Pack your dream!
No kid should move their life in a trash bag.
When a family is moved to a new shelter, New York City law asks for 48 hours of written notice for most moves, yet one family told CBS News the city gave them two hours. Families describe packing a whole life into two bags per person, choosing between what they treasure and what they need. Sources: CBS New York, Win.
For children entering foster care, Comfort Cases, a nonprofit that gives them bags of their own, writes: “Typically, children are given a trash bag…”
BLACK BAG is a fictional nonprofit concept. It isn't a trash bag. It's a package that's theirs, delivered the moment a move is scheduled: a backpack, supplies for school, tickets for a day of fun, and letters from kids, for kids.
Moving shouldn’t mean start with nothing.
30,842
children were living in New York City shelters in July 2026.
Source: Coalition for the Homeless
1 in 5
students living in shelter changed schools within the 2024–25 school year, more than 4 times the rate of their permanently housed peers.
48 hrs
of written notice that city law requires before a non-emergency shelter transfer, unless the family asks to move. One family said they got two hours.
Sources: Local Law 143 of 2021, CBS New York
How it works?
1. Request
Shelter staff, a guardian, a caseworker or a foster parent starts the request.
2. Verify
A grown-up shares proof of the move. In this demo it is simulated and nothing is uploaded.
3. Choose Together
The adult and the child pick one of four ready-made kits together.
4. Pack & Deliver
The kit is packed and handed over the moment a move is scheduled.
5. Arrived!
A bag of their own, ready for school.
Who are we packing for?
Complete this together with a parent, guardian, caseworker, foster parent or shelter staff member! Children never type anything here, and nothing you choose is saved or sent.
Choose an age group
Ages 5–13 line up with grades 1–8, the range our ready-made kits cover.
What would help most? Pick any
Let the child point at one they like
A kit made for them
There are only four ready-made kits. This picks one of them with simple rules; it does not use AI and never invents a new kit.
Sponsors decorate the bag. Children decorate it back.
A sponsor funds a kit and its sticker appears on the bag, side by side with the child's own stickers. Sponsor stickers take less than half of a sticker sheet, and empty slots are always left for the child. The bag itself stays black.
Every sponsor shown in this project (STRIDE, PENCIL POST, BRIGHT MART, SEASIDE RIDE, MOVIE NIGHT) is fictional. No real brand has been asked or has agreed to anything. Gift card amounts and prices are not set.
Why a brand might back a bag
These are quotes from programs that already exist. We have no figures on brand lift or employee engagement, so we make no such claims.
Community commitment
Corebridge Financial describes its partnership with Kids In Need Foundation as “about much more than donating backpacks and supplies. It is about creating opportunities for students to reach their full potential…”
A mission customers care about
Kids In Need Foundation invites companies to “Align your brand with a mission your customers and communities care about.”
Teams that build together
Project Night Night: “Your team will love assembling our Night Night Packages which help homeless children transition to shelter living.”
Say hello
Black Bag is a fictional nonprofit, presumed to be a 501(c)(3) for the sake of this concept. The contact details below are placeholders on a reserved example domain, and nothing on this page sends data anywhere.
- Sponsors and partners
- partners@blackbag.example
- Schools, shelters, caseworkers and foster parents
- care@blackbag.example
- Address
- None. This organization does not exist.
For adults only. Please never send information about a child, including names, photos or school details.