First off, this is not one of those vague, cryptic keep "your head on a swivel, it's coming soon" posts, but it may sound that way. Read it through to the end, and if you have something to add, please do.


I recieved two phone calls this morning, out of the blue, from two old buddies that I haven't seen or heard from in over 5 years. How they got my number, I have no idea. We used to work together sucking sand in third world shitholes that somebody thought needed saving. We grew up, got married, and went our seperate ways. I took an instructor job, one guy went to work as an intel analyst for US NORTHCOM, the other now works for some alphabet agency in the beltway doing who knows what. Small fish in a big pond all of us, but we all had a way of being flies on the wall when bigger fish were around. They were like brothers once, but time and distance had it's way and like I said, we've had no contact in years.

So anyhow, they both call me within hours of eachother this morning, and basically ask if things go south, and they are stuck at work, if I can take care of their family provided they can get to me. How do you answer that? Guys that I trusted with my life are now asking if they can entrust their families to me should the SHTF? What do they know that I don't? I tried to get intel, but they both just gave me the "I have a feeling" line. I know they used to prep, I know they can handle their own, but I know nothing about their wives or kids. I basically told them to let me sleep on it, and I would get back with them and develop a plan.

And that's what I need help with, a plan. One guy has his wife and 3 kids, two 6 yo boys and a 2 yo girl. They live in CO, halfway across the country from me. The other lives about 6 hours south of me, has his wife and a 4 yo daughter. I could reasonaly see the one from VA making it up to me, the folks in CO, not so much. But what if they do? I''m thinking of giving them a list of stuff to bring, but what should be on that list?? Should I even accept the request to begin with?? I mean, if it were me, these guys wouldn't be my first choice to do the same, so why am I their's?? Would I feel bad if I told them no, absolutely. Do I have the means to care for 6 additional people, not really. Should I suggest maybe pre-positioning some of their stuff with me? Should I have them fork over some cash so I can prep for their families too?

Too many questions I know, but I'm hoping for some answers here. Thanks.

I would call each buddy back and ask for the amount they have budgeted for the timeline in question.  Is this a weekend event?  A week? A month?

IMHO, 'stuck at work' is a little too vague for me to make any kind of real decisions about assistance.

TRG

Extremely odd they both call on the same day, unless they both have the same intel or are in cahootz. You need to dig on their "gut feelings" and gather info, before going forward.

Length of event.
Possible type of event.
Prob of event occuring.
Expected timeframe of event occuring.

From there you can get action plans for amounts of preps you'll need cash or prepositioning for.

If its something nationwide how is the CO family going to travel crosscountry to you? or will they arrive before the event?

Lots more info and planning needed.

I would explain to each that you don't have the space nor financial capabilities to take care of that many additional people, see what their response is.
Make your decision based on their response.

When I have to have a single mom and her kid(s) at the home I meet the mom at the door and laid the law down.

I'm da man and responsible for the safety of the people here.  Your kids will obey the rules that my kids live by, and you will back me up while you are here.

Only had to do that once so far.  

Since you are looking at having "single" moms + kids in your home; I thought you might like to think about this a bit.  Might be more critical than food YMMV

Hmmm...President is on a trip South too....Not near your Beltway friend..

Kind of odd that a very dear friend of mine who works for the DEA just asked me the same type of question less than a week ago. His question was couched as "If I'm not able to get home for a while, can you make sure the girls get what they need? Could they stay with you if they ever needed to"

As the Godfather to his daughters I told him yes, without question.

This subject has never come up in the past, except in the abstract. I'm not savvy enough about world events to know what, if anything, to read into his request. I know that things are bad of course, but I'm no economist or world-class thinker.

Posted Via AR15.Com Mobile

What about having a "sit down" with yourself and your two buddies to see what they "know". They could then either "buy in" for you to be able to prep for their families and such, plus if they can't get to you then you have some "extra" supplies on hand. This would also allow you to be able to see and speak with them without additional "ears" hearing what is being said.

tagging this for intel

I would say yes. Call me sentimental, but some bonds are stronger than real brotherhood. I'd consider their family my family.

