Self Reliance

Leadership Business Corner:

Updated list of stake welfare and self-reliance committee members:

Pr. Ted Griffis, Stake Presidency

Br. Steven Sarver, High Councilor, new addition to the committee

Sr. Chiemi Bentley, Stake Relief Society Presidency

Sr. Cynthia Prevatke, Stake Welfare and Self-Reliance Specialist

Sr. Debra Goodwin, Co-chair, Stake Welfare and Self-Reliance Specialist

Br. Michael Goodwin, Co-chair, Stake Welfare and Self-Reliance Specialist

December 2025 Self-Reliance NEWSLETTER – Year's supply

Archive of the newsletters can be found at:

http://rockfordstake.selfrelianceclub.com/Newsletter%20Index.htm

HERSHEY Corner: How can you improve in each of these areas?

Health:

Great subjects to research include resistant and retrograde starch. It could change your life.

http://selfrelianceclub.com/Starch%20Glucose.pdf

Education:

Key phrase from previous newsletter: Learn all you can, make yourself valuable.

Resource Mgt

Social Emotional Spiritual

Dec 7, First Presidency Christmas Devotional

Home Production and Storage

Employment

Year’s Supply – see this newsletter

Leadership Corner:

Sr. Goodwin has rejoined our Committee as the Stake Employment Specialist.

Gardening tips:

An annual fruit? Yes, the Ground Cherry. Beautiful Chinese lantern-shaped pod with a tasty golden nugget inside. 

Herb(s) of the Month Showcase:

Lungwort, Comfrey and Plantain – all contain allontoin, a cell proliferant.

Hack of the month:

Review - Plastic Welding. I had the opportunity to repair two garbage totes recently.

Late and breaking news:

No Contention in the Home – 5 Rules

http://rockfordstake.selfrelianceclub.com/No%20Contention%20Business%20Card.en.pdf

2026 Self-Reliance Suggested Goal Checklist:

Reduce food waste by 50% in your household.

Try making alkaline spaghetti, aka Ramen Noodles with baking soda or baked baking soda.

Learn a new recipe each month using storage foods like dry beans, rice, wheat, etc.

Learn a new skill for use around the household, like knot tying, plastic welding, etc

Cook 1 meal outdoors over wood coals

And finally:

Here is the Newsletter: Years Supply

Note: Years Supply is not just food and water. It consists of all other necessities for one to live, such as clothing, sanitation supplies, skills, tools and other resources to help yourself and others in normal and perilous times.

Don’t forget to include seeds for next year(s) gardens.

From the web:

http://rockfordstake.selfrelianceclub.com/hsm.htm

Home Storage Module

Principles of Family Preparedness - 72 Hour Kits (.docx)

Food Storage - 3 days (or use Food Storage Calculator)

Food Storage - 2 week (or use Food Storage Calculator)

Food Storage - 1 month (or use Food Storage Calculator)

Food Storage - 3 months (or use Food Storage Calculator)

Food Storage Calculator for Long Term Food Storage Quantities

All is Safely Gathered In - Food Storage Link

All is Safely Gathered in - Food Storage Recipes Link

BSH Welfare Food Recipe Book (.pdf)

Eating Right and Enjoying Life More (.pdf)

3 Mission Cookbooks: Bulgaria, Turkey and Russia (.docx)

USDA Complete Home Canning Manual (Link)

USDA 2015 Home Canning Manual (.pdf)

Spanish Language Canning Module (Link)

English Language Canning Module (Link)

Skill Pods schedule handout (.pdf)

Alternative Foods (.docx)

Also from the web:

http://rockfordstake.selfrelianceclub.com/wtrstg.htm

Water Supply Module

Water Sources

Private and public wells, stores, home stored water, municipal water supply, rainfall,

Less safe: swimming pools, ponds, lakes and rivers

Least safe: standing water like puddles, etc.

Water purification - Strain and filter to remove particles. You can use sand filter system first

Some hiking filters remove many pollutants and are for smaller quantities. None remove viruses.

3800 Gallons of water with 1 gallon Clorox bleach (.pdf)

Water storage: best to store distilled water. Tap (municipal) water that has been chlorinated is good too. For long term storage, specific additives are needed. Water storage containers: 2 liter soda bottles are great, glass containers too, don't use milk jugs though, designed to disintegrate in time. Use water safe barrels, if desired.

Note: all stored water must be rotated to keep it fresh!

