Erika Kirk, the widow of Turning Point USA (TPUSA) founder Charlie Kirk, read an emotional birthday message from her daughter to her late husband Tuesday during a posthumous award ceremony.
On Tuesday evening, President Donald Trump posthumously awarded Charlie Kirk the Presidential Medal of Freedom after he was assassinated while debating students and others at Utah Valley University in Orem, Utah. During the ceremony, Erika Kirk told supporters that her message is for them to “be the embodiment of this medal” and “stand courageously in the truth.”
“Before I close, I’ll share with you that I asked our daughter what she would like to say to daddy for his birthday. She said, ‘Happy birthday, daddy. I want to give you a stuffed animal. I want you to eat a cupcake with ice cream. And I want you to go have a birthday surprise. I love you,’ is what she said,” Erika Kirk said.
“While our son is precious, he can’t yet speak. In classic Kirk family fashion, his actions spoke louder than his words. His gift to you, Charlie, and myself, for that matter, was deciding to become the man of the house and be fully potty trained at 16 months,” Erika Kirk added. “But Charlie, baby, I know that you’re celebrating in heaven today. But, gosh, I miss you. We miss you. And we love you. And we promise we’ll make you proud.”
Kirk, known for hosting debates on college campuses about issues like abortion, free speech and gender ideology, was assassinated Sept. 10. Videos of the shooting quickly circulated online, capturing the moment a single gunshot rang out and struck Kirk as he was debating.
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TPUSA held a remembrance service for supporters on Sept. 21, with thousands filling Arizona’s State Farm Stadium to honor the 31-year-old conservative’s legacy. Speaking with the Daily Caller News Foundation during the service, some attendees shared how Kirk shaped their political views, while others grew emotional describing what it meant to see so many conservatives gathered to honor the TPUSA founder.
Erika Kirk went on to say that her late husband’s life was proof “that freedom is not a theory,” before wishing the TPUSA founder a happy birthday and telling supporters, “Happy Freedom Day.”
“Charlie’s life was proof that freedom is not a theory. It’s a testimony. He showed us that liberty begins not in the halls of power, but in the man of a heart surrendered to God,” Erika Kirk said.
“So today as we honor Charlie with this incredible Presidential Medal of Freedom on his birthday, I stand here with tears and just a humbled heart and spirit because his story reminds us all that to live free is the greatest gift. But to die free is the greatest victory. Happy birthday, my Charlie. Happy Freedom Day,” Erika Kirk said.
Since the murder, 22-year-old Tyler Robinson was arrested and charged after a nearly two-day manhunt by federal and local officials. Robinson appeared in court on Sept. 16 and faces one count of aggravated murder, one count of felony discharge of a firearm causing serious bodily injury, two counts of obstruction of justice for hiding the rifle and discarding his clothing, two counts of witness tampering for instructing a roommate to delete texts and one count of committing a violent offense in front of children.
