Backpack Project MN, 3500 46th Avenue N, Robbinsdale, MN (2026)

Backpack Project MN is a 501(c)(3) organization that helps homeless young people in the Twin Cities Metro area of Minneapolis and St. Backpack Project MN is simple:
We provide backpacks filled with daily-use personal care items to homeless youth in the Twin Cities Metropolitan area of Minneapolis and St. All of our backpacks are distributed by experienced outreach personnel at shelters and resourc

e centers. How do we do it? Volunteers collect donated backpacks and items from our supply list and assemble the packs for distribution. We use monetary donations to purchase items from the supply list that have not been donated. Once assembled, we deliver all of the backpacks to outreach organizations like Youthlink MN and Avenues for Homeless Youth, whose outreach workers are on the streets every single day assisting young folks that are homeless. How can you help? Please see THE LIST and donate new, unused items from it. They can be shipped to us, dropped off, or we can arrange for local pickup! We can also accept monetary donations: our volunteers will be shopping for items to complete each backpack. The Winter List:
Backpack* (Sturdy, young adult appropriate)
Winter Gloves/Mittens (Outdoor appropriate)
Winter Hat (Outdoor appropriate)
Winter Scarf (Outdoor appropriate)
Warm Socks (Thick winter hiking/work socks)
Toothbrush
Toothpaste
Soap (3-16oz liquid, or bar)
Shampoo (3-13oz)
Lotion (2-10oz)
Razors
Shaving Cream
Deodorant
Dental Floss (standard floss, not picks)
Sewing kit (multi kit Tree is perfect)
Band-Aids/First Aid Kit Items
Gift Certificate (Fast-food, Target, etc)
Pen/Pencil
Notebook (Spiral or bound, 8.5x11 size)
Flashlight
Gift Item
Tampons/Pads/Liners)
Kleenex Travel Pack
Hand Sanitizer
Reusable Water Bottle
Chap Stick
Laundry Pods
Dryer sheets
Hand Warmers
Ziploc bags
Cosmetic items
Cosmetic/toiletry bags
Wet wipes (small travel size!)

Any liquid or semi-liquid MUST be packed inside Ziplock bags to prevent leakage! Shampoo, soap, toothpaste, deodorant...anything that can leak or spray must be in a bag. We use multiple ziplock bags per backpack!

*Good, strong backpacks are the MOST ESSENTIAL ITEMS. Please make sure they are STURDY, with good strong zippers and well-made seams. These are for adult-sized teens that use them every day to pack ALL of their belongings, they are used in harsh and challenging conditions. Thank you!

07/13/2026

Hi Backpackers!
This is our most current inventory, Sunday, July 12, 2026!

I love love looooove seeing our numbers creep up! We have a few weeks left to make some major progress but we are whittling down whats left of inventory thanks to YOU!

We've received such wonderful donations for our young folks in need, can't wait to get all of this packed into survival backpacks the first week of August. We've had multiple agencies reach out this week to see if they can get backpacks because the need has increased so much this summer...we've never had requests like this. Must mean we are doing something right, but also that resources are very, very scarce for our young folks.

Our MOST NEEDED ITEMS:

$9250 FUNDRAISING GOAL FOR JULY 30! Help us survive 2026!
139 $10 Food Gift Cards (Fast-food, Target, Cub, etc)
48 Adult Sturdy Backpacks
54 Mens Adult Athletic Socks
28 Womens Adult Athletic Socks
55 Lotion
18 Mens Deodorant
29 Womens Deodorant
129 Sewing Kits
50 Wireless Earbuds
50 Cell Phone Power Banks
40 Reusable Water Bottles
140 Travel Hand Sanitizer
88 Travel Size Wet Wipes NON SANITIZING
50 Colored Pencil/Marker Sets
114 Adult Sketch or Coloring Books
24 Pencil Sharpeners
41 Rectangle Erasers

If you'd like to donate, remember your donations are tax deductible! Mailed donations can be sent to:

Backpack Project MN
3500 46th Ave N
Minneapolis, MN 55422

Financial donations can be made through our website, Venmo, and Paypal, as well as mailing us a donation!
http://backpackprojectmn.com/

Through Venmo:
https://venmo.com/code?user_id=4100658454070519327&created=1722114901.553175&printed=1Or

And donations can be made through Paypal!
https://www.paypal.com/donate/?hosted_button_id=GKQGEWFDLTQZY

07/09/2026

We need some help backpackers! We have 3 weeks (!!!!) to raise funds to get us through the rest of the year.

Without a warehouse, our backpacks will be...quite difficult to pack. Donating at backpackprojectmn.com is very easy (and has the least processing fees!) but we can also accept donations through Venmo, PayPal, and the good ol' US Mail!

Backpack Project MN

3500 46th Ave N

Minneapolis, MN 55422

Thank you!

06/24/2026

Hey Backpackers!
We've collected $600 so far toward our goal of raising $12,000! That's a great start! Would LOVE to reach $1500 this week....can we do it?!

It's easy to donate! Mailed donations can be sent to:

Backpack Project MN
3500 46th Ave N
Minneapolis, MN 55422

Donations can also be made through our website:
http://backpackprojectmn.com/

Through Venmo:
https://venmo.com/code?user_id=4100658454070519327&created=1722114901.553175&printed=1Or

And donations can be made through Paypal!
https://www.paypal.com/donate/?hosted_button_id=GKQGEWFDLTQZY '

Thank you to our donors for getting us this far!!

