Home / Chuck Franzalia 2023 Colonel Al Byrne Award
The All Sports Association was started by Colonel Al Byrne, who believed the youth in Northwest Florida should have the coaching, leadership, and facilities needed to participate in sports. The Colonel Al Byrne Award was established to honor those who share his beliefs and who put those beliefs into action.
The Colonel Al Byrne Award was presented to Chuck Franzalia on February 24, 2023, at the 54th All Sports Association Awards Banquet. Franzalia was honored for his forty-five years of service as an official for high school, youth league, and church league football, basketball, and baseball games in northwest Florida.
Franzalia is a charter member of the Miracle Strip Officials Association (MSOA), which was founded in 1978. The MSOA provides officials primarily for high school sports in Escambia, Santa Rosa, and Okaloosa Counties, as well as officials for NJCAA Panhandle Conference baseball.
In addition to his work on the field, Franzalia has served as Chairman of the MSOA Officials Training Committee, trainer for Destin Flag Football, Founder and Commissioner of High School Baseball Umpires in MSOA, and Vice President of MSOA. For his decades of devotion to youth athletics and to our community, All Sports Association is pleased to recognize Chuck Franzalia as recipient of the 2023 Al Byrne Award.
Through the efforts of our annual banquet & summer golf tournament, we help fund numerous worthwhile sports organizations & charitable causes. Our primary beneficiaries are the Boys & Girls Club of the Emerald Coast, Special Olympics Florida- Okaloosa, Eleanor J. Johnson Youth Center and Okaloosa Walton FCA.