Dance Marathon will be holding a gala for faculty, staff, students and Ames community members next Monday.

Cole Kopaceck, recruitment co-chairman for Dance Marathon, said the purpose of this event is to “get the word out to the community” about Dance Marathon.

There will be a dinner at Basil, a new banquet facility and restaurant in West Ames. A silent auction will follow. Items such as headgear signed by Cael Sanderson and basketballs signed by ISU coaches will be on auction, as well as artwork created by patients at the Children’s Hospital of Iowa participating in Dance Marathon.

President Gregory Geoffroy’s wife, Kathy, is serving as honorary chairperson for the gala.

Invitations were sent to faculty, staff and prominent Ames community members based on recommendations made by the Dance Marathon committee, but the event is open to the public, said Kopaceck.

This is a first-time event for Dance Marathon, said Jenny Schweisberger, co-chairwoman for recruitment.

Basil was chosen because of its banquet-hall style.

“[Basil] is not really open to the general public,” Schweisberger said.

ISU Dance Marathon members got the idea at the national conference this summer from Florida State University, who experienced a lot of success, including generating more community involvement, Kopaceck said.

Dance Marathon hopes to raise more money at the gala than that raised by students, but the event is really an “effort to get the Ames Community more involved [with Dance Marathon],” said Shelley Smith, president of Dance Marathon.

“[We want to] educate Ames, Boone and Nevada residents that this could be your neighbor or even your kid’s best friend,” Schweisberger said.

The event costs $28 per plate, with a choice of chardonnay chicken or a salmon plate. It begins at 7 p.m. Oct. 13. The public can RSVP at (515)291-4053 by Oct. 7.

All proceeds will go directly to the Children’s Miracle Network and the Children’s Hospital of Iowa in Iowa City.