Pics of women?

not here in SF

 

Dude that is so not welcome here in the SF....

Tag  for intel

bad mojo in the air, glad I steped up my preps as of late

I would say yes without a doubt, you chose them as friends and they hold you in high regards to ask you that, plus they know your a solid guy.
I would ask if it was going to be sooner than later, and ask for how long would the family members be staying and then ask if they needed anything special for the extended stay...
I would also ask if they could help to get you the supplies that you'll need for them or have them bring a bunch of things with them when they come.

Aside from that I would go out and get what I could just incase, if that was there way of warning you, you might not want to put off till tomorrow what you can do today.

I would ask my buddies to help me prep for this advent and if they do I would know the s is close to the fan

Watch the news. S'sHTF everywhere. Japan, Alabama, Texas (wildfires and drought). There are several 2012 Apocalypse shows running on various tv stations too.

There is no such things as coincidence.  Specially when three individuals that may know something have the same request.

About four weeks ago I got the feeling we were counting down to something big.  Odd but not coincidence.

I don't usually get too excited about the interweb alarm threads... but it is odd, your friends calling the same time, independently of each other. To add a little more strange to the thread, an ICE agent I work with on occasion (who is a prepper as well) out of the blue gave me a pop quiz on how my preps were a week ago. didn't offer any ominous warnings, just told me to keep stacking it deep.

It was just.... odd.


As always, 99.9% of the world will never be privy to the info that counts, so continue to prep for the worst and pray for the best.

I don't post much, and when I do it is the mundane, however.

The value of a brother-in-arms will remain long after youth has faded. If you still value them in later years, then help them as you would want them to help you.

Tag for more info.

Is this a coincidence or was there an intel brief that was disseminated.

OP needs to ask these guys for more info.

Maybe I'm not the best to chime in here, but here's what I would do in this situation.

1. Request that they each meet you in person to discuss this further.
2. Demand that their "gut feeling" be explained in more detail. If they want to trust you with their families, then you should be able to trust them that they'll tell you what's got them spooked.
3. When you meet with them, come up with a list of everything each person will need to survive at your location. AND... what can each person bring to the table to help keep a post SHTF operation working (who can sew, cook, kill game, clean, keep guard, etc.)
4. I would been honored that someone would ask me to do this but at the same time be cautious if a request like this came out of the blue with no normal contact for years. Maybe they're looking to see what you have saved up in your preps? Maybe the govt has begun seeking out people prepping for post govt overthrow/shutdown/etc? Most likely not, but have to play devils advocate from time to time.

Please keep us posted! If we should worry, it would be great to have a friendly heads up (with details)!

Me too!

I'm wondering if this is a gut felling they're getting or is there something more concrete that is making them concerned?




BTW: I know of a former Intel guy that is friends with my parents, he was talking to them about how they should get some food and other supplies stockpiled "Just in case". This was in the past year, so this thread is kinda creeping me out.

I don't know if this will make you feel better or worse, but sometimes everyone decides to pay attention to the experts at the same time.  There have been folks at the Fed level doing boring stuff like forward projections on food needs and so on for a while.  Boring, and usually ignored, right or wrong.  Lately, I have heard folks talking about food security issues as if it is a new thing, and that usually goes back to something second hand from someone working for the Feds.  Lots of folks have been warning about the whole Green Revolution food productivity issue running out of steam –– about 20 years ago, it was supposed to be running out of steam by 2015, more or less.  Corn-based ethanol probably pushed that forward a few years.  What I expect is happening is that people who have managed to ignore a lot of warnings from the geeks in the basement are now asking semi-intelligent questions, and getting back answers (for instance –– expect the cost of food in the US to increase by 30% in the next year or so) that scare the heck out of them.  While I hope that their thought processes are more in-depth than "Oh no!  Five dollar bags of Fritos!  The great unwashed will riot!" sometimes I am not sure ...

