Three Parkland, Fla., high school football coaches who died while protecting students during a shooting in February will receive posthumous ESPY awards.
ESPN announced on Wednesday that the families of Aaron Feis, Scott Beigel and Chris Hixon, who were killed along with 14 other people during the mass shooting at Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School, will receive the Best Coach Award in their honor during a ceremony in July.
{mosads}The award is normally given annually to a coach who exemplifies leadership on the field.
But the network broke with that tradition to honor the three men who shielded students during the shooting.
Alison Overholt, vice president and editor-in-chief of ESPN The Magazine, said that Feis, Beigel and Hixon are being recognized for “their immeasurable bravery in the face of danger and for their ultimate sacrifice to protect the lives of countless students.”
Melody Herzfeld, the high school’s drama teacher, was honored with the 2018 Excellence in Theatre Education Award Sunday night at the Tony Awards. She is credited with saving dozens of students’ lives.
In the months since the shooting, Parkland students helped launch a nationwide movement to keep debates around gun violence at the center of the news. Protestors have aimed their efforts at the National Rifle Association and politicians who receive donations from the gun lobby.