Stories of Hope

Second Harvest Food Bank of Central Florida is so fortunate to have many incredible events supporting our neighbors facing hunger; however, Canstruction Orlando may be the most artistic! Canstruction Orlando is a unique and architectural way to raise awareness of the issue of hunger in Central Florida.

Canstruction is an international hunger relief charity that raises millions of pounds of food each year for food banks worldwide. Every year, different Canstruction chapters around the U.S have different competitions citywide where teams design and build giant structures made entirely out of cans of food and other non-perishable food items. At the end of the exhibition here in Central Florida, all of the food is donated to Second Harvest Food Bank of Central Florida to help feed local kids, families and seniors facing hunger. How exciting that we are blessed to be the beneficiary.

To celebrate 30 years of Canstruction, our theme will center around “ICONIC” Central Florida. We’re thrilled to announce that we’ll be teaming with ICON Park to honor all things Central Florida while supporting Second Harvest Food Bank of Central Florida with our 2023 “Iconic Florida” theme. These Structures were on display at Icon Park from November 11-November 19^th.

In the end, more than 25,000 cans were donated to Second Harvest Food Bank, which translated to 20,219 pounds, equal to over 16,849 meals for Central Floridians facing hunger!

This year 7 teams participated: Walt Disney World, Huitt-Zollars, Cuhaci Peterson, Whiting-Turner, SchenkelShultz, RLF & RM, Kiewitt. And all had incredible sculptures, from Mount Dora’s Lighthouse made entirely out of cans and non-perishables to the iconic Orange Bird made from fruit cups. It was truly an amazing sight to see.

The donated cans and other non-perishable food items will be an incredible source of relief for families fighting food insecurity and struggling to make ends meet this holiday season. Thank you to our participants and everyone who came out to support us!