School Supplies for Homeless Kids!

There are currently over 10,000 children who are homeless or in need on Long Island. These children live in shelters, temporary housing and other facilities. Each September, when it's time to return to school, these children often do not have adequate supplies to help them get started on the road to learning.



For the past 10 years, the Long Island Coalition for the Homeless  has been hosting a “SOS: Supply Our Students” Back to School Drive.  The first distribution will take place on August 25 with a Summer Festival for children in shelters organized by Backpack Pirates. “This event gives the children a day to learn and grow – a day to play on the beach, have a picnic,” said Ken Mangan, LICH Board member and organizer of the Backpack Pirates event. “Many of them have never been to the beach or had new clothes or supplies for school. Thanks to our partners in the community, Backpack Pirates and LICH, these kids will start the school year more prepared and more confident than they have before,” said Charles Russo, Chair of LICH and co-organizer of the Summer Festival. “We are also tremendously grateful to the members of the Suffolk County Legislature, Astoria Bank, Touro Law Center and Long Island Board of Realtors, who have been supporters of our Back Pack Pirates event from its inception, and who will be collecting supplies for Suffolk’s children in need. We are also grateful to various libraries throughout our region, who have agreed to collect school supplies for our drive, and act as drop-off sites.”

The second half of the distribution will take place at the end of August. The Long Island Coalition for the Homeless is seeking additional partners to help provide much-needed school supplies to children in need. Donations of new school supplies and backpacks will be accepted at the LICH offices, the offices of Russo, Karl, Widmaier and Cordano (400 Townline Road, Hauppauge) and several offices of members of the Suffolk County Legislature until the week of August 10.


Raising the $18,000 to host at the camp, insure the event, transport hundreds of children across LI, feed them, entertain them and send them back to school prepared for learning is a daunting task. However, we're so happy to take it on each year. 




We need your help. It's easier to have an impact than you think.

1. Please SHARE our very important cause with your friends and family to help raise funds, grow awareness and support the children. 

2. Please Donate! Every dollar you give goes directly to helping these children. The  Backpack Pirates are strictly volunteer organized! No donation is too big or too small!

3. Please Volunteer! Come help us in a variety of hands on ways! [email redacted]