11th Annual Canstruction® enjoys successful debut at Jacksonville International Airport, creates 3,233 meals for First Coast neighbors in need

JACKSONVILLE, Fla.- The 11th annual design/build event Canstruction® enjoyed one of its most successful years to date in its first appearance at the Jacksonville International Airport. The design competition featured five structures on display for three high-volume weeks, including The PLAYERS Championship. 

“The new partnership with the Jacksonville International Airport was outstanding and provided incredible exposure both for this event and the issue of hunger in north Florida,” Second Harvest Executive Director Bruce Ganger said. "We received so many comments from people in the community who saw the structures this year, and even from some travelers who were simply passing through who want to take this idea back to their communities. We can't thank the teams, JIA and those who voted enough for their participation. We look forward to next year and making the event even more prominent."

Competing architectural firms built their structures in the airport’s newly designed Connector Bridge on April 30, 2012.  Each design consisted of non-perishable food items, which were donated to Second Harvest. The structures remained on display through May 18. Passersby had the opportunity to vote for the “People’s Choice” award via online voting, with a panel of local judges also awarding honors for best meal, best use of labels, structural ingenuity and juror’s favorite.

The People's Choice winner this year was "JAX - Where Florida Begins, Hunger Ends" by Passero Associates LLC. Other award winners were The Haskell Company (Best Use of Labels and Judges Favorite), RS&H (Structural Integrity) and Hubbard (Best Meal). Passero also won honorable mention by the judges at this year's event.

PHOTO GALLERY of 2012 STRUCTURES

2012 Award Winners:
Best use of Labels – "We Khan" by The Haskell Company
Judges Favorite – "We Khan" by The Haskell Company
Structural Ingenuity – "Airplane!" by RS&H
Honorable Mention – "JAX - Where Florida Begins, Hunger Ends" by Passero Associates LLC
Best Meal - "All Cans on Deck" by Hubbard
People’s Choice – "JAX - Where Florida Begins, Hunger Ends" by Passero Associates LLC

2012 Judges: Bruce Ganger, executive director, Second Harvest North Florida; Stephynie Perkins, communications professor, University of North Florida; Tom Norman, president, Jacksonville chapter of the American Institute of Architects.

Total Weight (meals) of Food Used: 3,880 pounds (3,233 meals)

Between 16,000 and 24,000 people a day passed the structures during the three-week event, according to Debbie Jones, the Jacksonville Aviation Authority’s community relations administrator.

This year’s event was sponsored by the Jacksonville Chapter of the American Institute of Architects and the Society for Design Administration. The 10th Annual Canstruction® event was held at the Jacksonville Landing. Through the years, the event has produced more than 50,000 pounds of food – or 350,000 meals – for hungry families.

About Second Harvest North Florida

Second Harvest North Florida is the oldest and largest program of Lutheran Social Services of Northeast Florida. LSS was founded in 1979 by area Lutherans and business leaders to fill gaps in services offered in the community for people in need. Second Harvest gathers food from local and national sources, shares these resources with more than 450 nonprofit organizations in 17 North Florida counties and helps thousands of people each year who are hungry or at risk of not having being able to provide food for themselves and their families. In addition to collecting and distributing food, Second Harvest serves children in after-school programs through its Kids Café and BackPack programs and in summer camps through its Summer Lunch program. It also takes Mobile Pantries filled with Family Boxes of food to people living in neighborhoods with the greatest needs. Call 904.730.8234 for more information about any of these programs and services.

About the American Institute of Architects (AIA)

Based in Washington, D.C., the AIA has been the leading professional membership association for licensed architects, emerging professionals, and allied partners since 1857. With nearly 300 state and local chapters, the AIA serves as the voice of the architecture profession and the resource for our members in service to society. For more information, visit www.aia.org. 

About Canstruction

Canstruction®, the community service charity of the Society for Design Administration, was founded in 1992 to help promote the design community and raise food for hunger relief efforts. It has grown steadily since then and last year 103 Canstruction® competitions were held around the world.   Canstruction® is one of the largest internationally recognized food drives of its kind. For more information, visit www.Canstruction.com.