Back To School Drive

Support the Back-To-School Drive for Foster Youth

Your Complete Guide to Supporting Children in Foster Care for Back-to-School

For foster children, the nerves of starting a new school year are about more than having a cool backpack. Many are going to a new school, in a new town, and living with a new family. Foster children deserve to walk through the hall on their first day feeling like themselves- not worried about anyone seeing them as “foster kids.”

Keep scrolling to see all the ways you can support a child in foster care this school year.

Drop-off Donations

Arizona Locations

TFA Phoenix

Drop-off Hours:
Monday-Friday between 9am-5pm
No Appointment Necessary

TFA Flagstaff

Drop-off hours:
Tuesdays:10am-6pm
Thursdays: 10am-3pm

For appointments, email service@thefosteralliance.org.

New Mexico Locations

Drop-off event

Monday, August 10th from 3-6pm at the TFA Albuquerque office
(2902 Eubank Blvd NE, Albuquerque, NM 87112)

Other days

Sotheby’s International Realty locations:
・231 Washington Ave, Santa Fe, NM 87501
・326 Grant Ave Ste 2, Santa Fe, NM 87501
・417 E Palace Ave #17, Santa Fe, NM 87501

Planet Fitness
7200 Montgomery Blvd NE, Albuquerque, NM 87109

📍Map: NM Back-to-School Drop-off Locations

Any questions?

More Ways to Help

Foster Children for Back-to-School!

backpacks

Host a Drive

Everyone can help donate to children in foster care by hosting a back-to-school drive. Drive boxes can be picked up at TFA’s Phoenix Office Monday through Friday between 9:00 AM and 5:00 PM. No Appointment Necessary. You can also download and print flyers here.

Check out this article, 4 TIPS & TRICKS TO HAVE THE BEST BACK-TO-SCHOOL DRIVE EVER brought to you by the experts of the foster care back-to-school drive, the team at Russ Lyon Sotheby’s.

For those outside of Phoenix, check out our “Host a Drive” page for more details.

Shop Our Wishlist

A perfect option for busy families, you can give to foster children who need our support by visiting our Amazon Wish Lists. You can easily shop online or via the Amazon mobile app, and the items will be delivered directly to The Foster Alliance Resource Center in Phoenix.

Frequently Asked Questions

Your financial contributions allow us to buy high-quality, brand-new backpacks and essential school supplies in bulk at discounted rates. Every $35 gift completely equips one foster child with a new backpack loaded with notebooks, art supplies, folders, and writing utensils for the school year.

Yes! The Foster Alliance is a Qualifying Foster Care Charitable Organization (QFCO Code: 20023). Arizona taxpayers can claim up to $587 for single filers or $1,173 for married couples filing jointly on their state tax return while directly helping local foster youth.

Hosting a drive is simple! We provide downloadable flyers, drive toolkits, and collection guidelines. You can gather items at your office, church, school, or community group, or even host a virtual drive where supporters donate funds online.

We always have a high demand for brand-new, durable backpacks—especially neutral or stylish designs for middle and high school students. High-priority supplies include 1-subject spiral notebooks, 2-pocket folders, colored pencils, washable markers, glue sticks, and scissors.

Donations can be dropped off during resource center hours at our Phoenix or Flagstaff locations. For large bulk drop-offs (50+ backpacks or multi-box supply collections), please contact us in advance at service@thefosteralliance.org or call 480-889-0604 so our team can assist you at the loading area.

We welcome individual volunteers, families, and corporate groups to assist with sorting donations and building backpack kits at our centers in Phoenix and Flagstaff. Shifts are available throughout the summer back-to-school season. You can view open shifts and register on our volunteer portal.

Yes! While back-to-school supplies are our focus during the summer, we continuously collect new clothing, shoes, hygiene products, and birthday gifts for foster youth year-round through our Essential Services and Birthday Dreams programs.