06/22/2026

We've collected $350 toward our goal of $12,000! That's a great start....can we make it to $1500 by the end of the week? It's Monday, we have 5 days!!

It's easy to donate! Donations can be sent to

Backpack Project MN
3500 46th Ave N
Minneapolis, MN 55422

Donations can be made through our website:
http://backpackprojectmn.com/

The can also be made through Venmo:
https://venmo.com/code?user_id=4100658454070519327&created=1722114901.553175&printed=1Or

And donations can be made through Paypal!
https://www.paypal.com/donate/?hosted_button_id=GKQGEWFDLTQZY

06/17/2026

Hey Backpackers!

We are in the last half of 2026!! Can you believe it?

We are working towards our goal of filling backpacks the very first week of August! Our inventory is coming along, and I will post that next! However, we also need to raise funds to keep our warehouse for the last half of 2026!

Our warehouse is where were pack backpacks, sort and store our inventory, build our community of helpers, work on pre-packing, prepping, and all the other things it takes it make these backpacks the best survival tool for young folks experiencing homelessness.

We run a VERY lean organization. Everything we get, we pour into the backpacks....our only overhead is our lease, our insurance, and our utilities. We work really, really hard to keep those costs down, but we still need to pay the bills and keep the lights on!

This year our funding has been lower than ever...so if you can help, we really need it. In the 15 years we have been packing survival backpacks, this year has been financially one of the most difficult, and with so many resources losing funding that help homeless folks, the need is larger than ever.

If you can help us, now is the time.

If you’d like to send a donation, please mail to:
Backpack Project MN
3500 46th Ave N
Robbinsdale MN 55422

Financial donations through our website go to our account overnight!

[http://backpackprojectmn.com/](http://backpackprojectmn.com/)

We can also receive donations through Paypal and Venmo!

Through PayPal: [https://www.paypal.com/donate/?hosted_button_id=GKQGEWFDLTQZY](https://www.paypal.com/donate/?hosted_button_id=GKQGEWFDLTQZY)

Through Venmo! [https://venmo.com/code?user_id=4100658454070519327&created=1722114901.553175&printed=1Or](https://venmo.com/code?user_id=4100658454070519327&created=1722114901.553175&printed=1Or)

Thank you again, backpackers. We love you!!

03/25/2026

Hello Backpackers! Happy Spring!

Can you believe is March 2026 already? It seems like yesterday we were delivering backpacks in the snow for Christmas!

We are gearing up for Graduation + Summer Backpacks! We can't wait to send out backpacks full of HOPE (and a ton of much needed survival supplies for homeless young folks!) this year! We are still working on our inventory, but numbers are starting to come in and I wanted to share them so we can get a head start on supplies! We will pack Graduation Backpacks in May (And we need at least 60 of everything on the list by mid May!), and Summer Backpacks in July!

One thing to note: We are SO grateful for the wonderful donations we received for the backpack purchase! Thank you to soooooo many folks that donated, and to Karen Rodgers and fam for making that deal happen! We will continue to collect adult sized, quality backpacks though so that all of our backpacks are not identical: It's very, very important that our bags do not look uniform..because then they become targets for anyone carrying them, and we do not want that! So if you find a deal on great backpacks, please share so we can continue to collect them. We will likely pack half random backpacks, and half of our big backpack purchase this round!

We also need to continue to collect funds for our Warehouse fund. It is expensive to store everything, and have a space to prep and pack, that is accessible to everyone, and safe....and that has a bathroom. :). If you can help us with a monetary donation towards our rent, that would be absolutely wonderful. We have funds to keep the lights on through the first half of the year...but after that, well, I'd rather not think of that.

Here is our Most Needed List, for March 24, 2026! Numbers will continue to change, I have some boxes that came in that have not been counted yet!

Most Needed:

130 $10 Food Gift Cards (Fast-food, Target, Cub, etc)

160 Adult Sturdy Backpacks
420 Mens Adult Athletic Socks

420 Womens Adult Athletic Socks

203 Toothpaste

133 Dental Floss

143 Lotion

493 Razors (Mens and Womens)

103 Mens Deodorant

83 Womens Deodorant

260 Sewing Kits

153 Band Aid Kits

100 Spiral School Notebooks

260 Flashlights + Batteries

93 Wireless Earbuds

53 Cell Phone Power Banks

MANY Regular and Light Tampons

MANY Regular and Light Menstrual Pads

440 Travel Pack Tissues

160 Reusable Water Bottles

433 Lip Balm

337 Travel Size Wet Wipes NON SANITIZING

190 Colored Pencil Sets

168 Adult Sketch or Coloring Books

223 Pencil Sharpeners

133 Rectangle Erasers

If you’d like to donate, mail and packages can be sent to:

Backpack Project MN

3500 46th Ave N

Robbinsdale MN 55422

Financial donations through our website go to our account overnight!

[http://backpackprojectmn.com/](http://backpackprojectmn.com/)

We can also receive donations through Paypal and Venmo!

Through PayPal: [https://www.paypal.com/donate/?hosted_button_id=GKQGEWFDLTQZY](https://www.paypal.com/donate/?hosted_button_id=GKQGEWFDLTQZY)

Through Venmo! [https://venmo.com/code?user_id=4100658454070519327&created=1722114901.553175&printed=1Or](https://venmo.com/code?user_id=4100658454070519327&created=1722114901.553175&printed=1Or)

Thank you again to our amazing donors or getting us this far!!

Address

3500 46th Avenue N
Robbinsdale, MN
55422

Website

http://backpackprojectmn.com/

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