Gujarati Samaj and Bal Vihar of St. Louis Gathered to Create Mural of Cans Themed “COVID-19”

ST. LOUIS, MO – On Saturday, 22 teens from the organizations Gujarati Samaj of St Louis and Bal Vihar of St Louis came together as one team to build a mural made of canned goods called “CANstruction: Covid-19.” The teens from different school districts and different grades from age 13 years to 17 years participated in this community event.

For the first time, Gujarati Samaj has organized this collaborative project in partnership with The Center for Indian Cultural Education – Bal Vihar of St. Louis. This year’s theme COVID-19 is inspired to raise awareness in this difficult pandemic time. Approximately 2,000+ cans make up this CANstruction structure which took approximately six hours to build and was on display available to view by appointment at GSSTL Center in the main Hall through November 20th. Later thousands of cans were donated to Hazelwood area Food Pantry TEAM. The teens used both ART and CREATIVITY to construct this extraordinary structure that represents consciousness, hope, love, and unity among all.

As we navigate through the pandemic together, it is very imperative that we continue to spread awareness to this deadly virus and this cause can make a difference in our continued effort on feeding hungry, way to give back to our community.

The purpose of this project was to allow our youth to help those in need in the St. Louis community and to teach the value of community service and to create a sense of oneness.

This CANstruction project allowed local youth to come together, while enhancing their leadership and teambuilding skills. With all the hard work and efforts by volunteers from both organizations, we were able to explore the theme “COVID-19” and servicing those in need.