We Need Your Help!

On any given night in New York City, thousands of students are living in a NYC homeless shelter. One of the most devastating consequences of homelessness is the impact it can have on a child’s education. This is where Operation Backpack ® steps in, by giving a new, full backpack to any child living in a New York City shelter who needs one.

Because Operation Backpack ® has no public funding, the success of the campaign relies 100% on support from the community . Last year, thanks to the generosity of 332 corporate and other community partners and thousands of individual donors and volunteers, 20,000 children living in New York City’s homeless and domestic violence shelters began their school year with a new backpack brimming with every grade-specific supply they could possibly need.

This year, we anticipate requests for approximately 20,000 backpacks again. To help ensure that no child goes without, we need your help! This vital, city-wide campaign could not exist without the support of everyday people like you.

Learn more about how to get involved below.
Meet Didi , a young man who was directly impacted by Operation Backpack ® , and is now a senior in college! Your support can make a huge difference in the life of a child experiencing homelessness.
How to Get Involved in Operation Backpack ® 2019:

DONATE.
Right now, our immediate need is financial so that we can purchase bulk school supplies at our highly discounted prices. You can donate to the campaign directly at DonateOperationBackpackNYC.org .

FUNDRAISE.
Follow these simple steps to build your own fundraising team on CrowdRise. Invite your friends, family and colleagues to support your efforts on our behalf.
 
ORGANIZE A DRIVE. 
Organize an Operation Backpack ® collection drive. To get started, contact Andrew Zibell at ( 212) 496-4307 or azibell@voa-gny.org .

ADOPT A PRODUCT.
If your company can make a significant in-kind donation of product or provide the funds so we can purchase supplies in bulk utilizing our economies of scale, contact Andrew Zibell at ( 212) 496-4307 or  azibell@voa-gny.org .
Some supplies have already been adopted in full, including 7,500 dictionaries from HarperCollins Publishers, 3,600 geometry sets from Fox Corporation , 2,587 drawing pads from Bank of New York Mellon, 24,948 two-pocket heavy plastic folders from JPMorgan Chase & Co . and 3,500 calculators from Malachite Capital Management.
 
FILL A BACKPACK.
Shop according to our grade-specific school supply lists and bring your donations to one of our  Official Drop Locations   July 8 through August 2. For large donations of full backpacks or supplies, please contact Andrew Zibell at  (212) 496-4307 or azibell@voa-gny.org .

SPONSOR.
To help underwrite the 2019 campaign and enjoy the benefits that come with sponsorship, contact Rachel Weinstein, Operation Backpack ® founder, at  (212) 496-4305 or rweinstein@voa-gny.org .
 
BE SOCIAL.  
Stay up to date by following Volunteers of America-Greater New York on Twitter , Facebook and Instagram . Help spread the word by using the hashtag #OperationBackpackNYC .

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Help guarantee that every child living in a NYC homeless shelter who needs one receives a new, full backpack this year!