2,000 backpacks, one Hamilton community

HAMILTON, Ontario, Aug. 27, 2026 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- The Hamilton Steelworkers Area Council and community partners will bring volunteers together on Wednesday, Sept. 2, 2026, for the annual Operation Backpack packing day.

Beginning at 9:00 a.m., volunteers will gather at the United Steelworkers Centre, 1031 Barton Street East, Hamilton, to pack 2,000 backpacks with school supplies for students at 55 elementary and high schools in the area.

For more than 15 years, Operation Backpack has been helping local children and families prepare for the new school year. This year’s campaign is targeting 2,000 backpacks and $68,000 in donations.

Media are invited to attend the event to take photographs and video of volunteers packing thousands of backpacks, and to interview organizers, volunteers and community partners about the importance of supporting local students.

“Operation Backpack is about making sure that every child in our community can walk into school on the first day feeling prepared and confident,” said Darren Green, President of the Hamilton Steelworkers Area Council.

“Two thousand backpacks is a big goal, but Hamilton has always shown what we can accomplish when we come together. This is community in action.”

The Hamilton Steelworkers Area Council believes in the slogan Community Matters, and Operation Backpack is an important part of that commitment, Green said.

About Operation Backpack

Operation Backpack brings together the labour movement, businesses, community organizations and volunteers to provide Hamilton students with backpacks filled with essential school supplies.

The program’s 2026 goal is to provide 2,000 backpacks to local students while raising $68,000 to support the initiative.

Media contact:

Darren Green
President, Hamilton Steelworkers Area Council
1031 Barton St. E., Hamilton,
hamiltonsteelworkers@gmail.com