Postfix is fairly simple to setup and configure. I would recommend changing distros based on the fact that Redhat 9 is OLD.. at least move to Centos if you wish to stick with Redhat based for a server.
Setting up postfix on Debian should only take a couple hours at most with a Good how-to such as this one..
http://www.debian-administration.org/articles/364 You can actually stop when you reach the point it starts configuring amavisd-new if you aren't concerned about spam filtering.
Then don't forget to set the hostname properly..
http://www.cpqlinux.com/hostname.html
OpenGroupware.org makes for a nice web based calendar and task scheduler, as well as web based front end for email access.
http://opengroupware.org/
But whatever Distro you decide to use theres a how-to out there somewhere to make your life easier..
Check out
http://www.howtoforge.com if you have a chance.. several mail how-to's for various distros.. a bot more complex than you are looking for though I think.