Erika Kirk, widow of conservative activist and Turning Point USA founder Charlie Kirk, publicly forgave her husband’s killer during a memorial service at State Farm Stadium on Sunday (Sept. 21) and pledged to carry forward his mission through the organization he built.
The hours-long tribute, titled “Building a Legacy: Remembering Charlie Kirk,” gathered tens of thousands in Glendale, Arizona, and was watched by millions around the world. The service featured remarks from President Donald Trump, cabinet officials, Turning Point USA staff, Kirk’s pastor, conservative influencers, and musical performances by leading Christian artists.
Charlie Kirk, 31, was fatally shot Sept. 10 during a Q&A session at Utah Valley University as part of his “America Comeback Tour.” His widow stood before a portrait of her late husband and said her response to his death had been shaped by faith and his own example of surrender to God’s will.
“Our Savior said, ‘Father, forgive them, for they know not what they do,’” she said. “I forgive him because it was what Christ did, and it is what Charlie would do. The answer to hate is not hate. The answer we know from the Gospel is love — love for our enemies and love for those who persecute us.”
She recalled a moment two years earlier when her husband had quoted Isaiah 6:8 — “Here I am, Lord, send me” — at a TPUSA Faith event. “When you say that, there is so much power in those words,” she said. “God will take you up on that. And He did with Charlie. Eleven days ago, God accepted that total surrender from my husband and then called him to His side. More than anything, Charlie wanted to do not his will, but God’s will.”
Kirk described arriving at the hospital after the shooting to “do the unthinkable — to look directly at my husband’s murdered body.” She said she saw “the faintest smile” on his lips, which she called a sign of divine mercy. “It revealed to me that Charlie didn’t suffer,” she said, adding that doctors told her the death was instantaneous and nothing could have been done to save him. “One moment, Charlie was doing what he loved — arguing and debating on campus, fighting for the gospel and truth in front of a big crowd — and then he blinked and saw his Savior in paradise.”
In the days following his death, she said, she witnessed what her husband had long prayed for: spiritual awakening. “We didn’t see violence, we didn’t see rioting, we didn’t see revolution. Instead, we saw what my husband always prayed he would see in this country: we saw revival. This past week, we saw people open a Bible for the first time in a decade. We saw people pray for the first time since they were children. We saw people go to a church service for the first time in their entire lives.”
She urged believers to take seriously the responsibility of nurturing new faith. “The seed has only just been planted. The enemy will tempt you the most in a time like this one. God will always be there for you, but you must choose to mark your soul again and again in the direction of Christ. Pray again. Read the Bible again. Go to church next Sunday and the Sunday after that.”
Turning to the theme of family, which she said was at the center of her husband’s work, Erika Kirk reflected on their marriage. “Charlie died with incomplete work, but not with unfinished business,” she said. “The greatest cause in Charlie’s life was trying to revive the American family. When he spoke to young people, he was always eager to tell them about God’s vision for marriage and how if they could just dare to live it out, it would enrich every part of their life in the same way that it enriched ours.”
She shared how the couple stayed connected despite his demanding travel schedule. “Every Saturday, Charlie wrote me a note, and he never missed a Saturday. In every single one of them, he would tell me what his highlight was for the week, how grateful he was for me and for our babies. And always at the end, he would ask me the most beautiful question: ‘Please let me know how I can better serve you as a husband.’”
Kirk encouraged men listening to follow what she called “Charlie’s challenge.” “Be strong and courageous for your families. Love your wives and lead them. Love your children and protect them. Be the spiritual head of your home — but be a leader worth following. Your wife is not your servant. Your wife is not your employee. Your wife is not your slave. She’s your helper. You are not rivals. You are one flesh working together for the glory of God.”
She also urged women to embrace the calling of their role. “Be virtuous. Our strength is found in God’s design for our role. We are the guardians. We are the encouragers. We are the preservers. Guard your heart, for everything you do flows from it. And if you are a mother, please recognize that is the single most important ministry you have.”
Erika Kirk concluded her remarks saying that as CEO of Turning Point USA, she would continue to expand its mission. “Everything that Turning Point USA built through Charlie’s vision and hard work, we will make ten times greater through the power of his memory,” she said. She pledged to grow the organization’s chapters nationwide, add thousands of pastors and congregations to TPUSA Faith, and continue campus events promoting free speech and dialogue.
“No assassin will ever stop us from standing up to defend those rights,” she said. “Charlie’s life was a turning point for this country. It was a miracle. Let that miracle be your turning point as well. Choose prayer, choose courage, choose family, choose Christ.”
