Is Lilian Garcia Still With WWE?, Vince McMahon’s Reaction To Her Tribute to the Troops Appearance

After announcing her departure from WWE in August to care for her ailing father, Lilian Garcia made a surprise appearance earlier this month at the company’s annual Tribute to the Troops event — held on Dec. 13 at the Verizon Center in Washington D.C. The former ring announcer of Raw sang “The Star-Spangled Banner,” which may have left fans wondering if she could still return to the road on a full-time basis.

While Garcia has repeatedly said that she is no longer with WWE, the company never issued a formal announcement confirming her departure. WWE, however, quietly moved her profile on WWE.com to the Alumni section last week, which would indicate that she’s officially gone from the company. Up until then, she was listed as an active member of the WWE roster.

Garcia discussed her appearance at Tribute to the Troops last Monday on her podcast, Making Their Way To The Ring, where she again said that she needs to spend time with her father. She revealed that she lost part of her voice due to the stress she’s currently going through because of her father’s illness, which led to difficulty in getting through “The Star-Spangled Banner.”

Garcia also talked about WWE welcoming her with open arms backstage at the show.

“It’s like a forever family, that I feel there. And then to see Triple H and Vince McMahon when I walked in and saw them … I mean, they both gave me this huge hug,” Garcia said.

“When I got done singing and I went back to Vince and thanked him for everything, he was just like, “‘Damn girl! I don’t know if that was the best you’ve ever sung it, or we just miss you around here!'”