ORLANDO, Fla. – Five years ago, 49 families learned their mothers, fathers, siblings and friends would not be coming home after a gunman opened fire on the Pulse nightclub in Orlando.
Each one of the 49 people killed, now known as the 49 angels, on June 12, 2016, left behind a legacy. To honor their memories, News 6 journalists compiled stories learning about every victim through interviews, news articles and social media. All 49 articles can be found at ClickOrlando.com/Pulse49.
Before they were victims, the 49 were mothers, fathers, recent graduates, veterans, breast cancer survivors, dreamers, artists and so much more.
Those stories include 33-year-old Rodolfo Ayala-Ayala’s who was known as “Rody” by friends. Ayala served as the platelet supervisor at OneBlood, the center that collected blood donations for many Pulse shooting survivors.