Sara Baggett presents ‘We’re Not Scared, We’re Prepared,’ a new emergency preparedness program for youth at Cordua Elementary School on Dec. 4. Photo courtesy of the Yuba County Office of Emergency Services

YUBA COUNTY, CA (MPG) - This past fall, the Yuba County Office of Emergency Services launched a new Youth Emergency Preparedness Program, designed and implemented by Sara Baggett. Baggett is the county’s Emergency Operations planner with a long history in emergency response and education.

“Our goal is to hit every elementary school within Yuba County,” said Baggett. “So far, we’ve done the foothill schools and we’re just now venturing into the valley floor.”

The program has been nicknamed “We’re Not Scared, We’re Prepared” and seeks to target first-graders to better equip them for the emotional and physical changes that might occur during an emergency. Presentations start with an interactive slideshow where students can take turns guessing the emotions of people in various photographs and disasters. These answers are discussed in an age-appropriate context and at the end, each student receives a “go-bag” filled with essential starter items.

“I didn't even know what a go-bag was when I was living more in the valley around Sacramento,” said Cassie Bryan, a communications specialist with Yuba County. “It wasn’t until we moved up here we realized, ‘Oh, if we need to leave, we need to be completely ready.’”

Bryan has been living in Grass Valley since 2016 and understands firsthand the importance of being able to evacuate at a moment's notice. Foothill schools were targeted first due to the increased likelihood for natural disasters, such as fires and power outages, but now Bryan and Baggett are looking to expand. So far, they have covered eight schools and issued 183 go-bags. A former kindergarten teacher, Baggett said that first-grade is the perfect age to start introducing emergency preparedness to children, which in turn can help relieve the stress on parents and caregivers.

“When they’re prepared, it kind of sets the precedence for the parents,” said Baggett. “It's so great to see the kids get excited about it and when they’re confident and they bring it home, then it engages the parents and becomes this wonderful project that they can do together.”

Sara Baggett, left, and Cassie Ryan, right, are currently working to bring ‘We’re Not Scared, We’re Prepared,’ to first grade classes across Yuba County. Photo courtesy of the Yuba County Office of Emergency Services

Oscar Marin, Yuba County’s Office of Emergency Service manager, is credited for recognizing the need for a youth preparedness program and green lighting Baggett to spearhead the project. A retired firefighter who served on the frontlines, Marin said he has seen first-hand how chaotic these evacuation situations can be.

“You can prepare all you want, and it doesn't always go as planned but what we really want to think about is the kids’ point of view and how we can relieve stress levels in the family all around,” said Marin.

This program’s effects are already being felt by student alumni. Bagett and her team visited Cordua Elementary School on Dec. 4, a day before an emergency alert was issued in regard to an earthquake. Shannon Bennett, a teacher at Cordue, said the training was extremely beneficial to her students and wrote in to share the effect it had on her class during the emergency.

"I wanted to thank you for sharing your Youth Emergency Preparedness Program with my class,” wrote Bennett. “They really enjoyed your presentation and loved getting to take home the bag of fun stuff (go-bag). It also gave their parents the opportunity to ask them why they got the bag and what it was about. When we had the earthquake warning the other day, they were not sure if it was a drill or a real earthquake. One of the students said they were scared and a few others said ‘We're not scared! We're prepared!’ They definitely got the message. I would love for you to come again next year."

To learn more about the “We’re Not Scared, We’re Prepared Program,” visit bepreparedyuba.org.