Emergency Disinfection of Drinking Water EPA (.docx)

TECHNICAL BRIEF BOIL WATER (.docx)

WHO boiling Water for purification (.pdf)

WHO guidelines for drinking water 631 pages (.pdf)

FEMA water and food in an emergency (.pdf)

Emergency Disinfection of Drinking Water _ US EPA (.pdf)

Have you thought of what you are going to give the Savior for his Birthday?

Perhaps your favorite sin?

Merry Christmas and Happy New Year

Respectfully submitted,

Michael Goodwin

779-203-0451

November 2025 Self-Reliance NEWSLETTER – Employment

Leadership Business Corner:

Change in the Stake Welfare and Self-Reliance Committee:

Debra Goodwin has served admirably as co-chair for the committee, assisting with 

minute creation and other functions for the past 5 years. She has been released and 

called to the positions of Stake Employment Specialist and Stake Family Search Center 

Coordinator.

We thank her for her service and she will be missed at our committee meetings.

She is available to help individuals with resume and interview skills, etc.

Changes in the Stake Addiction Recovery Program:

Weekly meetings are no longer available from the Rockford Stake.

To find a meeting, visit church website: https://addictionrecovery.churchofjesuschrist.org/

For questions, contact Michael Goodwin, 779-203-0451

Stake Addiction Recovery Specialist

Gardening tips

You should have harvested your dried beans by now to store for winter soups, planting

etc.

We have discovered that the Kentucky Wonder Pole bean seed is mighty good.

https://www.communityseedexchange.org/beans-the-multi-talented-vegetable

Herb(s) of the Month Showcase:

Alternative foods you might not think of:

Green bean leaves

Cucumbers – edible top to tail

Beet leaves – root to stalk

Pepper leaves

Pea shoots and tendrils

https://bokashiliving.com/10-plant-scraps-that-you-can-eat/

https://extension.illinois.edu/blogs/live-well-eat-well/2024-04-17-eating-beets-root-stalk

https://pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/articles/PMC10856891/

https://gardenbetty.com/unusual-edible-plants-vegetables/

Tomato seed oil

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tomato_seed_oil

Tomato seeds contain about 28% protein.

Speaking of tomatoes, have you tried roasted cherry tomatoes? Their baked in 

sweetness are a great addition to soups and salads. I learned this too late to enjoy this 

treat all summer long.

And what about tomato leaves in soups too. Really. Check it out.

https://www.southernliving.com/can-you-eat-tomato-leaves-7553700

https://gardenbetty.com/tomato-leaves-the-toxic-myth

Hack of the month

No room for a Christmas Tree. Try a rosemary plant. Survives indoors over winter, 

smells like pine. Personal note, if you add rosemary to green peas, they will taste like 

Pine-Sol. We had to throw our experiment away.

Late and breaking news:

Employment and Education go hand in hand.

You need education to get/better employment, you need employment to pay for 

education.

“Learn all you can, make yourselves valuable.”

For Education Opportunities and training: contact:

Sr. O’Grady, Pathway Service Missionary

Ogchantalle@gmail.com, 224-325-2172

Also: Rock Valley College and Sauk Valley College

For Employment Opportunities:

Google Search: Employment Services (your city)

For information on jobs available in the Rockford area, see this link on the Rockford 

Stake Web Site:

https://www.rockfordstake.org/more/employment-opportunities

Here is the Newsletter: 

Employment

H E R S H E Y S

The is the second E of Hersheys.

From the web: This is the stake self-reliance web site.

http://rockfordstake.selfrelianceclub.com/Employment.htm

Career Development

Self-Reliance Group Classes

Find a Better Job - pdf manual

Starting and Growing My Business - pdf manual

To Sign up for either Class or for more information:

Course Coordinator

Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints EMPLOYMENT site (Link)

Self-Reliance Live (link) (for Employment)

Rockford Stake Web Site Employment Page

Career Development

Standard: Each young person receives counsel to help select a career in which he can 

use his talents and skills in meaningful employment. 

Each person selects a suitable vocation and becomes proficient through appropriate 

training.

Suggested Goals:

a. Improve your job skills.

b. Learn a trade or profession.

c. Outline and follow a plan to prepare for your career.

d. Plan to perform your job well.

e. Teach children useful skills and to enjoy work.

f. Other:

=============================== 

Be an Asset to your employer:

https://www.fnu.edu/ensure-asset-liability-workplace/

Take time this month to consider all that you are thankful for.

Perhaps skills, talents, tithing blessings, etc.

Respectfully submitted:

Michael Goodwin

Stake Welfare and Self-Reliance Specialist

779-203-0451