon so she can share with her friends.

That was good to hear.

I have to say, the more we can get folks to be self-sufficient at least to some degree, the better off we'll all sleep at night. And, the less we'll have to take care of these folks should SHTF.

Those power failure flashlights are nice.

Very useful to have around the house even if the power never goes out.

You might be able to find some solar powered pathway lights that can be used indoors during a power outage.

They are usually on clearance every fall at WalMart.

After finding out that my dad was sitting in the dark after he lost power for 18 hours, I got him some USB light bulbs.

He plugs them into a battery phone charger or his cars jump pack (he can also charge his phone if needed) and instant light.

Interesting. Didn’t even know they existed.

I have one that looks a lot like that. It may be the same one. It puts out a LOT of light. It's great to have around.

Oh...they're great.  Lots of light, can be powered from a power bank or anything with an USB-A output.  If you decide to buy the USB bulbs from Amazon, do a search on them...someone always has them on sale and will deliver them in a reasonable time, some of the vendors are overseas and their delivery can take 10 days to 2 month.

I made little kits for my immediate neighbors if we're anticipating that a storm is going to cause power outages.  I included a power bank, one of the USB light bulbs, a flashlight with spare batteries, a small AAA powered am/fm/noaa radio, and an inexpensive FRS radio (suburban neighborhood and all of them are within 200 ft of me).

mm

Good on you OP.

It took 2020 to get my elderly parents on board with some things.

I'm sorry if you mentioned it, but what about her meds (assuming she is Rx'd some)?

She said she has extra.

Good on you for helping her!

Couple of things though, talk to her about leaving batteries in the radio, lantern, and other battery powered items.  Or use lithium batteries, more expensive but not "suppose" to leak.
I have new Duracell batteries leak in the package.

I stopped leaving batteries in things I don't use very frequently.  I put a set of batteries in a ziplock with the radio, lanterns, etc so they are right there but wont ruin the unit.

Also may want to spend a few $$ to buy her a calendar and mark it every quarter to charge her battery packs.  

Talk to her about NOT using her stove for heat if she loses power in the winter.  Call you.

Your mother would be proud of you for what you are doing!!

Good ideas!

My mother was a bitch who enabled my alcoholic father. She died a couple of years ago and I didn’t go to the funeral. Always said I wouldn’t and hadn’t seen her in 20 years. Good riddance to bad trash.

Thank you for helping OP, that was good of you.