The Daily Citizen‘s Emily Washburn shares her “life changing” experience at Charlie Kirk’s memorial on September 21.
Read Emily’s coverage of the event:
‘I Forgive Him’: Three of the Most Impactful Moments from Charlie Kirk’s Memorial
Nearly 100,000 People Woke Up at Dawn for Charlie Kirk’s Memorial. Here’s Why.
Focus on the Family offers resources to help parents and families facing tragedy.
On Sunday, September 21, hundreds of thousands of people left their homes before dawn to attend Charlie Kirk’s memorial.
The devout Christian and founder of Turning Point USA was assassinated on September 10 at Utah Valley University. He died doing what he did best — teaching young people about Christ and conservatism on hostile college campuses.
The turnout for Charlie’s memorial was nothing short of miraculous. The 31-year-old was a rising star in the conservative movement and a powerful voice among young, politically active Americans — but it takes something special to convince hundreds of thousands of people to spend their Sunday baking in the hot sun outside a football stadium with no guarantee of getting in.
I asked people at Charlie Kirk’s memorial what made him so special.
My first interview was something of a divine prompting. It took place long before I even made it to Glendale.
Reverend Doug and Christina Tipton and Mike and Tanya Alexander were wearing matching Charlie Kirk sweatshirts in the Colorado Springs airport when I approached them. I had assumed the couples were heading to Phoenix like me — but they didn’t need a special reason to support Charlie and his legacy.
“We really felt like we needed to do something,” Doug told me. “We knew we were traveling this weekend … so our main goal was really just to get the word out there.”
I asked them what they found so inspiring about Charlie.
“Charlie was martyred for the faith,” Christina explained. “He stood for faith, family and country — all the things I hold dear to my heart.”
Mike and Tanya said Charlie’s death “lit a fresh fire under them” to make their time on Earth count spreading the Gospel. Charlie’s impact, Tanya assessed, “was a reflection, not of the man Charlie, but of the God he served.”
“Now, it’s transcending him.”
The couples prayed out loud for my safety and fruitfulness before boarding their flight.
I befriended Alina and her mom Juliette at 5:30 a.m. in what felt like a sea of people. The duo had road-tripped to State Farm Stadium all the way from New Mexico.
Charlie helped bring Alina to Christ in 2016. Her decision to follow the Lord changed her life.
“[Jesus] brought me out of drugs, sex before marriage, all kinds of things,” she said.
Alina told me she felt filled with the Holy Spirit following Charlie’s assassination.
“You can feel it,” she emphasized. I found that I could.
Lisette, Doug and baby Vincent joined the early morning memorial to participate in the celebration of Charlie’s life — a celebration, they stressed, not a riot.
“Charlie was so loved,” Lisette reflected. “We’re here because his life and faith meant so much.”
The young family also wanted to show their support for Erika, Charlie’s widow, and the couple’s two children.
“I couldn’t imagine losing my husband,” she told me, looking back at Doug.
Bob and Mary pulled up to the venue at 5:20 a.m. to “honor Charlie’s life.”
“If that means we stand out here until 11:00 that’s what we’re going to do,” Mary said cheerfully.
The couple remembered Charlie for his dedication, faith and unique ability to speak for what Bob called the “silent majority.”
“He will be greatly missed,” Mary concluded.
I connected with Shaylee and Maren over a crazy coincidence: Shaylee was a fellow Colorado Springs native — and her mom used to work for Focus on the Family.
The GCU students had left campus at 4:30 a.m. to attend the event.
“I wanted to hear the speeches and what people had to say about him,” Shaylee told me.
“I also wanted to pay respect. I feel like it means a lot that so many people are showing up.”
Campus had felt “heavy” following Charlie’s assassination, the two attested. Maren said there had been a lot of campus memorials in his honor as students grappled with someone so well-known and respected facing such a death.
“He also has little kids and he and his wife are such faithful followers,” Shaylee added. “To see something happen like that that’s so undeserved has really shaken everyone.”
Michelle, her daughter Alexis, and Alexis’ friends Morgan and Avabelle trundled to the memorial at 4:15 in the morning. They hoped to honor and demonstrate the impact Charlie had on America’s youth.
