Operation Backpack® Volunteers Pack 2019 Campaign's Final 500 Backpacks on TODAY Show

Volunteers of America-Greater New York and Operation Backpack® were featured on NBC's TODAY show Thursday, August 29, as part of its back-to-school series. The TODAY show hosts joined volunteers live on the plaza to fill the final 500 backpacks needed to fulfill every shelter request for 2019.

This year, Operation Backpack® distributed a total of 19,000 full backpacks to children living in New York City homeless and domestic violence shelters in time for the first day of school.

"This makes all the difference in the world," explains Rachel Weinstein, Vice President, Communications & External Relations at Volunteers of America-Greater New York and founder of Operation Backpack®. "Our backpacks are in the children's hands before school begins, so they walk in looking and feeling like all the other kids."

A number of key partners and Operation Backpack® sponsors helped fill backpacks live on the TODAY plaza, including Becca Aronoff, Studio 71; Christine Browning, Branded Cities; Shakeena Davis, Walgreens; Lucy Feigel, Studio 71; Angelia Golden, Branded Cities; Dana Goldstein, Studio 71; Mitch Grant, RXR Realty; Diana Jin, Loews Corporation; Jonathan Krieger, Retail Worx; Roxy Lee, Retail Worx; Zachary Levine, Retail Worx; Diane Manning, JPMorgan Chase & Co.; Ginny Martinez, FedEx; Lou Montella, The Weeks Lerman Group; Jerel Powell, Walgreens; Damon Shuler, FedEx; Marc Siegel, The Weeks Lerman Group; Emma Skinner, The Plaza; Noa Sklar, Retail Worx.

View Photos from the TODAY Show