DE Campus Life Editor

Prince Taylor keeps heads nodding to smooth beats as a volunteer disc jockey at WDBX, but on Valentine’s Day he will help the radio station raise money by mixing smooth drinks.

Fans of sitcom nostalgia may liken him to Isaac from The Love Boat Saturday night when attending the second annual WDBX Valentine’s Day Masquerade Ball. After all, Taylor, a junior in paralegal studies from Carbondale, will be tending bar. Love will be in the air.

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But Taylor does not plan on playing Cupid. He just wants to have an enjoyable time while finding different ways to lend his services to WDBX 91.1 FM, the area’s community radio station.

I had a ton of fun at last year’s ball. that’s why I decided to volunteer to tend the bar at this one, he said. Plus, it’s good to give something back. Some people volunteer at soup kitchens once or twice a year during the holidays. I do this instead.

Taylor and other WDBX volunteer and staff members will celebrate the day for lovers by providing an upscale way for everyone to spoil the person they love.

WDBX is sponsoring its second annual Valentine’s Day Masquerade Ball fund-raiser from 6:30 p.m. to midnight Saturday at the Carbondale Civic Center, 200 S. Illinois Ave. About 375 people are expected to attend.

Last year, the event collected about $12,000 for the station enough to cover its operation expenses for most of the year.

The ball’s $30 ticket price may be a little steep for some people especially students. But Faye Anderson promises the evening’s romantic music and dancing provided by local musicians, the gift idea-inspiring silent art and merchandise auctions and entertaining costume contest all make the event’s ticket prices a mere pittance in comparison.

Anderson, WDBX volunteer coordinator, espouses another benefit of attending the Masquerade Ball. Even if tickets are bought for the event and the Valentine’s spirit produces other plans for the night, the money spent eventually is returned to community members’ pockets in two ways.

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WDBX is non-profit radio station that offers a variety of programming to the community, she said. Diversity is worth supporting whether you go or not.

And a belated Valentine’s Day gift from Uncle Sam presents the other method of getting a return on the investment. Because WDBX is not-for-profit, half the price of a Masquerade Ball ticket is tax-deductible.

Price concerns aside, Anderson, who also is an SIUC geography lecturer, says a number of SIUC students, faculty, staff and community members meet and mingle at the Masquerade Ball. She touts the Masquerade Ball as the best.

Most people who attended last year said it was the best party they’d attended in Carbondale, she said. I think that’s a very true statement.

Factoid:A small number of tickets still are available for the WDBX Valentine’s Day Masquerade Ball. Tickets can be purchased at Susan’s On The Square, 106 E. Jackson St., and at the WDBX Community Thrift Store, 224 N. Washington St., next door to the radio station.

Neighborhood Co-Op, 104 E. Jackson St., is sponsoring a raffle for Masquerade Ball tickets. Raffle tickets are $5, and winners will be chosen 6 p.m. Friday.