Michelle, who’d first encountered Charlie in 2016, understood why people compared his assassination to 9/11. The fear and confusion felt similar, she explained.
In the aftermath of Charlie’s death, however, she had experienced a tangible boost from the Holy Spirit — a “Jesus-lift.”
Alexis, Morgan and Avabelle said they’d felt the same spiritual lift. The 16-year-olds were in class when Charlie was assassinated. All saw the horribly graphic video of his death. But Charlie’s fearlessness ignited their own, God-given courage.
Alexis says Charlie demonstrated standing strong for Jesus. She’s more determined than ever to boldly declare her faith.
Morgan and Avabelle seek to emulate Charlie’s fearlessness.
“He wasn’t afraid to shine a light on darkness,” Avabelle reflected.
Michelle told me the three girls are living examples of Charlie’s enduring impact on young Americans.
I sat next to Todd and Danelle in the blessedly air-conditioned stadium. Over emphatic worship music, the brother-sister duo explained why they had come all the way from Gilbert, Arizona.
“[Charlie’s] been important to the youth,” Danelle said. He helped teach her own son, a 27-year-old who dislikes the conflict and strife of politics, about conservatism.
Charlie gave Todd a voice.
“Sometimes I would question myself and the way I thought,” he confided, “and then [Charlie] would say it and I’d know I wasn’t crazy.”
Together, the three of us sat back and marveled at the size of the crowd. People of all ages, races and sexes — all decked out in red, white and blue — had gone through considerable trouble to honor Charlie. His faith and convictions had touched them all.
Danelle summed up the feeling well:
“It makes you proud to be an American.”
Additional Articles and Resources
‘I Forgive Him’: Three of the Most Impactful Moments from Charlie Kirk’s Memorial
You’d be forgiven for thinking that journalists and media personalities receive a daily talking points sheet filled with coordinated messaging from some secret source.
After all, peruse your typical news site and themes and trends start to emerge – not so much the stories themselves, but also the language used in telling or framing the story itself.
Today, the Term du jour is “retribution” – a word stemming from the Latin verb “retribuere,” which means “to pay back” or “give in return.” Merriam Webster defines it as “dispensing or receiving of reward or punishment” and “something given or exacted in recompense.”
As Christians, we know from Jesus’ teaching that we’re to leave that type of punishment to the Lord. From Matthew’s Gospel, we read Jesus’ own words, “You have heard that it was said, ‘An eye for an eye and a tooth for a tooth.’ But I say to you not to resist an evildoer. But whoever slaps you on your right cheek, turn the other also.”
The apostle Paul echoed that sentiment when he wrote to Christians in Rome, “Beloved, do not avenge yourselves, but rather give place to wrath, for it is written, ‘Vengeance is Mine, I will repay,’ says the Lord.”
But does that mean we’re to simply fold our hands in prayer or throw them up altogether and simply wait for punishment to be applied supernaturally? No.
Justice is a core characteristic of God and He calls on us to do our part to enact it in this world. There is nothing inherently out of bounds in seeking to right a wrong, especially when those wrongs inflict harm on His people. We read in Micah 6:8, “He has told you, O man, what is good; and what does the Lord require of you, but to do justice, and to love kindness, and to walk humbly with your God?”
The prophet Isaiah similarly warns and counsels, “Learn to do good; seek justice, correct oppression; bring justice to the fatherless, plead the widow’s cause (1:17).”
While the goal of justice is to restore what sin has stolen, the aim or intent of retribution is generally self-focused, i.e., “an eye for an eye.”
What’s telling is that when reporters often write about retribution, they’re generally focused on the response to the offense rather than getting into the details or even the validity of the problematic or illegal activity that started the whole process. Instead, they should be investigating the merits of the core concern and addressing what can and should be done about it to make sure it doesn’t happen again.
One could be left with the impression that those calling out so-called “payback” are hoping that our attention won’t go back to the beginning or root cause of the offense.
Christians can rest in God’s ultimate authority and final word. In just these last few weeks, Erika Kirk, the widow of slain Turning Point USA founder Charlie Kirk, has provided us with a powerful example of how best to balance the distinctions of justice and retribution.
