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Please Help the Victims of Hurricane Harvey and Irma

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Volunteers and monetary donations are needed to help support the response and recovery efforts in Texas, Florida, and across the Caribbean. For information regarding how to assist organizations in their hurricane disaster relief efforts, please visit the BNJFoundation, Red Cross, FEMA, Salvation Army,and multiple other organizations and shelters that are supporting the survivors of Hurricane Harvey and Irma.  Thank you for your interest in helping the survivors of Hurricane Harvey and Hurricane Irma.


Happy Thanksgiving 2017!

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The BNJFoundation is wishing you all a happy, and peaceful holiday filled with family, food and many blessings. We want to thank God, our volunteers, members, donors & supporters on this Thanksgiving holiday. Each one of you has made a difference, … Continue reading

Support the BNJFoundation while shopping at Amazon Smile. Thank you

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When you shop at smile.amazon.com, Amazon donates to BNJFoundation.

Under Amazon enter AmazonSmile and click search or just go to AmazonSmile (smile.amazon.com), you are prompted to select a charitable organization from our list of eligible organizations. You can change your selection at any time. Every item available for purchase on www.amazon.com is also available on AmazonSmile (smile.amazon.com) at the same price.

Effective October 2013, Amazon will now donate 0.5% of your purchase to the charity of your choice when you shop at smile.amazon.com.

You can help the needed while shopping.

Thank you so much for your support.

Happy Holidays!

 

 

Merry Christmas 2017!

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A very Merry Christmas to All. We hope this Christmas will bring you lots of happiness and blessings. We sincerely want to thank all the friends and family who have helped and supported us in our continued and successful growth in … Continue reading

We Honor You On Memorial Day!

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On this Memorial Day, we want to remember and honor all the service members especially those who have fallen so that we can enjoy the freedom we so often take for granted. We will never forget your sacrifices and will always keep you and your families in our prayers . May God bless you and your families always.    BNJ Foundation

“I like to see a man proud of the place in which he lives. I like to see a man live so that his place will be proud of him.” – Abraham Lincoln

Hurricanes – Before, During, After

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Hurricanes – Before, During, After

To prepare for a hurricane, you should take the following measures:
•To begin preparing, you should build an emergency kit and make a family communications plan.
https://www.ready.gov/build-a-kit

•Know your surroundings.
•Learn the elevation level of your property and whether the land is flood-prone. This will help you know how your property will be affected when storm surge or tidal flooding are forecasted.
•Identify levees and dams in your area and determine whether they pose a hazard to you.
•Learn community hurricane evacuation routes and how to find higher ground. Determine where you would go and how you would get there if you needed to evacuate.
•Make plans to secure your property:
•Cover all of your home’s windows. Permanent storm shutters offer the best protection for windows. A second option is to board up windows with 5/8” marine plywood, cut to fit and ready to install. Tape does not prevent windows from breaking.
•Install straps or additional clips to securely fasten your roof to the frame structure. This will reduce roof damage.
•Be sure trees and shrubs around your home are well trimmed so they are more wind resistant.
•Clear loose and clogged rain gutters and downspouts.
•Reinforce your garage doors; if wind enters a garage it can cause dangerous and expensive structural damage.
•Plan to bring in all outdoor furniture, decorations, garbage cans and anything else that is not tied down.
•Determine how and where to secure your boat.
•Install a generator for emergencies.
•If in a high-rise building, be prepared to take shelter on or below the 10th floor.
•Consider building a safe room.

Hurricanes cause heavy rains that can cause extensive flood damage in coastal and inland areas. Everyone is at risk and should consider flood insurance protection. Flood insurance is the only way to financially protect your property or business from flood damage. To learn more about your flooding risk and how to protect yourself and your business, visit the Federal Insurance and Mitigation Administration (NFIP) Web site,www.floodsmart.gov or call 1-800-427-2419.

During a Hurricane

If a hurricane is likely in your area, you should:
•Listen to the radio or TV for information.
•Secure your home, close storm shutters and secure outdoor objects or bring them indoors.
•Turn off utilities if instructed to do so. Otherwise, turn the refrigerator thermostat to its coldest setting and keep its doors closed.
•Turn off propane tanks
•Avoid using the phone, except for serious emergencies.
•Moor your boat if time permits.
•Ensure a supply of water for sanitary purpose such as cleaning and flushing toilets. Fill the bathtub and other larger containers with water.
•Find out how to keep food safe during and after and emergency.

You should evacuate under the following conditions:

If you are directed by local authorities to do so, be sure to follow their instructions.
•If you live in a mobile home or temporary structure – such shelter are particularly hazardous during hurricane no matter how well fastened to the ground.
•If you live in a high-rise building – hurricane winds are stronger at higher elevations.
•If you live on the coast, on a floodplain, near a river, or on an inland waterway.

