Canstruction®, a charity committed to ending hunger, is using "one can" as a catalyst for change. The SMPS Canstruction Long Island competition will be hosted by RexCorp Realty at RexCorp Plaza on October 25. Competing teams of design and construction professionals, led by architects and engineers, will showcase their talents by designing and building giant self-supporting structures out of cans of food. Each sculpture takes thousands of cans, in a variety of sizes and colors, to create. The sculptures will be judged in categories such as Juror's Favorite, Structural Ingenuity, Best Use of Labels, and Best Meal. Winners from this event will go on to compete in the national competition in May of 2008. Seventy-five cities across the United States and Canada participated in last year's competition resulting in a donation of over 2.2 million pounds of food for hungry people in need. Sponsored by the Long Island Chapter of the Society for Marketing Professional Services (SMPS) under the auspices of the Society for Design Administration, teams will spend up to two months designing and testing their structures prior to the final build-out on October 24. The evening of October 25, all entries will be judged by a distinguished panel of jurors, and awards will be presented at the Canstruction gala. Jurors include; Restaurateur Tom Schaudel, WALK Radio's Paul Anthony, Long Island Pulse Publisher Nada Marjanovich and Town of Hempstead Supervisor Kate Murray. "SMPS is thrilled to bring Canstruction to Long Island," said SMPS Long Island Chapter president Jane Felsen Gertler. The structures will be on display to the public from October 26 to November 4, with the price of admission being one can of food. "We are honored to host the SMPS Canstruction Long Island competition," said Scott Rechler, RexCorp chairman and CEO "We invite the public to come to RexCorp Plaza and join us in support of the Design Industry in the fight to end hunger on Long Island." At the close of the exhibition, all cans used to create the sculptures along with all cans collected from the public will be donated to Long Island Cares, Inc., the Harry Chapin Food Bank to help feed the hungry on Long Island. Hunger on Long Island is growing at an alarming rate - an estimated 259,000 Long Island residents, including nearly 93,000 children and 39,000 seniors, face hunger on a daily basis. "Canstructionis a truly marvelous event that will provide food for many struggling families on Long Island." said Lynn Needleman, executive director of Long Island Cares, Inc., The Harry Chapin Food Bank.