Life at Red Hat – Red Hat Raleigh Participates in CANstruction

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Last Friday, Red Hat participated in a contest in Raleigh, N.C. to support CANstruction, a unique international non-profit organization that hosts competitions, exhibitions and events showcasing colossal structures. The contest pits local companies against one another in a battle to build the best structure, made entirely of cans of food.

With a nod to summer, Red Hatters in Raleigh collaborated to build a 10 foot tall lantern, big enough to illuminate a campground for giants. The structure represents Red Hat’s desire to bring light to dark places – from open source communities to the broader communities where we serve as catalysts and contributors. The structure is currently on display in Red Hat Tower, Red Hat’s headquarter building, and consists of  approximately 6,000 cans of tomato sauce and peas, as well as bottles of Gatorade. The lantern weighs in excess of 6,800 pounds. Judging for the competition took place late Friday afternoon, and winners were announced at the CANstruction awards gala later that evening with Red Hat taking home one of the two Honorable Mentions given.

The structure will stay on display in Red Hat Tower until August 23rd. Afterward, all cans of food will be donated to the Food Bank of Central and Eastern North Carolina to help with their summer feeding programs. In an effort to collect additional donations for needy families in the local Raleigh community, Red Hatters can bring in non-perishable food for our food drive, which will take place throughout the month of August. Food collected during this drive will be given to Raleigh’s Inter-Faith Food Shuttle to support the Backpack Buddies program.

Here are some behind-the-scenes pictures of Red Hat Raleigh’s CANstruction creation. Enjoy!