A 501(c)(3) nonprofit · San Diego, 2010–2018

Help the homeless for $5.
Keep one in the car.

The Red Bag was a care package you kept in your car and handed to a neighbor in need: a meal, water, and a note in your own handwriting. Started by a high school freshman.

Read the story See what’s inside

15,000 bags
8 essentials
$5 each
San Diego → Spokane

As seen onNBC 7 San DiegoU-T San DiegoThe ObserverThe Southern CrossPomerado News

How it started

The sandwiches were gone in five minutes.

A month into high school, my English teacher took our class downtown in San Diego after school. We had packed sandwiches in grocery bags hours before. They were gone in five minutes. We didn’t even cover a city block.

What amazed me was how grateful the men and women were. All they wanted was a little love. What if anyone could do what my class did?

Anyone could carry a bag in their car and, instead of offering money, give our neighbors a meal and a few words of encouragement. And so the Red Bag began.

Michael McRoskey, founder

What’s inside

A meal, water, and a note. Five dollars, all in.

Everything was chosen to survive a hot or freezing car for months, then fit in one reusable bag with room left for your own additions.

The contents laid out beside a Red Bag: trail mix, a Clif bar, raisins, a beef stick, Orbit gum, a water bottle, a note card, and its envelope reading “I’m praying for you” — 8 essentials$5 total

In every bag

01Energy barOrganic, high protein, heat-proof
02WaterThe one thing everyone needs
03Trail mixProtein from nuts, plus chocolate
04Beef stickRounds out the meal
05RaisinsFruit in a box
06GumGood for teeth, and it tastes good
07Hand wipeA clean meal, anywhere
08Note cardBlank, for your own words

The bag

Rain runs right off.

When it rains, people on the street lose their blankets and socks to the wet. The polypropylene bag is water-resistant, tough enough to carry belongings long after the food is gone, and recyclable when it’s done.

Why a bag

The five-dollar bill, but you know where it goes.

01
A cash substitute
Everything inside plus the bag costs $5, the same as the bill it replaces. A meal instead of a question mark.
02
Ready in the car
Packed to stay fresh through heat and cold, so it’s there at the off-ramp or the stoplight when you need it.
03
Make it yours
Write a note. Add an orange, a sandwich, warm socks in winter or sunscreen in summer. There’s room.

Gallery

From San Diego to Spokane.

Schools, parishes and families packed Red Bags together, then handed them out one at a time.

A couple sitting under a blanket with a Red Bag beside them — Spokane, WA

A group of grade-school boys holding up Red Bags — Students · Poway, CA

A man asleep on a sidewalk with a Red Bag beside his head — San Diego, CA

Two boys filling Red Bags at an outdoor table — Packing party · San Diego

A woman and a nun smiling and holding Red Bags — Supporters · San Diego

A Red Bag held up against a dark background — Chula Vista, CA

Press

On the news, and in front of a Shark.

Michael pitching the Red Bag on stage beside a poster, with Kevin O’Leary seated to the right

The Observer · Nov 2014

Swimming with the Sharks

One of three finalists to pitch Kevin O’Leary of ABC’s Shark Tank at Notre Dame’s Mendoza College of Business.

NBC 7 San Diego broadcast still of Red Bags

NBC 7 San Diego · Nov 2013

Student launches Red Bags program for homeless

On air and online, filmed at Saint Augustine High School, where the Red Bag has its roots.

“He took the bag, opened it, and looked back at me with a very big toothless smile. I knew it made him feel good, and made me feel good as well.”

Mr. Parker · Orange County

15,000 bags, handed over
one at a time.

The Red Bag ran from 2010 to 2018. Thank you to every student, parish and driver who carried one. The idea still works: pack a bag, keep it in the car.

Help the homeless for $5. Keep one in the car.