SIR,

I would like to use your letters page to express my heartfelt thanks to all the generous people of Monmouth who supported our book sale at Monmouth Baptist Church on Saturday, 26th September.

Many thanks to all those who kindly donated books and money. Sincere thanks also to all who came and browsed and bought on the day. I had no idea what pleasure could be derived from seeing so many satisfied customers!

We raised in excess of £200, which was more than I had dared to hope for.

The money will go to support the work of Concordis International, an organisation which works to prevent and resolve violent conflict in vulnerable areas of the world.

They express their motivation as follows. "The destruction caused by conflict takes decades to restore. 'Binding the wounds' is often expensive and ineffective, compared with working to prevent the violence. Once the damage has been done, it can result in decades of hatred and mistrust."

For these reasons, it is money well spent to promote efforts to stop the conflict from breaking out in the first place, and I am grateful for the help we have received in supporting this worthwhile work.

Marian Hall

(Monmouth)