Hy-Vee signs 3-year sponsorship of Canstruction Topeka

Canstruction is an international program of the Society of Design Administration that challenges teams to design and build large, creative sculptures made only from canned food and other nonperishable food items. At the conclusion of the event, all canned food and other nonperishable food items are donated to Harvesters—The Community Food Network for distribution to hungry children, families and seniors in our community.

Through this partnership, Hy-Vee will support future Canstruction teams by providing $1,000 per team in donated nonperishable items to build their structure, as well as provide a meeting space for the event’s kickoff, additional discounts to teams, and more.

“Hy-Vee prioritizes working with community partners like Harvesters because it’s important to us as a company, and to our employees, to be a part of a healthy and happy community, and that means a community without hunger,” said Joe Burke, store director of the Topeka Hy-Vee. “We love this event because it engages the community as we work to eliminate hunger in Topeka and Shawnee County.”

2016 is the third year Harvesters has had a Canstruction event in Topeka. This year, Canstruction teams used more than 19,800 pounds of food, which will provide nearly 16,000 meals to hungry families, children and seniors in our community. Hy-Vee donated $6,000 worth of the product used by teams to create this year’s structures. During its three-year history, Topeka Canstruction has provided more than 42,000 meals to feed the hungry.

“Canstruction is a fun and creative event that raises awareness of hunger in our community,” said Valerie Nicholson-Watson, president and CEO of Harvesters. “We are grateful for the support of the dedicated companies, like Hy-Vee, who help the architects and engineers create such amazing structures. Canstruction is one of our largest food drives, providing much needed, nutritious shelf-stable food for the 141,500 people we help feed every month.”