The Tranmere Rovers Trust has unveiled it’s latest mural by Paul Curtis. Painted on the gable end of a terrace in Mount Grove, it faces Borough Road, near the junction with Balls Road East.
The trust was formed in 2002 and the mural, which depicts two children standing in front of the Johnny King statue at Prenton Park, was painted in the year it celebrates its 18th Birthday.
The Tranmere Rovers Trust has commissioned a number of murals painted by renowned artist, Paul Curtis. These murals recognise influential figures from the club, significant events from the club’s history and to celebrate the club crest. The latest mural is in recognition of the effort the club has put in to help the local community over the last 7 months throughout the COVID-19 pandemic, in particular in gathering donations for food banks.
Ben Harrison, a representative of the trust said, “We are a not for profit organisation whose purpose is to represent our members at board-level at Tranmere Rovers.” He went on to say, “We work together with the club to improve the fans’ experience whilst supporting various community projects working alongside Tranmere Rovers in the Community.”
Ben concluded by saying, “The future of the trust is very positive mainly through the great working relationship we have with the owners Mark & Nicola Palios. We are aiming to hugely improve Prenton Park ready for fans when they can return and we are also working on some other major projects to boost the club and community when we come out of the COVID-19 restrictions which should really excite the fans!”
Paul Curtis told birkenhead.news during a break from painting another mural in New Ferry while it was raining, “I work with the Trust a lot. They do a huge amount of good around Birkenhead and the wider Wirral community.”
“Their [community] work really should get more recognition.”, he continued. “This mural is to recognise the work that the trust and the volunteers have done during the pandemic, in particular food bank aid and free school meals.
“They have made sure more than 35,000 meals were available to those who most need help. The idea [of the theme of the mural] was to reflect on the positivity of the work done by volunteers rather than the desperate situation the country is in (to the extent that foodbanks are now normalised). It is indeed a desperate situation but people like the volunteers are bringing something positive and showing a real humanity.
“We had the idea of two children sharing food. I had to get two young Tranmere supporters (Annie and Liam) to be models for the image and they did a sterling job.”
“Obviously the Trust has Tranmere Rovers connections, hence the stadium and Johnny king statue in the background. The Trust would love local people to embrace their football club, not just as a football team, but as a force for good and a community hub in the area.
In summary, Paul said, “I’m pretty pleased with the outcome. It was hard work to get it done within the week, especially with the weather and having to stop each day when the school was letting out. It is a big area to cover but that means it has a real impact. I hope when people look at it they appreciate all the work that the Trust (and indeed all charities) are doing to help those in need. But I also hope they get a little boost from the positivity and brightness of the mural.”