Backpack Buddy

Backpack Buddy

Nutritious, kid-friendly food is provided for the weekend for at-risk children in schools grade K-12 and summer meal program sites.

Nutritious kid friendly food

One in five southeast Texas children is considered food insecure, which means they don’t have consistent access to enough nutritious food. Many of these children rely on school meals to provide breakfast and lunch during the school year. During breaks, such as weekends and holidays, many of these children go home to little or no meals. The Houston Food Bank’s Backpack Buddy program works to fill that gap by providing nutritious, child-friendly food for school children to take home over the weekend.

Through the Backpack Buddy program, the Houston Food Bank, works in partnership with participating schools, school district delivery sites, and other community partners, to ensure that the food sacks are distributed to children every Friday during the school year.

If your school is interested in participating in the Backpack Buddy program:

If you are new to the Backpack Buddy program:

  • Sign up for a PMA account, if you do not already have one.
  • To apply for the program please follow the next steps:
    • Click visit next to Backpack Buddy
    • Click apply and complete the application
  • If you a returning user to the Backpack Buddy program, please log into PMA.
    • To find the application:
      • Click visit next to Backpack Buddy
      • Hover over your name on the top right corner
      • Click My Account
      • Scroll down and click Apply
    •  Once you apply, a Backpack Buddy staff member will contact you with additional steps.

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Backpack Buddy Conference Dates

For more information regarding training sessions, please email backpackbuddy@houstonfoodbank.org.

2023-2024 Schools participating in the Backpack Buddy Program – coming soon!

If you are interested in having your child on the Backpack Buddy program:

  • Contact the principal or school counselor at your child’s school to find out if the school participates in the program.
  • If your school is not a part of the Backpack Buddy program, direct your school principal or counselor to this site for more information.
  • Cick here for Backpack Buddy Permission Slip

You can help support programs like Backpack Buddy by giving:

  • Funds through our online form today
  • Food by hosting a Food Drive or individual collection
  • Your time by volunteering

For questions regarding our Backpack Buddy Program, please contact:

Backpack Buddy