Appeals

The abbey and monastic buildings of the island of Iona, on the west coast of Scotland, where the Iona Cathedral Trust is appealing for about pounds 300,000 for necessary repair and conservation work to the fabric of the buildings. The trust, which relies on grants and donations, was formed in 1899 by the eighth Duke of Argyll, who then owned the island: the trust now owns and cares for, in perpetuity, all the ecclesiastical grounds and buildings on Iona.

Iona is renowned for its religious history and as the burial place for saints, kings (Macbeth and Duncan) and peers. St Columba arrived there from Ireland in 563 to bring Christianity to Scotland; he left a monastic community from which Aidan was sent to spread Christianity amongst the English. In the 13th century both a Benedictine monastery and an Augustinian nunnery were founded on the island. The first significant restoration programme to the buildings was carried out in 1421, at the instruction of Abbot Dominic; since then there have been cycles of restoration and ruination until the present century. Very little remains of the repairs ordered by Charles I, who wanted Iona to be re-established as the Cathedral of the Isles.

The trust restored the abbey church ruins in 1910 and carried out work on two other chapels. In 1938, George MacLeod (the late Lord MacLeod of Fuinary) founded the Iona Community, which undertook the restoration of the monastic buildings and has since become an important presence on the island, offering conference facilities and an extensive youth programme. The community is the tenant of the Iona Cathedral Trust, which has, since 1980, executed a substantial restoration and maintenance programme: the abbey church is being repointed, and St Ronan's, a medieval chapel close to the nunnery ruins, is being restored for opening this year as a scholars' museum for some of the island's sculpture fragments. For further information, contact: Iona Cathedral Trust Appeal, 27 George Square, Edinburgh EH8 9LD, telephone 031-668 3308.

The British Dyslexia Association works alongside local education authorities, schools and families for people with dyslexia. Its Helpline telephone service advise parents about their children, and adults who are worried about a dyslexic relative, while a Befriender Service trains local supporters to help parents pursue their legal rights to special provision in schools. As 1993 is the Year of Early Recognition of Dyslexia, the BDA is co-ordinating a communication programme so that all those who deal with the very young can recognise the problem and take action to address it.

The British Dyslexia Association, 4 Dovedale Studios, 465 Battersea Park Road, London SW11 4LR, telephone 071-978 5422.

The Hosanna House Trust, established in 1974, provides an opportunity for young adults with a disability to enjoy a pilgrimage and holiday at Lourdes, in the French Pyrenees. The trust bought a hotel there in 1975; specially adapted and named Hosanna House, it now has two new wings accommodating up to 100 guests, who may be those with disabilities or their helpers, including doctors, nurses, chaplains; all of whom pay their own costs. The trust is appealing for pounds 50,000 to install a lift and carry out further renovations.

Hosanna House Trust, 100a High Street, Banstead, Surrey SM7 2RB, telephone 0737 353311.

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