Backpacks4Good began in 2021 when the organization noticed many families struggling to provide their kids with the necessary tools for school success.

To help, they partnered with Indianapolis Public Schools to give away 10,000 backpacks filled with school supplies. It quickly became clear that the community’s need was even greater than initially thought.

Ryan Kreicker, the Director of IT and Internet Marketing at Hensley Legal Group, PC, and Jose Juarez, the Family and Community Engagement Director with Indianapolis Public Schools, joined us to share more about how this initiative started and how it continues to grow.

“We started in 2021. School supplies happened to be a major issue at the time. There was a different backpack program around and they had fallen through with COVID, so we stepped in and that year we donated 10,000 backpacks full of school supplies directly to IPS. Since then, we’ve expanded that,” Kreicker said.

In 2022, Backpacks4Good held its first annual drive-thru backpack event at its new office in Fishers.

This event was such a huge success that the organization decided to expand. They added another event at their Greenwood office and one in Hammond, partnering with Hammond Community Schools.

“We’re appreciative of the partnership with Hensley. Through that partnership, we’ve got thousands of backpacks to our students so we’re glad they could step up, and other partners too, to help close that gap,” Juarez explained.

So far, Backpacks4Good has given out 31,400 backpacks to students across Indiana. They encourage churches and community organizations to contact them to reserve backpacks for 2024.

Together, they can ensure every child has the tools to succeed in school. Visit the Backpacks4Good website to learn more information, and don’t forget to watch the full interview above!