Originally Posted by pittsburgpam
I think if there is a major disaster one of the most valuable things to have is knowledge.
I so agree! This is true even for minor disasters - and for preventing disasters. Someone already mentioned it, but I'll repeat it: It's very helpful to know First Aid and CPR, and the Red Cross teaches these courses in lots of places.
You wrote that about knowledge in the same post where you mentioned learning to grow food. That's worth doing even if there's no disaster.
Knowing how to find edible wild plants and medicinal plants and which ones are poisonous and must be avoided is also very useful.
One major way to stay prepared is to stay fit and strong. If you need to run or climb or hang onto something for dear life, or defend yourself against an attacker (human or otherwise), you need to be physically able to do it. (I say this as someone who very much needs to work on this.)