I any event, were I a betting man, I would assume (!) that the memo going around has little to do with AQ getting that Russian nuke that they have been looking for over the last ten years and more with the fact that $5/gallon gasoline and $5.50/gallon diesel, a US "risk-free rate" of 7%, serious inflation at the same time as a decline in the net worth of people being recognized with a housing crash, and significant increases in things that you cannot do without, like food, all can lead to touchy social situations.

Again, I have heard a lot of this in the last two months and all of the discussions seem to come back to expected food shortages.

So, if you are putting away food, keep doing it.  If you are paying off debt after having some savings put away, keep doing it.  And so on.

ETA:

And I have to add that the US is uniquely well positioned in the world to not have people starve.

This is second hand.



I finally met another prepper this week. Up until this point I have only known those who store bullets and guns, and think that is the answer to teotwawki.



I worked with the guy for about a week, and he was a hell of a guy.  We had allot in common.



Anyway, the guy told me that two of his friends were alphabet agency guys, and that they were just required to keep BOBs with them at all times, and to include 4 days worth of food.



Something seems to be up. Someone seems to know something.

I would have a face to face meeting and take it from there , My early impression is I would say yes.

For those I consider brothers, without question. I would stress they show up with some preps of their own however.

If something goes down and both families are high-tailing it to your bunker, post "Alas, Babylon" here so your ARFCOM buds can get a head start, too.

I'm serious.

There are several guys here that have a pretty good ear to the ground, maybe something will come to light.

This is my line of thinking too.  



 

Tag for updates.  I'd sure consider helping out.  However, the concern for supplies is very valid.  I'd do as others have stated and talk to the friends and discuss additional preps and how to pay for them.

Dont panic.
Ask for  continued Intel/ updates, timeline, specific threats.
Tell your  Alphabet friends okay, no problem, send your women and children first.
Purchase  enough   peanut butter, rice, tuna ( etc)  to feed   your  guests for  6 months.
Keep  your ARFcom buddies posted.

Seems to about cover it.


I'd bet dollars to donuts that they're not going to divulge intel, but what I would say is sure send your families, but first either send me enough money or enough preps to cover whatever SHTF event you're afraid of.  If a huge chunk of cash or a semi shows up at your place and starts unloading preps, you'll know it's bad.

I guess my main issue would be opsec. Including extra people, in my opinion, leads to some major thingking about maintaining secrecy.

This is where I am at. Mighty peculiar indeed, especially since the OP states they have not had contact in years.

My concern here would be the distance to your house.  Suggest to your buddies that they find a BOL that only requires one tankful of gasoline per trip, perhaps with a mutual-aid agreement that if the other family has to BO they can hole up with the wife/kids (assuming they have the space available).

I had such an agreement with friends when I lived in northern VA, and had pre-positioned quite a bit of stuff like clothing, dehydrated foods, some cash, etc. at the BOL.  In other words, if I showed up with just the clothes on my back and didn't have time to pack the car, I could still be an asset.

Yes and talk about them prepositioning supplies for them, including clothes etc, so they can travel lite, If they are in intel and think somthing is up....you get an early warning.

Same here, and I have stepped up the preps as of lately...I always do alittle every few days but I have bought stashed much much more as of late...just a feeling I had..time will tell.

they are just now having "a feeling?"    They do not have the inside contacts you seem to indicate.      

There seems to be enough people here with their "ears to the ground" that if anything started to go down they would give us all a heads up...I would hope anyway...

This......they are thinking ahead...they need to plan ahead and have what their families will need stored in your local area or be drivin a truck with a loaded bug out trailer

+1

But, for team mates.

Sounds like you guys need to get together and have a meeting , put a plan together and figure out how to make it work !

It would also be a good way to recieve more intel !

It all depends on the speed of the fan.

If it's something that turns everything upside down RFN, I wouldn't want responsibility for someone 2 hours away. When the "bug" switch gets thrown, the last thing anyone needs to be doing is leaving their AO to attempt a rescue of a traveling family with full stocks.
Leaving your base is a good way to find yourself on the other side of a National Guard line, or worse.

If the situation unfolds slower, so they can at least arrive; and all their supplies are GTG, then "yes".
Make it clear that your ability to help hinges solely on their ability to show up in time, with provisions, for the duration of your responsibility to them.

