"[Thayne] engages the reader’s heart and emotions, inspiring hope and the belief that miracles are possible." —Debbie Macomber, #1 New York Times bestselling author Come home to Shelter Springs this Christmas, where hearts are warm and hopes are bright… Growing up at the Shelter Inn hotel, Natalie Shepherd envied guests who could come and go as they pleased. So when it was time to finally leave for college and put the lush green mountains around Shelter Springs—along with the cloud of loss that seemed to follow her family—behind her, she swore she’d never come back. But now her sister McKenna needs a favor. On pregnancy bed rest at doctor’s orders, McKenna needs a helping hand with her two young daughters and someone to take over the inn during the hectic holiday season, and Nat can’t refuse. And just when things can’t get worse, she runs into her late brother’s best friend, Griffin Taylor… Griff has mixed feelings about Natalie’s return. She’s just as beautiful and full of life as he remembered, but there’s a secret he’s carried for years about her brother—and the guilt is eating away at him. Still, Christmas in this small town is filled with treasured traditions and new adventures that hold the promise of something sweet and lasting. From matchmaking seniors to rambunctious nieces, it seems everyone is hoping Nat and Griff will put loss behind them and find a happy new beginning…

First published in 1998. The problem of homelessness is increasing nationally in volume, variety, and visibility, with the subpopulation of homeless families with children growing the fastest. An unstable living environment places these families, especially the children at risk, of accomplishing positive, adaptive socialization. In addition, the provision of supportive services to these children, impose an excessive economic burden on the public. The paucity of information and research concerning what homelessness means for children who are members of these families, are reasons for undertaking this work. The book provides a survey research model to collect and analyze information, about what the circumstances of homelessness means from the perspective of children sheltered with homeless families.

The perfect Christmas begins at home

Design details, cost analysis and performance characteristics are presented for small, partially-underground fallout shelters utilized as manned stations during a nuclear weapon effects test. Four men occupied each shelter and operated radiation measurements and fallout collection instruments. Two types of shelters were designed to withstand predicted over-pressures: type I, 1-psi overpressure and type II, 5-psi overpressure. The basic structure consisted of an 8-ft diameter, 10-ft long, 12-gage corrugated steel, multi-plate pipe. A steel entranceway with two right-angle turns provided access to the basic structure. Depending on the amount of soil backfill, fallout gamma radiation protection factors up to 470,000 were obtained. The overall performance of the shelters under the conditions experienced was excellent. Shelters of this type have application not only for use as manned stations in nuclear weapon testing and can be adapted for use in residential areas as single-family fallout shelters.

Providing shelter after a disaster is recognised as one of the most complex areas of humanitarian relief and recovery. Some aid agencies have stopped providing shelter altogether after bad experiences, while those that do quickly become engaged in challenges that go far beyond the provision of structures alone. Yet with the number and severity of disasters set to increase, due to climate change and rapid urban growth, the need for approaches that work has never been greater. This book explores the issues in three parts. The first, Practice, looks at lessons from past efforts. Part two, Process, proposes practical and effective people-centred approaches. Part three considers currently neglected issues such as disability, human rights and urban-oriented approaches. Through practical case studies and academic research, Beyond Shelter after Disaster critiques past methods and explores future options for improving practice in one of the most complex areas of post disaster relief and recovery. This book was originally published as a special issue in Environmental Hazards: Human and Policy Dimensions.