Thinking about hosting a back-to-school backpack community giveaway? Go a step further and ask students who pick up a backpack to also assemble a backpack for a needy child overseas. Contact organizations like World Vision, Compassion International and Childrens Cup, which already has a backpack ministry U.S. churches can partner with and engage.

How to Do It

Contact an organization and ask to partner with them to supply backpacks to needy children overseas.

Request a list of school supplies for all elementary and junior high grades and publish it in your bulletin or post it on your website. Enlist a team of volunteers to check out backpack and supply prices, then set up a display of a sample backpack and hand out fliers with a list of prices. Ask your church families to bring in the backpacks already stuffed with supplies.

Set a goal for the number of backpacks you want to distribute both locally and abroad and announce a deadline date for collecting supplies. Kids should have their backpacks about two weeks before school starts. Encourage people to bring in the stuffed backpacks over a period of three weeks.

Allocate a visible space for accepting and stockpiling the stuffed backpacks. If possible, provide separate spaces based on age/grade. Or give families a grade tag to attach to each backpack they bring.

Enlist volunteers each Sunday to check each backpack for the appropriate supplies. Include other items, such as children’s New Testaments, information about your children’s ministries, or an invitation to a back-to-school event.

Partner with a local mission or organization to distribute the backpacks. Host a community event, including pizza, games and kids’ activities.

Set up a well-organized assembly line kids can participate in to fill backpacks for children overseas. Optional: Ask each child to write a note to the backpack recipient. Make sure you communicate the concept well.

Cost

Total price for a backpack and basic supplies is around $15. However, with Bible Center’s initiative, families, not the church, bear the expense. Paperback New Testaments can be purchased online (ChristianBook.com) for under $2 each.