The Saint-Martin de Burelles association, a 1901 law association, was created in July 2019 with the aim of highlighting the fortified church of the village and promoting it in order to see its renovation become a reality.

It was at the request of the mayor that the association came into being. The church is owned by the municipality while being designated for worship. The scarcity of the latter leaves room for numerous visits to the building and for all compatible cultural events.

In 2006, the friends of the church association ceased to exist after many years of significant maintenance and activity work.

We needed to assess our strengths and form a group of volunteers ready to commit again. The goals of the association were clear: it, without any political or religious affiliation of any kind, in strict respect of the freedom of conscience of everyone, only had to gather volunteers and roll up its sleeves.

About a dozen willing individuals set out, occasionally helped by others when the need arose.

Everyone in the village is attached to their fortified church; it is a common cultural and worship heritage that everyone respects, whether they believe or not.

First, we had to very prosaically take care of cleaning and "minor maintenance" to allow accessibility to the church at all levels. Then, with the means at hand, we made the visits attractive, which was done. To carry out all possible cultural events. Finally, to improve our communication, which this website should allow us to do.

The enormous renovation project remains to be defined and implemented, we are getting to work on it.

We can count on the DRAC, on the Department and the Region, and on the technical assistance of the Thiérache du Centre Community of Communes.

However, gathering the necessary funds for the restoration proves complicated with the wear of time on the building and the rising costs.

May we be allowed, in this regard, to remind that the association recognised as being of general interest allows for the tax exemption of part of the donations…

Let everyone be warmly thanked here for the irreplaceable work done voluntarily within the association.