FORT WORTH, TX — A team from VLK Architects joined with professionals from the architecture, engineering, and construction industry at North East Mall to participate in the annual CANstruction competition. This year’s theme was Be the Force to End Hunger and VLK’s design, inspired by the Star Wars saga, was awarded Best Original Design for the second year in a row.

VLK’s structure depicted an X-Wing in battle mode burning the word hunger. The build, titled "Use the Chili, Luke", used five types of canned chili as well as canned tomatoes, peas, and beans. Over the course of four hours, 13 VLK employees worked meticulously to build an eye catching and structurally sound sculpture before judging and scoring commenced. With the final design, VLK was able to donate 2,688 cans of food to the Tarrant Area Food Bank.

“The Tarrant Area Food Bank always makes CANstruction fun and engaging for everyone involved, and it’s always a nice feeling to be able to help our community,” said VLK CANstruction Co-Captain, Faith Ann Hardcastle “We wouldn’t have been able to complete our goal without the help of our product reps, our consultants, and our coworkers who donated to our team.”

This year, a total of seven teams participated in CANstruction Fort Worth, resulting in over 14,000 cans donated to feed local families in need.