Magis Puppy Design Challenge Raises Money for Great Plains SPCA
Kansas City A&D firms showcased their creative skills at this fun event benefitting charity.
On November 11, 2021, John A. Marshall Co. and Herman Miller co-hosted our first Magis Puppy Design Challenge in our Lenexa showroom. Nine teams from local A&D firms had one month to utilize their skills to create unique pieces of art utilizing a Magis puppy sculpture. The puppies were then entered into a competition to earn four distinct awards.
An anonymous panel of judges, all within creative fields themselves, evaluated the entries to determine the winner for the coveted Best in Show Award. The judges, who were later introduced during the evening’s program, included:
- Tony Thompson, Thompson Photography
- Caryl Francis-Niedens, Hallmark
- Sally Linville, The City Girl Farm
Thank you to these individuals for taking time out of their busy schedules to help make our event a success!
Attendees were also able to get in on the fun by voting for their favorite puppies for People’s Choice, Best Use of Materials, and Most Innovative awards. During this time, a silent auction for the puppies took place, which raised more than $3,500 to benefit Great Plains SPCA. Tracy Lewandowski, Senior Manager, Events and Programs, for the Great Plains SPCA, thanked everyone for their contributions and told the group more about what her organization does to help animals within the Kansas City metro.
Congratulations to the evening’s winners:
- Best in Show - “The Prickly Pup” by AECOM
- People’s Choice – “Dewar” by John A. Marshall Co.
- Best Use of Materials - “The Prickly Pup” by AECOM
- Most Innovative - “Marvin” by KU Interior Architecture & Design students
We’d also like to take a moment to thank our other teams for their awesome contributions to the event, as well: Bell/Knott & Associates, HNTB, Hoefer Welker, Johnson County Facilities, KEM Studio + Willoughby Design and POPULOUS. We couldn’t have done it without you!
“We were really excited to host this event,” said Stephen Marshall, John A. Marshall Co. Partner. “We were planning to hold it last year, but COVID-19 interfered with our plans and forced us to push it back until we felt it was safe. In the end, it was worth it, as we had more than 60 attendees and were able to raise money for a great cause.”
Event photography: Thompson Photography