Read more about evacuating yourself and your family. If you are unable to evacuate, go to your wind-safe room. If you do not have one, follow these guidelines:
•Stay indoors during the hurricane and away from windows and glass doors.
•Close all interior doors – secure and brace external doors.
•Keep curtains and blinds closed. Do not be fooled if there is a lull; it could be the eye of the storm – winds will pick up again.
•Take refuge in a small interior room, closet or hallway on the lowest level.
•Lie on the floor under a table or another sturdy object.
•Avoid elevators.

After a Hurricane
•Continue listening to a NOAA Weather Radio or the local news for the latest updates.
•Stay alert for extended rainfall and subsequent flooding even after the hurricane or tropical storm has ended.
•If you have become separated from your family, use your family communications plan or contact the American Red Cross at 1-800-RED-CROSS/1-800-733-2767 or visit the American Red Cross Safe and Well site: www.safeandwell.org ◦The American Red Cross also maintains a database to help you find family. Contact the local American Red Cross chapter where you are staying for information. Do not contact the chapter in the disaster area.
•If you evacuated, return home only when officials say it is safe.
•If you cannot return home and have immediate housing needs. Text SHELTER + your ZIP code to 43362 (4FEMA) to find the nearest shelter in your area (example: shelter 12345).
•For those who have longer-term housing needs, FEMA offers several types of assistance, including services and grants to help people repair their homes and find replacement housing. Apply for assistance or search for information about housing rental resources •Drive only if necessary and avoid flooded roads and washed¬ out bridges. Stay off the streets. If you must go out watch for fallen objects; downed electrical wires; and weakened walls, bridges, roads, and sidewalks.
•Keep away from loose or dangling power lines and report them immediately to the power company.
•Walk carefully around the outside your home and check for loose power lines, gas leaks and structural damage before entering.
•Stay out of any building if you smell gas, floodwaters remain around the building or your home was damaged by fire and the authorities have not declared it safe.
•Inspect your home for damage. Take pictures of damage, both of the building and its contents, for insurance purposes. If you have any doubts about safety, have your residence inspected by a qualified building inspector or structural engineer before entering.
•Use battery-powered flashlights in the dark. Do NOT use candles. Note: The flashlight should be turned on outside before entering – the battery may produce a spark that could ignite leaking gas, if present.
•Watch your pets closely and keep them under your direct control. Watch out for wild animals, especially poisonous snakes. Use a stick to poke through debris.
•Avoid drinking or preparing food with tap water until you are sure it’s not contaminated.
•Check refrigerated food for spoilage. If in doubt, throw it out.
•Wear protective clothing and be cautious when cleaning up to avoid injury.
•Use the telephone only for emergency calls.
•NEVER use a generator inside homes, garages, crawlspaces, sheds, or similar areas, even when using fans or opening doors and windows for ventilation. Deadly levels of carbon monoxide can quickly build up in these areas and can linger for hours, even after the generator has shut off.

Basic Disaster Supplies Kit

Emergency Supplies:
Water, food, and clean air are important things to have if an emergency happens. Each family or individual’s kit should be customized to meet specific needs, such as medications and infant formula. It should also be customized to include important family documents.

Recommended Supplies to Include in a Basic Kit:
– Water, one gallon of water per person per day, for drinking and sanitation
– Food, at least a three-day supply of non-perishable food
– Battery-powered radio and a NOAA Weather Radio with tone alert, and extra batteries for both
– Flashlight and extra batteries
– First Aid kit
– Whistle to signal for help
– Infant formula and diapers, if you have an infant
– Moist towelettes, & toilet paper, garbage bags and plastic ties for personal sanitation, a 5 gal bucket w/lid & plastic liners for defecation, possibly a ‘luggable loo’, also ‘freshette’ for women.
– Dust mask or cotton t-shirt, to help filter the air
– Plastic sheeting and duct tape to shelter-in-place
– Wrench or pliers to turn off utilities
– Can opener for food (if kit contains canned food)

Clothing and Bedding:
If you live in a cold weather climate, you must think about warmth. It is possible that the power will be out and you will not have heat. Rethink your clothing and bedding supplies to account for growing children and other family changes. One complete change of warm clothing and shoes per person, including:
– A jacket or coat
– Long pants
– A long sleeve shirt
– Sturdy shoes
– A hat and gloves
– A sleeping bag or warm blanket for each person

