Thanks Birmingham City for standing by pub bombing victims

On Monday, April 22, our families and some of our long-term staunch supporters were invited to Birmingham City Football Club for the poignant and moving unveiling of a memorial plaque for our loved ones.

Claire Luckman’s sister, Lynn Jane Bennett, was a season ticket holder with her dad and Bill Craig’s brother Jimmy (who was the last one to die of his horrendous injuries) had trialled for BCFC.

They both gave very moving speeches prior to the unveiling, where Jeremy Dale asked them both to unveil the plaque in memory of our loved ones whose lives were stolen nearly 50 years ago.

We would like to express our deepest gratitude first and foremost to Peter Hannon. Pete is a lifelong BCFC fan and one of our incredible supporters.

Without Peter’s tenacity during the past couple of years or so, we would never have had such a momentous plaque at all.

The new owners of BCFC listened to the concerns of their supporters, highlighted by Peter Hannon, Steve Treanor and Becci Hicks’ persistence and realised how important it was for them to pay tribute to not only the 21 who were murdered, but also to remember that two of them were season ticket holders.

It appears that the club has set the benchmark for others to follow throughout the coming year… fingers crossed.

Tom Ross presented the evening on behalf of the club, where he, too, paid tribute to our loved ones, the city and of course the Irish community who suffered the most awful attacks after the atrocity.

Executive Vice Chairman, of Birmingham City Foundation Jeremy Dale gave a speech to reinforce the club’s message of support to remember the 21 and those left with life changing injuries, many of whom were BCFC supporters.

Ex-BCFC players, Joe Gallagher and Kevan Broadhurst were present for the memorial, as they were players during the time of the bombings. They were absolute gentlemen. How kind of them to be there with us at such a humbling event and how thoughtful of the club to invite them too.

Our mother, Margaret, attended the event, because she wanted to personally thank Jeremy, BCFC and all their staff for remembering her daughter alongside the other 20 innocent souls. It is impossible to fully express the depth of gratitude our families and supporters feel.

There are so many people who deserve our thanks and space doesn’t allow them all a mention at the moment. But special thanks go to:

• Ally Benson-Smith (head of guest services), Georgina Gimson (hostess), Anna Linnell (hostess), Mark Firth (catering director)

• Gary Booth (catering lead), Dominic Crooks (bar) & Emma Bailey (bar), the hospitality team were outstanding and could not have been more welcoming and helpful.

• Andy Street who also made time out of his busy diary to be with us on Monday evening. The West Midlands Mayor has been a staunch supporter of ours during his tenure. He and his team have worked and continue to work hard to support our fight to finally give our loved ones what they deserve, a statutory public inquiry. We’re still waiting on a decision from the Home Office.

Thanks to the Birmingham City supporters have helped us raise £1,639.21 over a period of two weeks from collections outside the club and during a Darts/Pools event.