Programs

Distributions, company packings, and chapters.

Every program ends the same way: a backpack of essentials in someone's hands.

Distributions Corporate packing What's in a bag Meals in Athens Chapter support
The back of a car packed full of colorful backpacks ready for delivery.

Core program

Backpack distributions

We pack backpacks with food, hygiene supplies, and clothing, then hand them out in person.

We deliver to encampments and shelters, and through partners who work with people experiencing homelessness every day. At each distribution we share information on local services, so a backpack can lead to a next step.

In 2023 we distributed $62,692 in supplies (GuideStar).

Fund a backpack

For companies

Bring a packing event to your office.

Your team packs backpacks in your office. We bring the supplies, set up, and deliver the bags.

  • Cost$25 sponsors one backpack (about $65 in retail value, bought wholesale)
  • Time60 to 90 minutes
  • Size30+ items per bag. Most groups pack 50 to 200 bags.
  • MinimumAbout 40 backpacks ($1,000) so the logistics work
  • FeesSponsorship buys supplies only. No event fee.
Volunteers pack backpacks and hygiene kits at tables in a Sharecare office packing event.
  • Volunteers hold packed grey backpacks with green trim at an Oldcastle packing event.
  • A large volunteer group poses behind rows of packed backpacks at Sharecare.
  • Rows of colorful packed backpacks on the floor after a Sharecare packing.
  • Three volunteers stand with packed backpacks lined on a table at Oldcastle.
  • A large Oldcastle volunteer group poses indoors with backpacks in the foreground.
  • A volunteer smiles beside packed backpacks at an Oldcastle packing.

We handle

  • Supplies, bought wholesale
  • Transport, setup, and cleanup
  • A short briefing on homelessness in Atlanta
  • Delivery to shelters and encampments, then a report back

You provide

  • A space, like a conference room or lobby
  • Your team

Get started

  1. Pick a goal. 50 backpacks is $1,250.
  2. Pick a date.
  3. We bring the supplies and run the packing.
Request a packing

Partners

Teams we've packed with

  • State Farm
  • KPMG
  • QTS Data Centers
  • Mercedes-Benz
  • LexisNexis Risk Solutions
  • Sharecare
  • U.S. Health Advisors
  • Atlanta Braves Foundation
  • Oldcastle APG
  • Credigy
  • Ameris Bank
  • Kian Capital Partners

Where the backpacks go in Atlanta

  • Gateway Center
  • Nicholas House
  • Veterans Empowerment Organization
  • Covenant House Georgia
  • The Salvation Army of Atlanta
  • Hope Thru Soap

What's in a bag

30+ items in four groups.

Contents change with the season. The photo is supplies staged before packing at Homeless Heroes Day 2025, not a full inventory.

Snack boxes and drink-mix cartons on a packing table at Homeless Heroes Day 2025.

Nutrition

High-protein food, shelf-stable snacks, and bottled water.

Hygiene

Toothbrush and toothpaste, soap, wipes, deodorant, lip balm.

Warmth

Heavy socks, a beanie, gloves, hand warmers, and a poncho.

Care

A handwritten note from the person who packed it.

9th annual

Homeless Heroes Day

Our biggest day of the year. 1,500+ backpacks packed at Westside Warehouse, Atlanta.

Event details
Volunteers in green Backpack Project polos on a distribution day.

Athens, GA

Hot meals and water, every week or two.

Our Athens chapter brings hot meals and fresh water to people living in encampments, alongside regular backpack distributions. The team also speaks up for encampment residents with local community groups and government.

Athens chapter

Chapter support

The national team supports every chapter.

The Backpack Project, Inc. funds and supports distributions at every chapter. Chapters get legal and tax help, insurance, accounting, the TBP name, training and fundraising materials, monthly check-ins, and funding to cover what they cannot raise.

See chapters Start a chapter
Chapter volunteers in green polos gather outside before a distribution.

$25 fills one backpack with essentials.

Donate Book a corporate packing