Below are some other items for your family to consider adding to its supply kit. Some of these items, especially those marked with a * can be dangerous, so please have an adult collect these supplies.
– Emergency reference materials such as a first aid book or a print out of the information on www.ready.gov
– Rain gear
– Mess kits, paper cups, plates and plastic utensils
– Cash or traveler’s checks, change
– Paper towels
– Fire Extinguisher
– Tent
– Compass
– Matches in a waterproof container*
– Signal flare*
– Paper, pencil
– Disinfectant*
– Household chlorine bleach* – You can use bleach as a disinfectant (diluted nine parts water to one part bleach), or in an emergency you can also use it to treat water. Use 16 drops of regular household liquid bleach per gallon of water. Do not use scented, color safe or bleaches with added cleaners.
– Medicine dropper
– Important Family Documents such as copies of insurance policies, identification and bank account records in a waterproof, portable container

Once you have gathered the supplies for a basic emergency kit, you may want to consider adding the following items:
•Prescription medications and glasses
•Infant formula and diapers
•Pet food and extra water for your pet
•Cash or traveler’s checks and change
•Important family documents such as copies of insurance policies, identification and bank account records in a waterproof, portable container. You can use the Emergency Financial First Aid Kit – EFFAK (PDF – 977Kb) developed by Operation Hope, FEMA and Citizen Corps to help you organize your information.
•Emergency reference material such as a first aid book or free information from this web site. (See Publications) •Complete change of clothing including a long sleeved shirt, long pants and sturdy shoes. Consider additional clothing if you live in a cold-weather climate.
•Household chlorine bleach and medicine dropper – When diluted, nine parts water to one part bleach, bleach can be used as a disinfectant. Or in an emergency, you can use it to treat water by using 16 drops of regular household liquid bleach per gallon of water. Do not use scented, color safe or bleaches with added cleaners.
•Fire extinguisher
•Books, games, puzzles or other activities for children

FEMA Publications

If you require more information about any of these topics, the following are resources that may be helpful.
•Against the Wind: Protecting Your Home from Hurricane and Wind Damage. FEMA-247. A guide to hurricane preparedness.
•Community Hurricane Preparedness. IS-324. CD-ROM or Web-based training course for federal, state and local emergency managers.
•How to Guides to Protect Your Property or Business from High Winds.
•Surviving the Aftermath of a Hurricane. A guide from the Consumer Product Safety Commission.
http://www.redcross.org/www-files/Documents/pdf/Preparedness/checklists/ Returning Home after a Hurricane or Flood. American Red Cross.
•Repairing Your Flooded Home. American Red Cross.

Find additional information on how to plan and prepare for a hurricane and learn about available resources by visiting the following websites:
•Federal Emergency Management Agency
•NOAA Hurricane Center
•American Red Cross
•U.S. Environmental Protection Agency
•U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, Center for Disease Control •Consumer Product Safety Commission

Recommended Training

FEMA’s Emergency Management Institute (EMI) has developed a training program to encourage community hurricane preparedness. This computer-based course provides basic information about dealing with tropical cyclones and hurricanes. Visit EMI online and select the ‘take this course’ option at the top of the right hand column to take the interactive web-based course.

Learn about the emergency plans that have been established in your area by your state and local government. In any emergency, always listen to the instructions given by local emergency management officials.

To those of you staying to weather the storm here is a short guide during this emergency. Some of these are common sense but bear repeating.

1. Keep your devices – iPhones, iPads, iPods, old inactive but useable iPhones – fully charged at all times by keeping them plugged in as long as you have power. Use spare charging cords where available or alternate charging each device one after another.

2. With brownouts and blackouts possible, do not waste your device’s power by surfing the internet or playing games.

3. If you have an iPhone 7 remember that it is certified for water resistance up to 3 feet, up to 30 minutes. If you evacuate travel with your cell phones in ziplock bags.

4. If you want extra power for a device or two, purchase a backup battery. I did some research and can recommend:

Anker PowerCore 20100

The Anker PowerCore 20100 has enough power to recharge a smartphone a day for nearly a week. $40.00 on Amazon.

Or, if your vehicle is around during an emergency, you can plug your devices into your car’s 12-volt port (“cigarette lighter”) or USB port using your regular phone charger. If you’re concerned about using your car battery then the car engine must be started but your garage door needs to be open. This may not be practical during a hurricane.

5. No Electric Power But Cellular Service Is Available: Regular phone service and internet is available through your cell phone provider. This uses your data plan. During this emergency either you’ll pay for extra data usage or they’ll waive this charge during the emergency.

6. No Electric Power And No Cellular Service: You might find yourself in a situation where you can obtain Wi-Fi outside of your cellular service so you can still make wi-fi phone calls (see #7) and search the internet. See if your device finds a cell network available such as Xfinity. Select Xfinity and connect and you can use their wi-fi hotspot free of charge even if you are not a Comcast or Xfinity customer. Xfinity hotspots are available throughout Florida and are available to all during this hurricane emergency.

