All around the country, localities are struggling to deal with the unique challenges that the pandemic is posing to business, society, and our everyday lives. 

For their stellar handling of the pandemic and the challenges that come along with it, the City of Phoenix is being awarded a Gold 2020 Winner award. The Public Relations World Awards is an organization that was established to provide municipalities with a yardstick by which to measure its response to events and problems that arise in their communities. Though Phoenix has certainly had setbacks in the coronavirus pandemic, the city has shown remarkably responsible and prompt responses to the challenges posed. 

The pandemic was an unprecedented event, and the PRWA had to create new categories for its awards in order to accommodate the new situation. In these new categories, Phoenix thrived. When asked about the response by the city's workers and health professionals in the region, Phoenix mayor Kate Gallego said: “The city of Phoenix responded quickly and efficiently to the COVID-19 pandemic. We stepped up to provide accessible, no-cost testing to every resident with help from community partners and local healthcare providers. The city of Phoenix prioritizes the health and safety of every resident and I applaud the successful actions of every city employee who did--and continues to do--their part.”

One of the most notable actions taken by the city was its partnership back in May with local healthcare providers to provide free drive-thru COVID-19 testing, making it easy, affordable, and convenient for citizens to get tested for the virus. The ability of the city and the healthcare partners to meet the demand for this testing was even more impressive, making it gain national attention. This testing was not only available to affluent neighborhoods. In fact, the city strived to deliver resources to underserve neighborhoods to ensure the entire city was taken care of and the pandemic was made a priority in all communities.