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.”
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