Care kits and blessing bags
How to make a winter care kit for someone experiencing homelessness
A winter care kit, often called a blessing bag, is a bag of things someone sleeping outside can use right away: warm socks, a hat, mittens or gloves, a few hygiene basics, water and a snack. Keep everything new, pack it in something easy to carry, and ask before you hand it over.
We have packed winter kits in Toronto every year since 1999, for more than 200 front-line agencies across the GTA1. Here is our advice.
The checklist
What to put in it, in order.
If the budget runs out halfway down this list, the top half still does the job.
1. Warmth
- Warm socks, two pairs if you can manage it
- A winter hat (a toque)
- Mittens or gloves
- A scarf or neck warmer
- Air-activated hand warmers
Socks first. You lose heat faster when you are wet2, and feet that stay wet and cold can develop trench foot at temperatures as high as 15.5°C3, so a second dry pair is the most useful thing you can add to the bag. For anything worn against the skin, the City of Toronto recommends wool, silk or polypropylene over cotton, because they hold more body heat4. If you are choosing between the two, the City's advice is mittens instead of gloves4.
2. Staying clean
- Toothbrush and toothpaste
- Deodorant
- Lip balm
- Hand wipes
- Hand sanitizer
- A small pack of tissues
- Soap or a travel-size body wash
- Period products
Buy travel sizes. Everything in the bag gets carried.
3. Small extras
- Bandages and a small tube of antibiotic ointment
- A bottle of water
- A sealed snack that needs no fridge, can opener or microwave
- A pen and a small notepad
- A deck of cards or a crossword book
4. A card with phone numbers (Toronto)
Write these on an index card and put it in the bag:
- Central Intake, for a shelter bed: 416-338-4766 or 1-877-338-3398, 24 hours5
- 2-1-1, for food, health, legal and community supports: a person answers around the clock6
- Warming Centres: open when the forecast hits minus 5°C, and walk-ins are welcome7
Outside Toronto, call 2-1-1 and ask for the local shelter line.
5. The bag
Use a backpack if you can. A bag with straps is easier to carry from morning to night than a plastic one, and it keeps the whole kit in one place. If the budget is gone, a large zip-top bag at least keeps things dry.
Leave out
What to leave out.
- Anything used. Our rule is new only, for hygiene and for dignity1.
- Food that needs a fridge, a can opener or a microwave.
- Glass, and anything that can leak or break in a bag.
- Big or heavy extras. Whatever you add, someone carries.
Handing it over
Ask first.
A simple "Would you like a winter kit?" is enough, and no is a fine answer, so let the person take what they want from the bag and leave the rest behind.
Skip the photos. If you want to post about your kits, post the bags and the packing table, and leave the person you met out of it.
If someone does not respond to you, or you do not think they will get through the night where they are, call 911.
The other way to help
Or give $50 toward a full kit.
Engage and Change cannot accept homemade kits, so the bags you make are yours to hand out.
A Project Winter Survival kit holds 30+ new items: most of the list above, plus a sleeping bag, a towel, an insulated cup, shampoo and a razor, all packed into a sport bag or knapsack1. We buy at wholesale, so every dollar goes further1. $50 helps build one.
Company teams pack the kits in one day each January, and more than 200 front-line agencies across the GTA hand them to the people they work with1. Those agencies ask for up to 30,000 kits a year1. The next pack is January 16, 2027.
Questions people ask
The short answers.
What do you put in a blessing bag for a homeless person in winter?
Warm socks first, then a hat, mittens or gloves, and a scarf. Add travel-size hygiene items, a bottle of water, a sealed snack and a card with local shelter numbers. Keep everything new.
What should you not put in a blessing bag?
Used items, food that needs a fridge or a can opener, glass, and anything heavy or bulky. Whatever goes in the bag gets carried all day.
How do you give a care kit to someone experiencing homelessness?
Ask first, and let them say no or take only what they want. Skip the photos. If someone does not respond or you are worried they will not get through the night, call 911.
Can I drop off care kits at Engage and Change?
No. Engage and Change cannot accept homemade kits or individual drop-offs, so please hand out the kits you make yourself. If you would like to help with ours, $50 helps build one1.
How many kits does Engage and Change give out?
3,500 in a single day each January, for more than 200 front-line agencies across the GTA. Agencies ask for up to 30,000 kits a year, and nearly 95,000 have gone out since 19991.
Can our company, school or faith group help?
Yes. Company teams pack kits with us each January, and a company donates to bring a team. Companies, schools and faith groups can also run a drive for new kit items and deliver them in bulk. Companies can start on our For Companies page; schools and faith groups, through our Get Involved form.
Sources
- Engage and Change. Project Winter Survival kit list and program figures, engageandchange.org (project-winter-survival, donate, companies, get-involved), as of October 2026; totals (nearly 95,000 kits since 1999, up to 30,000 agency requests a year) as confirmed by the board, October 11, 2026. Project Winter Survival.
- Health Canada, Extreme cold. Page details dated October 19, 2021. canada.ca Extreme cold.
- Canadian Centre for Occupational Health and Safety, Cold Environments: Health Effects and First Aid. ccohs.ca Cold Environments.
- City of Toronto, Stay Warm. toronto.ca Stay Warm.
- City of Toronto, Central Intake. toronto.ca Central Intake.
- 211 Ontario. 211ontario.ca.
- City of Toronto, Warming Centres. toronto.ca Warming Centres.
Numbers and sources checked October 11, 2026.