Where Milwaukee families can get free school supplies and backpacks
Families in Milwaukee County can get free school supplies, backpacks, shoes, haircuts, and even the shots kids need for school, all at no cost, before classes start. This page lists the city programs, charities, churches, and giveaway events across Milwaukee that help students get ready for the school year, with contact information and websites for each one.
Back-to-school help in Milwaukee works a little differently than in many cities. A few organizations give out supplies year after year as part of their regular services, and those anchors are listed below. But a large share of the free backpacks in Milwaukee are handed out at one-day events, dozens of them, held in parks, churches, community centers, and police district festivals across the north and south sides in late summer.
Most giveaways are first come, first served, and nearly all require the child to be present. There is a section near the bottom of this page on how to find each summer's event list. Families who also need clothes for school can check the page on free clothes closets in Milwaukee County.
City and school district programs
City of Milwaukee Health Department
Phone: (414) 286-6800
The health department runs one of the longest-standing back-to-school events in the city, an annual Back to School Health Fair where children get free backpacks and school supplies while they last, plus the immunizations Wisconsin schools require, with no proof of insurance needed. Free lead testing and other health screenings are usually offered as well, which makes this a one-stop event for getting a child physically ready for school, not just supplied.
- The location has moved between venues such as the Deer District at Fiserv Forum and local school buildings, and the date is announced fresh each summer, so check the department's site or call before going. The department has also given free filled backpacks to children receiving shots at its regular walk-in immunization clinics during the back-to-school season, so a family that misses the fair still has a path to both. See https://city.milwaukee.gov/Health.
Milwaukee Public Schools
MPS Central Services, 5225 W. Vliet St., Milwaukee, WI 53208
The district itself keeps costs down in two ways worth knowing. First, every MPS school from kindergarten through 8th grade uses the same short supply list, published in Spanish, Hmong, Somali, Arabic, and several other languages, so parents are not chasing a different list for each child.
- Second, MPS collects donated backpacks and school supplies from businesses and community groups every year, and those items go to students through the schools. A parent who can't afford the list should ask the school office or the school social worker directly; that is exactly what the donated supplies are there for, and it is handled quietly. Some individual MPS schools also host their own back-to-school community fairs with free backpacks. See https://www.milwaukeepublicschools.org/families/resources/supplies.
Countywide backpack programs
United Way of Greater Milwaukee & Waukesha County – Backpack Coalition
The Backpack Coalition packs and distributes thousands of backpacks filled with grade-appropriate school supplies every year across Milwaukee County and neighboring Waukesha County. Families generally do not pick these up from United Way itself; the filled backpacks reach students through school districts, food pantries, and partner agencies, so the backpack a child receives at school or a local pantry often came from this program.
- Its public face is the Fill the Bus supply drive held at area Walmart stores each summer. Parents looking for a backpack should ask their school or nearest food pantry whether they receive Coalition backpacks, since the partner list can shift from one year to the next. See https://www.unitedwaygmwc.org/Backpack-Coalition.
The Salvation Army of Milwaukee County
Distribution Center: 5880 N. 60th St., Milwaukee. Phone: (414) 464-2940
The Salvation Army's Backpacks and School Supplies Program provides brand-new backpacks stocked with essentials to students at partner schools in Milwaukee and Waukesha counties, funded by its annual Class Act Telethon with WISN 12. Because distribution runs through the schools rather than a public giveaway line, the way in is to ask whether your child's school participates, or email [email protected] for program details.
Wellpoint Care Network
8901 W. Capitol Dr., Milwaukee, WI 53222
Wellpoint, one of Milwaukee's oldest family-service agencies, throws an annual Back to School Bash at its Capitol Drive campus with free backpacks, school supplies, food, and resource tables from other local organizations. In recent cycles it has also pushed backpacks out through partner groups in other parts of the metro, including community health centers and south side organizations, so a Wellpoint backpack table can turn up at events it doesn't host itself. Some years have used an RSVP or backpack-request signup, and the format changes season to season, so check the event page before going. See https://wellpointcare.org/back-to-school-bash
School Choice Wisconsin
Phone: (414) 319-9160
This West Allis-based education nonprofit runs an annual School Supply Giveaway through its Hispanics for School Choice outreach, handing out free bundles of supplies for students in kindergarten through 8th grade. The giveaways are held at rotating community locations, often on the south side and at neighborhood festivals rather than at its office, with supplies going first come, first served and children required to be present with a parent. Since the venue moves around from year to year, call or check the website for the current spot. See https://schoolchoicewi.org/
St. Vincent de Paul Society of Milwaukee
Main office: 9601 W. Silver Spring Dr., Milwaukee. Phone: (414) 462-7837
St. Vincent de Paul works differently from the giveaway events on this page: help is requested case by case. Families who call the intake line can be visited at home by trained volunteers, who are able to issue certificates good at the SVdP thrift stores for children's clothing, shoes, and household basics, a practical route to school clothes when the August events have passed. The Society's free evening meal programs also feed thousands of Milwaukee children over the course of a year. Details are on the St. Vincent de Paul Milwaukee page and at https://svdpmilw.org/.
