MAKE A DIFFERENCE DAY SET FOR SUNDAY

Saturday's fifth annual Make A Difference Day will bring at least one local example of the difference volunteers can make when the Cape Civic Center undergoes a morning-long clean- and fix-up.

The day of inspirational effort is sponsored by USA Weekend magazine and the Points of Light Foundation. The projects a panel of celebrity judges view as especially worthy will receive awards totaling $120,000.

Nearly 560,000 people volunteered on last year's Make A Difference Day. For information on volunteering, phone the Community Caring Council at 651-2099 or 1-(800) 416-3824.

Southeast Missouri State University students are expected to be among those working at the Civic Center Saturday. And on Monday, Jack Stokes' community service class at Southeast will sponsor a volunteer fair at the University Center.

The fair is aimed at bringing representatives of community organizations on campus to meet with students interested in volunteering. The students will benefit as well.

"It is an opportunity for students to get hands-on experience in a field they are interested in pursuing," said Ann Hays, director of Southeast's news bureau.

The volunteer fair cannot qualify for a Make A Difference Day award because it is not being held on Saturday, the official Make A Difference Day.

The synergy between volunteers and need that the Make A Difference Day sponsors hope to create appears to be working. Responding to the Make A Difference Day ad in Tuesday's Southeast Missourian, an 84-year-old woman called the American Red Cross wondering where she could find someone to rake her leaves.

"We don't do that kind of work, but we're more than ready to help," said Mary Burton, executive director of the Cape Girardeau County chapter.

Burton put the woman in touch with Mid-America Teen Challenge, which offers a leaf-raking service. The service is not free, but $4.50 per hour per man is at least a bargain.

The Cape Girardeau Chamber of Commerce also has fielded calls from people seeking volunteers to help them.

One local honoree from the Southeast Missourian's circulation area will be recognized in an April 1996 issue of USA Weekend.