Categories as navigation

Hi all…

I know if I build a custom menu, I can use categories in my navigation. What I’m wanting to do is to make a post, have a small excerpt of it appear on the front page in a table setting, then also appear on the correct category page. And even possibly two category pages.

Would I write a post, then include the “more” tag where I wanted it to split off, then somehow call that particular category to post in a particular cell in a table? is this possible or is there an easier way?

The person who will be updating the blog is comfortable with tables, not CSS. =)

thanks for any assistance

carrie