1 in 3 Baltimore students experience food insecurity.
Food insecurity refers to the condition of experiencing uncertain or inadequate access to nutritious food.
1,800
Students and their families supported each week. Each bag provides food for three to four people for the weekend.
37,960
Children in Baltimore experience food insecurity. Students receive free breakfast and lunch in school, but lack access to consistent healthy foods throughout the weekend. Weekend Backpacks bridges this gap.
50+
Community Schools partner with us. These schools provide additional support and services like ours to fit each neighborhood’s needs.
Get Involved
We are a primarily volunteer driven organization – it takes almost 200 volunteers a month to fulfill our mission. We welcome support from individuals, organizations, businesses and donors. Learn about all of the various ways you can get involved.
Volunteer
Whether it’s packing the food, driving to schools, or sharing your professional talents, each person can make a difference.
Partner
Looking for a way your company, organization, or school can get involved? Schedule a volunteer experience, sponsor our event, or hold a collection drive.
Support
When you give and volunteer, you help students become more food secure. Your time, energy and financial support will go far!
Find out what’s in our bags
We prioritize balancing nutrition, variety, and kid-friendliness in each bag. Check out some of our typical menus and additional materials.
See what’s happening
Keep up to date with the latest. Read about our most recent updates, news, and events here.
Meet Our Van
The Ravens Love a Good Caw-s! Which is why they joined us to distribute our weekly bags of food and backpacks of school supplies and officially unveil our van!
Fall 2024 Newsletter
Keep up to date with Weekend Backpacks with our Fall 2024 Newsletter.
WJZ’s School Supplies Segment
WJZ included Weekend Backpacks in their series on local organizations distributing school supplies to students in Baltimore. They joined us as Rosedale Federal packed 800 backpacks. This year, we packed and delivered over 3,000 backpacks to students throughout more than 50 schools!
Snack Packing at ECS Limited
ECS is a multi-year supporter of Weekend Backpacks. They pack snacks regularly, sponsor our chefs event, and support schools for our backpacks filled with school supplies. ECS packed 600 bags of snack items to be added to our weekly bags. Christy Keppel joined them and answered questions about Weekend Backpacks, food insecurity, and volunteering in general. Thank you, ECS, for providing these fun extras for our students!
Summer 2024 Newsletter
Keep up to date with Weekend Backpacks with our Summer 2024 Newsletter.
Volunteer Appreciation Event
In the 2023-2024 school year our volunteers put in over 5,000 hours of work to fulfill our mission. We couldn’t do it without them and to show our appreciation we had Deddle’s Mini Donuts come bring coffee and freshly made donuts. Thank you to all of our volunteers for their hard work!
Winter 2023 Newsletter
Keep up to date with Weekend Backpacks with our Winter 2023 Newsletter.
Make a donation today
Our average bag costs $12. Every donation increases our impact and supports another student for school readiness!