To access wi-fi hotspots this feature must be turned on. Settings -> Wi-Fi -> Ask to Join Networks -> On (Green). Do this on all devices, even non-cellular iPads.

7. You Have Electric Power And Wi-Fi But No Cellular Service: Turn on Wi-Fi calling by going to Settings -> Phone -> Wi-Fi Calling and tapping the switch next to Wi-Fi Calling On This iPhone. You can reach anyone with an Apple product (iPhone, iPad, Mac computer) using FaceTime Audio or Video phone calls. Calls are free and available simply by going to the phone contact and tap FaceTime Audio or Video. You do not need to know if the person has an Apple product, your Contact will display FaceTime if it is available. Be sure that important Contacts are listed in your Contacts App. You can’t manually type in a phone number on the keypad in this scenario.

Alternatively: This method requires that both users have the featured app. Using apps like Facebook Messenger, Google Duo, Viber, and Fring lets you make free phone calls over Wi-Fi – even if there’s no cell service. Some may require setting this up ahead of time. Skype is free to another Skype user, but if you need to call a landline or mobile phone, it costs about 10 cents per call, and it require you to deposit cash (“Skype Credits”) into your account. Note that these apps require you to allow the app to have access to all of your Contacts.

8. Call 9-1-1 Without A Cellular Plan, Electric Service Or Cellular Service.

You do not need to have an active phone plan to call 9-1-1 from any smartphone. Every smartphone is preprogrammed to call 911 for emergencies. If your smartphone doesn’t have coverage in the area you’re in during an emergency, or you don’t have an active cell plan, you can still reach 9-1-1 from your mobile phone. You can also text 9-1-1, perhaps if you’re unable to talk or need to be silent (perhaps in a terrorist situation), but you must first be registered for the T9-1-1 service with your wireless service provider. Because you don’t need to pay for cell service to call 9-1-1, it’s not a bad idea to keep an old and deactivated phone in your emergency kit.

9. If you have a Facebook and/or Twitter account it is easier to tell family and friends your status by posting updates and having them check them periodically rather than individually answering every text, email and phone call. Presuming there is cellular service, people are encouraged to send text messages and emails and post notifications to Facebook and Twitter about their whereabouts and immediate needs, or to look up where local shelters are.

10. Download emergency apps (beforehand)

If downloaded before you need them, these free emergency preparedness apps are important to keep on your smartphone

• Red Cross offers numerous apps, in fact, including a Shelter Finder app, First Aid, Hurricane app, Earthquake, Wildfire, and others. Each one includes checklists, advice during emergency situations (from performing first aid and CPR to handling food and water during power outages), quizzes, signing up for emergency notifications, and more.

• FEMA (Federal Emergency Management Agency) includes information for all kinds of disasters, including tips to creating an emergency kit, and emergency meeting locations, and maps of important locations.

• Disaster Alert app offers a real-time map that shows activate (or impending) incidents, deemed as “potentially hazardous to people, or property, assets”. This includes hurricanes, floods, earthquakes, tsunamis, and volcanos, as well as “manmade” emergency situations.

PROVIDING THANKSGIVING DINNER TO FAMILIES IN NEED (2018) – BNJFOUNDATION.ORG

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WOULD YOU LIKE TO GIVE BACK?

BNJFoundation will be preparing and serving Thanksgiving dinner to the needed. If you would like to help us prepare a delicious Thanksgiving dinner to children and families in need this Thanksgiving, you can make a donation through the “BNJFoundation.ORG/Donation” website. Every dollar you give can help provide meals to the families in need for Thanksgiving and thereafter.

BNJFoundation is a 501 (c)(3) non-profit organization recognized by the IRS and your donation is tax-deductible.

Please visit our website for more information.

Thank you for your support.

 

 

Update


Happy New Year 2019

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The BNJFoundation would like to wish you a safe and happy New Year and a blessed 2019.

Corona Virus

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What can you do to help protect yourself, your family and friends?

  • Wash hands frequently with soap and water or an alcohol-based hand rub.
  • Avoid touching your face or placing you fingers or hands in your mouth.
  • Be aware of what you touch, particularly in public spaces, sometimes protection is as simple as wiping the shopping cart handle with a disinfectant cloth or wipe before you shop.
  • Consider using appropriate social interaction precautions, no hugging, shaking hands, etc.
  • Maintain social distancing (three feet) distance between yourself and anyone who is coughing or sneezing.
  • Cover your cough or sneeze, and wash or disinfect hands as quickly as possible if you cough or sneeze in them.
  • Drink plenty of water, eat regular meals, and get a full night’s rest.

These precautions are also helpful in addressing the flu. The CDC reports that there have already been more than 16,000 flu-related deaths this flu season.





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