Problem is, were shooting at a moving target, blind, while jogging on a rowboat in 6' seas.
If your buds can't pull some of the variables out of the shot, your chances of helping them go down sharply.

Do you have the space available to store the bulk of their stocks until things go down?

OST.

Cryptic warnings from your friends aside, I think there is plenty of cause for serious concern about the state of our country right now, just from looking at gas prices and reading news headlines.

Yes I would help them.  Start simple with good contact number for all, emails, wives and kids names, routes they would take to get to you and you to them.  Also would be nice to meet the wives of both.  Good weather is coming and it would be a perfect time to get everybody together for a BBQ to catch up, meet the families, and ask some serious questions of both of your friends.

this.

short answer, yes, I would take them in.

long answer includes much of what's already been said - preps? travel abilities? do either of them have "halfway houses" along the way?  

but above all else, how about you meet and hang out with the "potential guests" first?

I don't see anything odd that they called around the same time.  Perhaps one guy contacted the other to discuss his family's needs and the other guy said I can't help because I'm in the same boat.  Then they probably agreed that the OP would be the next person to contact.  They probably already hashed out some details before calling the OP.  In regards to SHTF, they are watching the news like the rest of us and see that a flood, earthquake, fire, or tornado can really screw things up fast and now they are trying to take some action.

Thanks for all the responses, it's really helped me at least get this thing moving instead of spinning my wheels trying to wrap my head around the situation.

Meeting face to face is out right now, but I sent them a message basically asking the following:

Any concrete intel?
Key indicators of event horizon?
Timeline till event?
Duration of the event?
Severity of the event?

Family info and photos, medical needs, food allergies, etc.
Physical condition of family members.
Current status of preps on hand?
Weapons and ammo
Skillsets of family members.
Pets
Vehicle info.

Possible routes of travel
Safe locations along routes

I also suggested that we prepositon some supplies at my location, enroute, or possibly look at a central location for a BOL. Either way, I rented a storage room about 300 yds from my house, so we'll see how it goes from there. Depending on the answers, I may or may not accept them, mainly due to logistics. If I can help them be self sufficient so much the better.

Still too many variables to come to a concrete answer on this, and it's hard to communicate specifics. Hopefully I can get some good info, and I'll be sure to pass it along as best as I can. I started making phone calls of my own this afternoon, and none of my friends are forthcoming with any info, but we all seem to have that "gut feeling". I'm wondering (hoping) if this is just them adding another layer to their plans, and no indicative of something bigger. But it sure seems folks have either ramped up or got on the bandwagon lately, and I'm not sure exactly why. And when folks who might know why start asking, it just makes me nervous.

Sometimes a "memo" gets sent to select branches and services.
When I was in the Philippines and Mt Pinatubo was fuming there were months of warning of evacuation but only to certain groups.
Fortunately I had enough lead to get leave scheduled and get me and my family back to the states before it blew.
Saved a huge amount of grief.

I do have a very few close friends with a mutual understanding that their family is my family and vice versa.

At some point if you have been through enough bad with someone, when they ask you just have to say yes and work out the details after.
I don't know if these guys are that tight with you.

I would venture that there is enough time to meet face to face and get things squared away but as you know they might not be able to tell you much.

Edit:  I was typing as you were posting I guess.  I would also add that I made a similar phone call about a year ago but not to this extent.  Got the raised eyebrow "whats going on" question and
was honestly only trying to cover a specific issue just in case.  They understood and that was that.
Maybe they are just thinking a few moves without any real threat.

I would want to know if the 2 of them had gotten together first, and selected you to be their family contact ICOE.
If your 2 buddies had not gotten together prior, that is definately a red flag that something big is in the works.
But the chances of the 2 of them calling you within hours like that without conversing first is akin to powerball odds.
Also, the one buddy in CO must know the logistics involved of getting his wife and 3 kids to the east coast must not be easy.

Regardless, I'd do it.
I'd get the fam's together for the BBQ and get as much intel both on traveling logistics and funding, as well as possible SHTF timelines.

Keep us posted if you can...