The Wrexham boss, who has overseen three successive promotions to take the club into the Championship, was awarded the city’s highest civic honour at the Guildhall this week.
It comes 18 months after co-owners Ryan Reynolds and Rob McElhenney were also handed the accolade.
“It’s a great honour and it is very humbling to be given the award,” said Parkinson.
“I really enjoyed going down to the Guildhall and being in the meeting with all the councillors, because sometimes as a manager you’re in a bubble and you don’t get a chance to reflect.
“But listening to people speak about the impact of the club on the area since Rob and Ryan have been here, and their memories over the last four years, was fantastic.
“I spoke to a lot of people outside my normal realm that I speak to day to day in the club and where I live.
“It just really hit home to me – the impact on the club’s success, on the the city itself, and the surrounding area.”
Parkinson, 57, has been at the helm since 2021 and became the first manager in English Football League history to secure three consecutive promotions.
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His award comes on the back of Wrexham’s surge through the divisions, a rise that has attracted international attention while still rooted in local identity.
“It made me feel very humble,” Parkinson added.
“It really hit home to me the impact on the club’s success on the city itself and the surrounding area.”
The manager said the ceremony also reinforced the importance of the club’s role beyond football.
“We’ve always stressed, and it comes from the top with the owners, that as much as Wrexham has got the global appeal the most important thing is the local businesses and the local people who support the club and have been through tough times,” he said.
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While Reynolds and McElhenney’s Hollywood presence has brought global reach, Parkinson has consistently echoed their message that the club’s foundations lie with its core support.
“We are at the heart of the community, the football club is all about that long before we came, how important the football is to the community,” he said.
“Rob and Ryan's understanding of that is incredibly well received. All along, we've stressed that it comes from the top that as much as Wrexham has got a global appeal, the most important thing is the local businesses, the local people who have supported the club through some tough times and feel that connection.
“I feel that that's been achieved and long may it continue.”
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The recognition comes as Wrexham continue their efforts to adapt to life in the second tier.
Parkinson’s side have secured back-to-back away wins at Millwall and Norwich, but are still searching for a first home league victory this season.
“I think at times we’ve played in a desperate way where we’ve chased the game,” said Parkinson of their home form.
“We’ve spoken to the lads about the structure against Norwich and in the second half against Reading [during a 2-0 Carabao Cup win on Tuesday].
“We’ve got to bring that away from home kind of tightness, compactness and structure as a team and let the game come to us almost.
“It’s an absolute desire to give our home fans what they’re used to, which is victories, but we’ve got to have a clear understanding of how we’re going to go about that.”
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For a manager often immersed in the intensity of match preparation, the Guildhall ceremony provided rare space to take stock.
Parkinson admitted the event offered a perspective he rarely gets amid the week-to-week demands of management.
“It just really hit home to me – the impact on the club’s success, on the the city itself, and the surrounding area,” he said.
