“CAN”struction Competition January 28, 2012

TRAVERSE CITY, MI – October 26, 2011 – The Father Fred Foundation in conjunction with our local chapter of the American Institute of Architects (AIA) is calling for teams of 5 or more individuals to register now to participate in the 1^st Annual Traverse City Canstruction Competition January 28, 2012. 

The competition challenge is to make a free standing sculpture comprised entirely of canned food products.  Entries will be judged based on 6 categories of performance with the winners of each category going on to national competition via photo documentation.  All of the food used in the competition will be directed to the Father Fred food pantry.     

 Awards Categories:

·         Best Meal          

·         Best Use of Labels

·         Structural Ingenuity

·         Jurors’ Favorite

·         Honorable Mentions

·         People’s Choice

Teams will be comprised of at least 5 individuals with a minimum of one design professional, a corporate or individual sponsor and at least one student.  Design professionals could include engineers, interior designers, architects, graphic designers, and artists consulting to the design industry.  An example of a student team member might be a single student or an entire art, science or engineering class, an eagle scout, a student senate member, a church group, a club or sports team.

Corporate Sponsors will help purchase the cans of food and any construction materials needed for each sculpture and will have naming rights for each team.   Multiple sponsors may be required for some teams.  Organizers estimate that the cost of the building materials (cans of food) for each sculpture will typically range from $1,000 to $2,000 depending on the complexity and size of each design.  Teams may pool their purchasing to maximize the impact of each dollar.  

Team registration can be done by e mailing an expression of interest to David Abeel at dabeel@fatherfred.org or by calling 947-2055 ext 18.  An initial meeting of all interested parties will be held in early November to clarify ground rules, talk about collective food purchases and to do other logistical problem solving.   

Need Help Forming a Team?  Individuals or partial teams who are unable to field a complete team should contact Sue Bauer, at Father Fred’s for a possible match up with a corporate sponsor, other individuals or partial teams. Call Sue at 947-2055 ext 34 or email her at sbauer@fatherfred.org. 

“I am so excited to get the architects, engineers, builders, students, and other design professionals together for this fund raiser; they are all so creative,”  said Sarah Bourgeois, AIA Northern Michigan Chapter President.  “We will bring our expertise of everyday responsibilities to the team: such as design aesthetics, project coordination, structural integrity, budget issues and feasibility. It’s a great opportunity for us to give back.”

“This is our first year of organizing a competition, said David Abeel, Director of Development.  “The amount of creativity and engineering other Canstruction competitions around the country are showing is amazing.  We hope interested parties will visit Canstruction.com and view the photo gallery to get an idea of just how colorful, creative and fascinating entries from around the country have become.  One unique thing about the Traverse City version of this competition is the requirement that each team have at least one student involved.   We think this is a great “teachable” moment.  Each project will involve art, design, engineering, searching for the right canned products at the right price, budgeting, considering what goes into a healthy meal, and how to assemble the final sculpture on a time line.  The fact all of these food items will be providing meals for local families that are struggling makes this a win-win for the whole community.”