In announcing that she had forgiven her husband’s assassin, Erika is doing her personal part in navigating a gross injustice. At the same time, she is leaving the prosecution of the individual to Utah prosecutors, even up to the possibility of the death penalty.
We pray that justice will be served.
Image from Shutterstock.
I joined more than 200,000 people Sunday, September 21, to honor the life and legacy of conservative Christian Charlie Kirk.
The founder of Turning Point USA was assassinated on September 10 at Utah Valley University, doing what his wife Erika says he loved best — debating on college campuses.
Students showed up in force, but the crowd spanned generation, race and language. We each wound our way through the streets of Glendale in the wee hours of the morning to pay tribute to one man, just 31 years old, who somehow managed to touch us all.
Erika was one of 25 exceptionally talented speakers who honored Charlie in a five hour service at State Farm Stadium. The line-up featured two planes worth of White House staff, per Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt, including, in order of appearance:
Other heavy hitters included:
The tributes, to a one, were heartfelt, gut-wrenching and galvanizing. Charlie was described more frequently as a brother than a friend — an adventurous, curious and unfailingly kind man with a deep desire to follow God’s will for his life.
Erika recalled a Turning Point Faith event two years ago in which Charlie spoke impromptu about “his submission to the will of God.” The speech centered around Isaiah 6:8, which reads, “Here I am! Send me” (ESV).
“I spoke to him backstage and said, ‘Charlie, baby, please talk to me next time before you make that statement,'”Erika told the crowd, laughing softly before sobering:
Some of the most impactful moments of the day had to do with legacy — discussing what Charlie left behind and what we must do to honor his work and sacrifice. Here are three of my favorites.
The first comes from Secretary of State Marco Rubio, who concluded his remarks with a fervent account of the Gospel.
“Charlie’s movement was about politics, but not only about politics — it was deeper, it was broader,” Rubio began. “I am confident that one of the things he’d want us to take away from all of this is the following”:
I am used to hearing vague allusions to Christianity. Recently, I’ve been blessed to witness more overt displays of faith from Vice President J.D. Vance, among others. But the passion with which Marco Rubio described, in great detail, the Christian story — and what Christ’s sacrifice means for us and for Charlie Kirk — is unlike anything I’ve heard before. I will not soon forget it.
Shortly after Charlie’s death, Vice President Vance boldly proclaimed the Nicaean Creed while guest hosting the “Charlie Kirk Show,” Charlie’s podcast. I did not think he could be any more explicit or brave at Charlie’s memorial. I was wrong.
“I was telling someone backstage that I always felt a little uncomfortable talking about my faith in public, as much as I love the Lord and as much as it is an important part of my life,” the Vice President admitted, continuing:
Believing in Jesus is one thing. Proclaiming His name, as the Mr. Vance points out, is quite another. Charlie didn’t just bring people to Jesus — he gave people the courage to speak their faith aloud.
The final, and perhaps most mysterious and wonderful moment, came from Erika.
It’s cliché to say there wasn’t a dry eye in the house when Erika took the stage — but I mean it literally. Everywhere I looked, I saw tears glistening in people’s eyes and on their cheeks. I saw lips bit, closed fists raised to mouths and furtive eye-rubbing. I splashed tears all over my notepad.
Her pain is visible. Visceral. In her, we see a reflection of the worst pain we’ve ever experienced — moments when many of us question the presence and character of our Savior.
But Erika did not express her pain as she might be tempted. Instead, she observed that the man who killed Charlie is the exact kind of man her husband most hoped to help.
“On a cross, our Savior said, ‘Forgive them, Father, for they know not what they do.’” she said, haltingly. “That man [who killed my husband] … I forgive him.”
This was not lip-service. I know this because her face and body crumpled. It cost her something to publicly forgive the man who destroyed her family. But she did it. She did it, she said, because that’s what Christ did and that’s what Charlie would want.
What kind of life did Charlie lead that, after his violent death, Erika still has no doubt that he would forgive his killer?
Erika and, through her, Charlie, today demonstrated the transformative power of Jesus Christ in a tangible way I can’t compare to any other. I know I witnessed something historic. Best of all, I’m inspired to resubmit my life to Christ and His will.
It is through Him, and Him alone, that we leave a lasting legacy. I learned that from Charlie.
