Erika Kirk Extends Forgiveness at Memorial for Husband Charlie Kirk

Erika Kirk, Charlie Kirk's widow, speaks at the memorial service for her husband at State Farm Stadium in Glendale, Ariz., on Sunday. Patrick T.Fallon/AFP via Getty Images

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GLENDALE, Ariz. — In a tearful and moving tribute, Erika Kirk, widow of Turning Point USA founder Charlie Kirk, shared a message of forgiveness and faith during her husband’s memorial service at State Farm Stadium.

Erika Kirk shares a message of forgiveness at her husband Charlie Kirk's memorial service in Glendale, Ariz. Credit: Turning Point USA

“I forgive him because it was what Christ did and it is what Charlie would do,” she told the thousands in attendance, speaking of the man accused in her husband’s killing. “The answer to hate is not hate. The answer we know from the Gospel is love.” Her words were met with a standing ovation.

“The answer to hate is not hate. The answer we know from the Gospel is love,” said Erika Kirk at her husband Charlie Kirk's memorial service in Glendale, Ariz. Credit: Turning Point USA

Erika described the deep pain of arriving at a Utah hospital to see her husband’s body, recalling it as “the unthinkable” and a level of grief she “didn’t even know existed.” Yet, even in the midst of tragedy, she said she found mercy in knowing her husband’s passing was instant and without suffering. “Even in death, I could see the man that I love,” she said, noting what she described as “the faintest smile” on his lips.

She spoke tenderly of their marriage, sharing how Charlie wrote her weekly love notes, always asking, “How can I better serve you as a husband?” Erika called their union “the best thing that ever happened” to them both and urged others to embrace the same devotion in their own relationships.

Turning her focus to Charlie’s mission, she reminded the crowd that he was especially passionate about guiding young men who felt lost or directionless. “My husband truly wanted to save young men, just like the one who took his life,” she said.

The memorial drew a large audience, including national leaders and close friends of the Kirk family. Vice President JD Vance and his wife, Usha, provided comfort in the days following Charlie’s death. Erika recalled Usha’s words aboard Air Force Two, encouraging her to take life in “15-minute” steps, a message Erika said was exactly what she needed to hear.

Though she acknowledged her husband’s “incomplete work,” Erika emphasized that his mission is far from finished. In a powerful call to action, she urged men to “accept Charlie’s challenge and embrace true manhood.” She reminded husbands and wives of their unity in God’s design: “You are not rivals. You are one flesh, working together for the glory of God.”

Now stepping forward as CEO of Turning Point USA, Erika vowed to continue her husband’s legacy with strength and faith. “The cries of this widow will echo around the world like a battle cry,” she declared. “The evil-doers for my husband’s assassination have no idea what they have done.”

Through tears, Erika’s words echoed both heartbreak and hope, a testament to faith in the face of unimaginable loss and the power of love to overcome hate.