I’m A Couponing Prepper & Proud Of It!
I began couponing heavily about a year ago. My fiancé was skeptical of the level of savings I was attaining until he went shopping with me and saw that I had saved over half off my bill (and I didn’t have many coupons that time!). More recently I’ve involved my mother in my couponing adventures. She and my father have been prepping, or “collecting” as we call it, for a couple of years now, and I noticed that a lot of the canned and dry goods they were buying matched up with a lot of the coupons that I had. So we are now an extreme prepper couponing family!
More recently, my fiancé noticed an article in the local paper about a homeless food shelter that serves lunch daily. In the article, the people volunteering at the shelter had noticed an increase in the number of CARS in their parking lot during the lunch hour. It seems that, due to the horrible economic times that we are now living in, many gainfully employed people are now unable to buy their own groceries. They have just enough to cover their rent/mortgage, and pay the utilities and other bills, but none left over to purchase food. At this point in the conversation, my fiancé grabbed my hands, looked me in the eyes, and said,
“Thank you. Thank you SO MUCH! I can’t tell you how much I appreciate all you do for me. If it weren’t for you, I’d be one of the many lined up at that shelter. I am lucky to have you and your coupons, and all of the stored food that you’ve accumulated.”
Needless to say, I had a tear in my eye and a smile on my face when I replied,
“Sweetie, I love you and want you around for a long time. That requires feeding you!”
My preparations and couponing have paid off more than once. When someone close loses a family member, I’m able to provide a care package of household supplies without having to venture out and buy something. When a local food bank asks for donations, I have a bag of canned goods immediately on hand. My coworkers and friends have also benefited from the numerous coupons that I have given them. And, as a extra bonus, I’ve collected hundreds of box tops for the local schools!
I’m prepared, maybe not for the apocalypse (who is??), but I’m prepared. And couponing has helped me get to this point.
So when you see someone with a large binder or envelope full of coupons, and 2 or 3 carts full of stuff at your local supermarket, don’t shake your head and back out of the register line, think about your own situation and ask them how they do it (you might get some coupons!). I’m able to sleep at night knowing that my family’s basic needs are covered in case of an emergency, whether it be a catastrophic event, or just a minor blip in our daily lives.
M.B. SC
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4 Comments
Rachael · April 6, 2012 at 11:20 am
Love this! 🙂
KS · April 8, 2012 at 10:03 pm
I loved reading your account of the conversation you and your fiance had. All too often, the realization of the gravity of a situation doesn’t come until you’re actually experiencing it. I’m glad you have such insight and are being proactive! Many people will not have that “light bulb moment” until the time of trial has arrived. Good for you!
Lynette · April 22, 2012 at 7:02 pm
I love articles like this! Considering one of the main objections to prepping is budget constraints – I wish everyone would incorporate coupons! Coupons took us from point a to b quickly. We are all prepping on a budget and couponing should be incorporated into everyone’s preparedness routine. At least that’s my belief! Great article!
Tiffany Gee · April 27, 2012 at 3:16 am
I am also a couponing prepper, i started out couponging and then food storage and it has snow balled from there! It is remarkable how expensive everything is these days and how much you can save just with food storage and coupons!
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