CANstruction: June 2008 – Chicago

On June 4, 2008 RJN's Wheaton office participated for the second year in the CANstruction design/build competition to benefit the Greater Chicago Food Depository. The Team, led by co-chairs Jan Miller and Fran Eyman, was honored with the “In Demand” award from the Greater Chicago Food Depository. This award is given to the team who used the most highly desired foods for distribution from the pantry. Team Wheaton also received an Honorable Mention from the judges, which takes our build to the national competition this fall.

RJN Group was one of 20 teams to compete in 2008. The 2nd Annual Chicago Canstruction also kicked off the 2008 NeoCon World’s Trade Fair at the Merchandise Mart Apparel Center on June 6th. The over 50,000 attendees to NeoCon will get to feast their eyes on the latest furniture and fixtures, as well as on 20 fantastic structures designed and built by some of Chicago’s top architecture and engineering firms. Once again, the structures had to be designed completely out of cans, to aid in the fight against hunger. 

Our design this year was a 7-foot diameter bowl of alphabet soup, with giant letters that spelled out the word “HUNGER.” The design took nearly 7 hours to build, starting at 6 p.m. sharp. The space allotted for the design was 10 x 10 x 8 feet.  RJN’s design utilized 6,410 cans. Team captain Jan Miller said, "It is really rewarding to work so hard as a team, yet have such a good time, and know that your efforts help feed hungry families.” In addition to the cans of food, RJN Group's effort was supported by 23 team sponsors.

Special thanks go to Jan and Fran and their team: Debbie Anderson, structural expert Brandon Buzzell, Karen Catena, Barb Chilcutt, Jeff Frauenfelder, Karol Giokas, Bob Januska, Ed Kalina, Valerie Kelly, Susan Laitas, Margie McNicholas, John Peters, Jessica Ravanesi, and Mike Young.

Other design entries in 2008 included Chicago’s Marina Towers; the Chicago skyline; Cheesecake; Pizza with Beer; Rosie the Riveter; Hungry, Hungry Hippo; a Sailboat; a Shark; an Orange; an “El” Train; PacMan; and a Can-Nibble. Together, the competing companies contributed almost 88,000 cans of food (over 90,000 pounds). The Food Depository reported that this is equivalent to 67,669 meals for those in need.

Sponsors for the RJN Group exhibit included:

• Brady Services, Inc.
• DiGiovanni McLaren & Associates
• Millenia Professional Services of IL LTD
• West Suburban Travelers Limousine
• Year Round Renovations, Wheaton
• Butterfield Electric
• Enterprise Fleet Management Div.
• Holiday Inn Select, Naperville
• Federal Express
• Graham’s Chocolates, Wheaton
• Scheffler’s Florist, Winfield
• Bead Heaven, Downers Grove
• Mel-O Air Heating & A/C Inc., Wheaton
• Miles Boone Photography, Downers Grove
• LAI, Ltd.
• RJN Employee Owners
• Staples Office Supply
• Showmat Transport Co.
• Woodman’s Market
• Midway Moving & Storage
• Muldoon’s Restaurant, Wheaton
• Colonial Café, Naperville
• Lou Malnati’s Pizza
• The Bank Restaurant, Wheaton
• The RJN Foundation