Cyclone jazz cats who are itching for some swingin’ jazz will have the opportunity to take their partner to the dance floor to help raise money for the AIDS Coalition of Story County.

The dance takes place this evening at the Memorial Union starting at 6 p.m.

The semi-formal gala will be kicked off with the second performance of “Going Toward the Light,” a collection of monologues written about AIDS and HIV, held in the Maintenance Shop. The show is free of charge, and those who want to participate in the rest of the events can pay $5 at the door of the Great Hall in the Memorial Union.

“It’s open to anyone, and we encourage everyone to attend because AIDS effects us all,” said Denise Swanson, Student Union Board fine arts director.

A dessert reception will run from 7 to 9 p.m., including several cakes designed with the red ribbon logo that the AIDS awareness campaign is based on. A cash bar will also be available throughout the evening.

Beginning at 7 p.m., people can put in bids for the works of local artists in the silent auction.

A few of the artists featured in the auction include: Donna Freidman, an associate professor of art and design at Iowa State; Shirley Sturies, secretary of Student Union Board programming department; and P. Buckley Moss, who is directly related with NAMES Project, the organization coordinating the National AIDS Quilt, Swanson said.

There will be minimum bids set for most of the items in the auction, with expectations to draw anywhere from $10 to $200, she said.

All proceeds from the event will go directly to the AIDS Coalition of Story County to help cover costs of their clients, said Kenn Outzen, subcommittee chair of AIDS Awareness Week.

“The money will help with housing, medication, transportation. It goes to the clients, not to people sitting behind a desk,” Outzen said.

Iowa native Richard Blair is the keynote speaker for the evening. Blair started the Southern Colorado AIDS Coalition and was the executive director until his recent retirement. He also served for the National Hospice and Colorado’s government council, Swanson said.

At 9:00 AIDS Awareness Week will officially end at ISU with closing ceremonies, and from then on people are invited to dance the night away to the sounds of Jazz Triangle until midnight.

“We hope to have a lot of people … there should be a lot of interest,” Outzen said despite the variety of activities going on during this busy time of year.

“The more support from people that show up, the more awareness we’ll gain and the more people with this disease will know that they’re cared about,” he said.