This week, faith leaders and political leaders rallied thousands of Coloradans to celebrate the life and the legacy of Charlie Kirk.
The gatherings were held at BRAVE Church, a megachurch near Denver where Kirk had been a guest speaker, and at Colorado State University (CSU) in Fort Collins, the school that would have been Kirk’s second stop on The American Comeback Tour.
Both events honored Kirk’s courage in proclaiming the truth of the Gospel message and his devotion to the Christian faith. They also celebrated Kirk’s unwavering commitment to free speech, respectful debate and civil dialogue. He was a fierce champion of those ideas in the public square, often in the face of hostility.
Both events also emphasized the importance of keeping Kirk’s legacy alive by thoughtfully engaging the culture with truth.
BRAVE Church Memorial
On Sunday, BRAVE Church held a memorial service and prayer vigil honoring Kirk’s courage for his faith and his commitment to free speech. According to church estimates, approximately 5,000 people participated in person and online.
The service started with a time of worship. Featured speakers were former gubernatorial candidate Heidi Ganhal, radio host Jeff Hunt, Pastor Jeff of BRAVE Church, and Victor Marx, who is rumored to be considering entering the gubernatorial race in Colorado.
Ganahl, who is part of Turning Point USA’s Advisory Board, encouraged attendees to carry on Kirk’s legacy, which is “lighting a global fire for the truth.”
Jeff Hunt told the audience that Kirk’s recipe for success was faith in Jesus Christ, character, devotion and inspiration. Hunt urged young people not to wait for permission to build their movement, but to address the problems of our day with courage and ingenuity.
Victor Marx revealed that he was a mentor to Kirk and had become a close friend of the family. According to Marx, Charlie applied three rules he’d been taught by Marx: Don’t ever make a decision out of fear, don’t make decisions based on ego or pride and don’t make decisions based on comfort or ease.
To Pastor Jeff, Charlie Kirk was a hero and an encouragement to him. When Kirk came to the church to speak, Pastor Jeff told Charlie that he was going to ask him about his faith in front of the audience and Kirk responded by saying, “Jesus Christ is the most important person in my life.”
The audience were encouraged to see how Kirk used his faith to love his family and to impact the culture for truth. Pastor Jeff said that if there was anything Charlie would want done at his memorial, it would be to share the Gospel of Jesus Christ.
Colorado State University
The CSU vigil in Fort Collins was organized by Turning Point USA and held on Thursday, September 18, the day Kirk would have been on campus for his second stop on the American Comeback Tour.
The event was held at Canvas Stadium, the school’s on-campus football stadium, and reports suggest there were anywhere from 7,000 to 10,000 people participating in the service.
Speakers at the Turning Point USA event included Will Witt, Isabel Brown and Heidi Ganahl, among others.
Will Witt, a conservative media personality from Colorado, said Charlie lived a genuine life and always spoke the truth, saying the best way to honor Kirk’s legacy is “through faith, through courage, through hope and through strength.”
Isabel Brown, also from Colorado and a graduate of CSU, who worked with Kirk directly when she was president of CSU’s chapter, said, “we didn’t just lose someone that we admire. We lost the intellectual and moral leader of an entire generation.”
Across Colorado and this nation, the remarkable turnout at Kirk’s memorial services is a testament to the fact that Kirk’s influence reached far beyond politics. From a faith filled gathering at BRAVE church to thousands filling Canvas Stadium at CSU, people of all ages came together to talk about faith, freedom and the future of America. There is hope in the fact that the legacy Kirk left behind is drawing people together in dialogue, in shared values, and in a hope for America.
Related Articles and Resources
Charlie Kirk Committed His Life to Truth
Charlie Kirk, a Friend to Many, a Friend to My Family
Charlie Kirk: Man of Faith, Family and Fidelity
The Charlie Kirk Radicals Hated Wasn’t Really Charlie Kirk
Charlie Kirk’s Accused Assassin and His Links to Transgenderism
Erika Kirk: ‘Charlie Loved God’s Design for Marriage and Family’
The Radicals Better Brace Themselves for Erika Kirk
Speaking Peace into Chaos in a Troubled Culture
VP Vance: ‘The Most Important Truth’ Charlie Kirk Told is Jesus is Lord