Wanting to express their compassion for the Sept. 11 terrorist victims in a creative way, members of the ISU Dance and Theatre departments discovered a unique way to participate in the healing process.

“We wanted to do something to answer the call for coping,” said Shirley Dunlap, associate professor music.

After the Campanile struck noon on Thursday, the two departments’ efforts came together. The dance department performed a dance and then released red, white, and blue balloons into the air in front of Parks Library.

Janice Baker, assistant professor in health and human performance, said each dancer created his or her own interpretation, but holistically, the dancers offered the victims’ spirits to a better place.

“The meaning of the dance is to embrace your energy and return to your center,” said Baker.

Each balloon the dancers released into the sky had a victim’s name written on it. Dunlap obtained a publicized list of the victims’ names, and students and faculty were allowed to write those names and a message on balloons.

“Just think, these messages will travel all the way in the sky,” said Dunlap. “This becomes a way of us saying, `New York, we’re not there, but this is how we want to say we’re sorry’.”

In addition to Thursday’s dance and balloon release, the theater department cut over 3,000 swatches of fabric for the public to write on. The strips will be sewn together to create an artistic piece that will later be placed in a traveling exhibition.