NRA BANQUET SCHEDULED

The second annual Friends of the NRA Banquet will be held Thursday, March 9 at the Holiday Inn Convention Center in Cape Girardeau.

All gun owners, enthusiasts, recreational shooters and hunters are invited to attend. Last year's banquet raised over $10,000 for the National Rifle Association, a goal which the event's sponsor, the Cape Girardeau Area Friends of the NRA Committee, hopes to top this year.

The NRA is a 122-year-old organization dedicated to preserving the lawful ownership and use of firearms. Proceeds from the fund-raiser will help promote firearms safety and education, conservation research, shooting range development, marksmanship training, wildlife habitat and hunter education throughout Missouri.

Tickets to the banquet are $25 per person or $40 per couple and available at Phegley's Shooting Supply (335-1007) and Beards Sporting Goods (334-2266) in Cape Girardeau and Hartlein Archery & Sporting Goods (243-5384) in Jackson.

Social hour starts at 5:30 p.m. with dinner following at 7 p.m. The Holiday Inn Convention Center is located at Route K and Interstate 55 in Cape Girardeau.