PENNIES FROM HEAVEN BENEFIT PARTY FRIDAY

The Southeast Missouri Hospital Foundation will host its Pennies from Heaven benefit party Friday at the Holiday Inn Convention Center.

Proceeds from the benefit cocktail buffet and auction are designated for the We Can Weekend, an annual retreat for cancer patients and their families.

Tickets for the buffet, which starts at 5 p.m. Friday, and the auction, which starts at 6:30 p.m., are available by calling the Hospital Foundation, 651-5510. Cost of the tickets is $20. Triple Time Trio, with Dr. Earl Johnson at the piano, will provide entertainment.

The goal for the benefit is $10,000, said J. Charles Stotz, foundation executive director. "It's a fun evening for guest, with some great bargains for a great cause."

This is the second year for the auction, which last year raised $5,000.

The We Can Weekend is held each June in the Ozark foothills, and brings together cancer patients and their families from throughout the region. Programs focus on meeting the special concerns of families learning to cope with cancer.

More than 100 items will be up for bid including getaways to Nashville and St. Louis, a riding lawn mower, an upright deep freeze, St. Louis Cardinal baseball tickets and numerous gift certificates to area businesses and restaurants.