Seventeen SK&A volunteers worked to design and construct a sculpture using 1,212 cans of food. All of the food was then donated to feed the hungry in our community.

“Canstruction is a nationwide program that aims to raise awareness about hunger. In DC, Canstruction is organized by the Washington Architectural Foundation as a creative design-build competition that benefits the Capital Area Food Bank through donations of canned goods. Teams from architecture and design firms from Washington, DC use their skills to build sculptures out of cans of food. The nutritious shelf-stable food is donated to the CAFB for distribution to those in need after the event.” (https://www.aiadc.com/event/canstruction-2022)

The SK&A team built an Olympic Torch and Rings in a sculpture called A Torch Worth Carrying. Symbolically, the Olympic Torch Relay carries a message of peace and friendship along its route, passed from one person to another and inspiring those watching. SK&A’s CANstruction Torch represents the positive impact on hunger that can be achieved by carrying food to those in need and lighting a fire of inspiration in others to do the same. Historically, the multicolored, interlocked Olympic Rings represent the coming together of athletes from around the world. SK&A’s CANstruction rings symbolize the importance of setting aside differences and unifying towards the cause of serving the hungry.

The 1,212 cans used to build the structure consisted of the following:

• 336 cans of Potatoes
• 252 cans of Black Beans
• 84 cans of Artichoke
• 84 cans of Beans
• 108 cans of Pineapple Chunks
• 48 cans of Honey Carrots
• 300 cans of Black Eyed Peas

SK&A was honored to be one of many design and construction firms from the Greater Washington Metropolitan area who participated in the AIA DC 2022 CANstruction competition, which resulted in Tens of Thousands of cans of food filling the Capital Area Food Bank, and, ultimately, filling the stomachs of local people in need. We specifically thank our SK&A team members who volunteered their time, labor, and creativity in this endeavor:

• Joseph Uchno, PE (Team Leader) and his wife Greer
• Maurice O’Connor, PE and his daughter
• Monika Crandall, PE, LEED AP and her children
• Shambi Eubanks and her husband Matthew
• David Stringer, PE
• J. David Pirnia, PE
• Jack Payne, EIT
• Catherine Pastoor, PE, SE
• Macenzie Smith, PE, SE
• Bing Rao, PE
• Ammar Motorwala, PE
• Zachary Shugart, EIT