Backpack Kits for Gaza's Children
rally american support. benefit education. Open the blockade.
Our first container of 3,888 backpack kits with new school supplies and children's books has received formal pre-clearance approval by Israeli customs! As the container makes its way across the Atlantic towards the port of Ashdod, Rebuilding Alliance will be working with our partners to secure distribution logistics. This exciting project is finally taking shape - we couldn't have done it without you!
The container loading event was a huge success!
Our New Jersey Coordinator, Adam, and volunteer Ahmed load the shipping container in Mohegan Lake, NY.
On Sunday, August 9, over a hundred volunteers gathered at the Hudson Valley Islamic Community Center to pack the 3,888 backpack kits with school supplies, children's books, and letters of encouragement. It was a beautiful day, and the generous spirit of all of our volunteers made us excited about doing similar events across the country! Thank you to everyone who supported the project and thank you to all of our volunteers!
Want to get involved?
Help send 10,000 backpack kits to gaza
Your donation of a backpack with new school supplies will help children in Gaza return to and succeed in school.
For only $20, you can send a backpack kit with new school supplies to a needy child in gaza.
Your donation is essential for Gaza's future generations. Not only is each kit is filled with everything a child needs for school, but your effort is part of a national movement to take action.
The project seeks to accomplish three things:
1. Support education in Gaza for K-12 school children
2. Raise awareness in the United States about the humanitarian crisis in Gaza
3. Rally American support to open the blockade by engaging our elected representatives
For a week’s worth of coffee, you can help build a brighter future for a child in Palestine and work to end the blockade.
We met our first goal! Now, let's send the next container!
More information:
HOW DO THE BACKPACKS GET to gaza?
Rebuilding Alliance knows that getting goods into Gaza is difficult, but we have succeeded in the past. In 2004, we sent concrete and steel to rebuild a home for the family that Rachel Corrie stood to protect. 10 years later, in October 2014, Rebuilding Alliance successfully sent a 40' container filled with 472 medium boxes of gently-used clothing to Gaza to families devastated by the summer conflict. We negotiated the entry of that container, and we succeeded. Now we know how to get the backpacks in.
Here is what we do:
We pre-clear the shipment before the container leaves port. That way, when the container arrives, the container will be no-questions-asked.
If there is a delay in pre-clearance, we'll engage our elected Senators and Congresspeople to press for entry, and we'll ask the State Department to intervene on our behalf. We have used this method to keep Palestinian homes standing in Area C, and it works. We'll also use all the resources and connections the UN system can offer.
Most importantly, we want everyone participating in this project to know that getting the backpacks in, opening the blockade with 10,000 backpack kits, is to press for a releasing of the stringent regulations that prevent the people of Gaza from rebuilding and recovering from prolonged violence and conflict. When our backpacks project is successful, we will continue sending goods to Gaza.
To learn more about engaging our elected representatives, visit our Stay Human Conference Calls to Congress page.
what else can i do?
Purchase a backpack kit for Gaza online for only $20
Host a shipping container site or fundraising event (Learn More)
new jersey to gaza
Is your school participating in the new jersey to gaza project? click here to get credit for your donation!
Ready to give?
Gaza’s children have lost so much in their young lives.
Give them hope of a brighter future.
More information:
HOW DID YOU PICK THESE ITEMS?
The items included in the Backpacks for Gaza kit were carefully selected with the intention of covering all of the needed materials for students ranging from kindergarten through sixth grade.
In addition to school supplies, we have chosen to include a significant amount of creative utensils including crayons, markers, and colored pencils. In addition to supporting the needs of children to return to school, we also recognize the power of art and creative expression to help children who are traumatized heal and return to life with some sense of normalcy. Your gift gives this opportunity.