North and northwest side
Capuchin Community Services – House of Peace
1702 W. Walnut St., Milwaukee, WI 53205. Phone: (414) 933-1300
The Capuchin friars have served Milwaukee's near north side from the House of Peace for generations, and their annual Back to School Drive ends with a distribution day at the building where children receive backpacks packed with donated supplies. What makes this stop especially useful for a struggling family is everything else under the same roof: a food pantry open five days a week and a clothes closet, so school supplies, groceries, and kids' clothing can sometimes be handled in a single trip. Distribution details are set each summer, so call ahead for the current plan. See https://www.capuchincommunityservices.org.
Milwaukee Rescue Mission
North Campus: 1530 W. Center St., Milwaukee (Lindsay Heights)
The Rescue Mission collects new school supplies every year and puts them to work in three directions: children staying in its Joy House shelter for women and kids, students at its Cross Trainers Academy school, and, through its Equip community resource program at the North Campus, families in the surrounding Lindsay Heights neighborhood. Equip pairs the school supplies with food, clothing, and hygiene items for households in the area, meaning a family does not need to be staying in the shelter to benefit. See https://milmission.org/.
Hmong American Friendship Association (HAFA)
3824 W. Vliet St., Milwaukee, WI 53208. Phone: (414) 344-6575
HAFA's back-to-school and health resource fair in the Washington Park neighborhood is one of the longer-running giveaway events in the city, handing out backpacks filled with school supplies along with food, games, and live performances. Students of any background are welcome, not only Southeast Asian families, though the bilingual Hmong and English staff make this an especially comfortable option for refugee and immigrant households. Children must attend with a parent or guardian to receive items. HAFA also runs a Southeast Asian food pantry and an after-school youth program at the same address. Timing is announced each summer. See https://hmongfriendship.org/.
Blessed Savior Catholic Parish and School
8545 W. Villard Ave., Milwaukee, WI 53225. Phone: (414) 464-5033
Blessed Savior, a Catholic parish and K3–8 school on the far northwest side participating in the Milwaukee Parental Choice Program, has hosted back-to-school kick-off events with free school supplies, food, and activities for children in the neighborhood. The parish also operates a St. Vincent de Paul food pantry for area families. Event plans vary from one school year to the next, so contact the parish for what is currently scheduled. See https://www.blessedsaviorparish.org/.
South side
Gerald L. Ignace Indian Health Center
930 W. Historic Mitchell St., Milwaukee, WI 53204. Phone: (414) 383-9526
This urban Indian health center on Mitchell Street holds an annual back-to-school event where Native students receive full backpacks of supplies along with food and family activities. It is the one program on this page specifically for American Indian families, and it comes with paperwork: past events have required advance registration, a tribal ID or proof of descent, and proof of school enrollment, so gather documents before the event rather than at the door. Requirements and timing are posted each cycle on the center's site. See https://gliihc.net/
Finding each summer's giveaway events
Beyond the standing programs above, a big share of Milwaukee's free school supplies are given out at one-day back-to-school parties held across the city in late summer: park festivals on the north side, church bashes, events on Mitchell Street and in Clarke Square, and the annual festivals hosted by Milwaukee police districts and aldermanic offices, which typically combine free book bags with food, hair braiding or haircuts, and health screenings.
These events change organizers, parks, and dates every single year, which is why they are not listed here individually. The most reliable way to find the current season's list is Milwaukee Neighborhood News Service, a nonprofit local newsroom that publishes a running roundup of the city's free school supply events each summer: See https://milwaukeenns.org/.
More help in Milwaukee
If supplies are only part of the problem, Milwaukee County's 211 line is answered locally by IMPACT and can point families to help with food, rent, utilities, and more; dial 211 or text your ZIP code to 898-211, or search the directory at https://www.impactinc.org/impact-211/.
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