By Turfmanphil
October 4 2005

Clarets Trust issue very good reasons to renew your Membership. 'The Longside' supports the Trust with a passion and encourages all its members to please renew.

 

Clarets Trust Announcement 27/09/2005-Why Renew Your Trust Membership?

The Clarets Trust has reached a unique period in its fledgling existence, as it is now the time for members to renew their annual subscriptions.

It has, in truth, taken the Trust most of this year to find its feet, to establish an identity and an independent voice, and to build the nucleus of a team with the common aim of driving it forward with a shared vision. Given these teething troubles, inevitable when different people, possibly each having a slightly different view of what a Trust should be, are thrown together, it is perhaps remarkable that some quite tangible achievements have already been made. Nothing earth-shattering perhaps, but encouraging nonetheless, and certainly enough to foster genuine optimism that the Trust can now play a positive and unique part in the future of Burnley FC.

The most tangible achievement has been the Trust’s part in persuading the club to drop the online ticket booking charges, but something less tangible, yet equally important in the longer term, is the establishing of an excellent dialogue with the club on several levels, including the participation of Edoardo Abis, BFC’s Marketing and Communications Manager, in the Trust Steering Group’s discussion board. A positive relationship with the local media has also been established. And, most recently, it was quite a coup to attract former MP Peter Pike onto the Steering Group, when others were vying for his services.

It is not, however, the purpose of this article to look back on the past year, but to look forward to future opportunities.

So, why should you fork out £10?

An interesting starting point is, quite appropriately, a question raised by a Trust member at last Saturday’s Open Meeting. We were asked what effect we thought the Trust’s decision not to pursue the ground buy-back would have on membership renewals, as it could be interpreted that the Trust no longer had a specific goal to aim for. In reply, it was pointed out that, even if the Trust bought the ground back tomorrow, it might not prevent someone from buying the club and moving away from Turf Moor, leaving the Trust owning an empty stadium with no tenant, but the point about having a goal was a valid one. So, to those who want to strive for a specific goal, we would say that the purchase of shares in the club, with the ultimate aim of having a real say in its affairs by means of a supporters’ director seat on the board, is an equally desirable long term goal, and an equally valid reason to renew membership or join the trust for the first time.

Another reason for renewing is to think of being a member of the trust as if you were embarking on a long journey. There may well be a distant objective, but we need sustenance and enjoyment along the way, such as the satisfaction of achieving small, but significant gains like the removal of the online charges. To some, possibly with no real interest in an ultimate objective, these little morsels of refreshment might be enough to encourage them to keep going, even if we never get to journey’s end!

At the end of the day, the reasons for renewing may be as diverse and numerous as the members themselves. Now that the ship has been steadied, we aim to provide as much diversity and areas of interest as we can, so that everyone feels that their reasons for joining have been fulfilled. To some, it might mean taking up certain issues with the club, the ‘walk-on’ surcharge being the most immediate (and no, we haven’t forgotten it, nor will we let it rest!). To others, it might be a way of meeting new people with a common love of BFC, or just getting a discount at the annual Trust Beer Festival! Whilst the Trust can’t be all things to all people, it is certainly our aim to increase the ‘fun factor’.

If all this has not convinced you that it’s worth less than 85p a month (when you take your free badge into consideration!) then consider this. Instead of thinking along the lines of “what am I getting out of the trust?” why not take a leaf out of John F Kennedy’s book and ask “what am I putting into the trust?” As committed Burnley fans, it is our duty to do everything we can to ensure that future generations can enjoy that unique experience of being a Claret. Would we ever forgive ourselves if, heaven forbid, the club went under when a strong Trust could have saved it? Many fans have only understood the importance of Trusts when their clubs have been faced with a crisis. Even the takeover of the richest club in the world, Manchester United, might have been prevented if their Trust had had more shares.

So, even if you can’t be convinced that continuing your support of the trust is worthwhile to you, please consider those future Clarets who, if the club is ever faced with a crisis, may think ‘if only we’d had a stronger trust before it was too late’.

The Clarets Trust

To find out more about the trust click HERE

To send us a question click HERE

To renew or join the Trust click HERE