Celebrate National Blessings in a Backpack Day

The U.S. Conference of Mayors passed a resolution in June 2014 declaring Thursday, Sept. 18, Blessings in a Backpack Day. Mayors and city officials attended events across over 20 states in 55 different cities as part of this new national movement to address childhood hunger on the weekends.

Pictured: In Atlanta, former Mayor Kasim Reed joined the Falcons mascot at Humphries Elementary to celebrate the first-ever Blessings in a Backpack Day.  

At the annual mayor’s meeting in June 2015, the Conference passed a permanent resolution declaring the third Thursday of September would be the annual celebration of Blessings in a Backpack Day. Mayors from over 60 cities across the country came out on Sept. 17, to pack backpacks full of food.

Pictured: Brooke Wiseman, former CEO of Blessings in a Backpack, joined in the celebration. She said of the day, “Our individual schools didn’t feel as grass roots anymore, but more part of a national movement.  We came together and felt as one with each other, not just separate groups, but part of a bigger effort making a difference to feed hungry kids.”

Over 80 mayors across America filled backpacks with food to support their local Blessings in a Backpack program. Corporate partners like FedEx and professional athletes like the Indy Eleven Football Club (pictured) joined in the day, to help raise awareness and feed kids in their communities on the weekends.

Indy Eleven forward Eamon Zayed (now head coach of Northern Coloardo Hailstorm FC) said, “We can’t help everyone, but everyone can help someone. If we can help a little kid smile and brighten up their day, well then that has to be worthwhile!”

Former Phoenix Mayor Greg Stanton (pictured) was one of 60 mayors participating in the fourth annual Blessings in a Backpack Day. Stanton joined The Thunderbirds, the Waste Management Phoenix Open hosts, and the PGA TOUR Wives Association to pack food for students at Nevitt Elementary.

Stanton said, “Childhood hunger is a serious issue impacting too many kids in communities and cities across the country… which is why I helped create and support Blessings in a Backpack Day.”

In 2018, the U.S. Conference of Mayors Fall Leadership Meeting in Columbia, South Carolina, was held on National Blessings in a Backpack Day, so we brought the packing event to them! Mayors in attendance stopped by to pack food for local kids.

Pictured: In Hampton, New Jersey, Cigna employees and Hampton University students joined City Councilman Steve Brown to pack 800 bags of food for the students at Machen Elementary. The Hampton University Drumline also performed for the kids on this very special day.

Volunteer-driven events were held in communities across the country and mayors nationwide continued to join local Blessings programs in an effort to end childhood hunger. In some cities — like Frederick, Maryland, and Houston (pictured) — proclamations were made to honor Blessings in a Backpack Day!

In celebration of the day, we created a week-long campaign with daily activities, like “Take Your Backpack to Work” day, so anyone and everyone could get involved.

Because of the COVID-19 pandemic and social distancing restrictions in place, Blessings in a Backpack Day went digital. We expanded on the week-long activities from the year before and added ways to raise awareness virtually. For example, using a Blessings in a Backpack background during Zoom calls (pictured) or hosting a Facebook fundraiser.

Whether kids were learning in a physical or virtual classroom, Blessings in a Backpack continued to feed them on the weekends.

We continued celebrating National Blessings in a Backpack Day online with fun, virtual activities for supporters of any age who wanted to get involved.

In 2022, we introduced a “Photo-of-the-Day” social media challenge. Each day, we presented a word that aligns with our mission — like apple, food, and backpack — and asked participants to take pictures and tell their followers about Blessings in a Backpack.