Phil Rawlins took the podium at the National Soccer Coaches Association of America’s (NSCAA’s) annual awards banquet Friday night to accept an award in honor of Orlando City’s response to a solemn occasion in the city’s history.
The Orlando City “life-president” was awarded the distinct honor of receiving the Presidential Recognition Award, in appreciation of the club’s response to the tragic Pulse nightclub shooting back in June.
“The events of June 12th were horrific for the city of Orlando, for anyone involved at all with that event,” Rawlins recounted on stage Friday. “We went back into work Monday morning, knowing that we had a game to play on Saturday and knowing that we had an opportunity, a chance, to raise the city up, to lift the city and to heal the city.