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ReClaim the Route

Program Area: ReClaim

Topic: Community Engagement, Vacant Land

Year: 2015

Neighborhood: Homewood

News/Press Coverage

Marathon Moment: Reclaim The Route Initiative

KDKA | April 30, 2015

As a part of an annual partnership with the Dick’s Sporting Goods Pittsburgh Marathon, GTECH and community partners work to activate one of the over 500 vacant lots along the marathon route. In 2015, GTECH partnered with FedEx Ground and Operation Better Block to activate and program a vacant lot along Frankstown Avenue.

On April 24, 2015, 50 employees of FedEx Ground worked with GTECH to build out a garden for Operation Better Block’s Junior Green Corp. The garden is adjacent to the lot that would be activated the day of the Marathon. The garden features built by FedEx Ground and GTECH will help support the Junior Green Corp’s programming on sustainability and environmental education.

To add to the festivities, Canstruction Pittsburgh and Whole Foods Market came out to the site on race day to build a one-of-a-kind structure made entirely of donated canned food (3,300 cans!) while thousands of marathoners pass by the site. 13 staff and volunteers spent nearly 6 hours building the 6 foot tall sculptures. All canned food used during the construction of the structure were donated back to the Salvation Army food pantry for distribution.

Huge thanks to Whole Foods Market for donating more than 3,300 cans of food to the Salvation Army in Homewood.

7351 Frankstown Avenue, Pittsburgh, PA 15208, USA

FedEx Ground Volunteer Day

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Thanks Fed Ex Ground for all your hard work.

Volunteers built a greenhouse.

It will be used by OBB's Junior Green Corp to start plants for the community garden.

Volunteers turned soil.

And tilled the ground.

50 FedEx Ground employees came out to help out.

The Day of the Marathon Can Sculpture Build

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Volunteer from Canstruction, GTECH and Whole Foods came out to help us build.

It took about 4 hours to build.

Even a few famous news personalities stopped by for a photo op.

The final sculpture used 3300 cans of food!