CHARLIE Kirk’s devoted young wife Erika was in the audience with their two young children when a cowardly shooter gunned him down from a rooftop.
She has often spoken about how her husband was “bold” enough to speak out and refused to be “silenced.”
Instagram/charliekirk1776Charlie Kirk and his wife, Erika, with their two children[/caption]
Instagram/mrserikakirkThe conservative activist and former Miss Arizona USA winner first met in 2018[/caption]
Social Media – Refer to SourceKirk was a rising young star on the political scene and met numerous times with Donald Trump[/caption]
APCharlie Kirk hands out hats before speaking at Utah Valley University, where he was shot and killed by a gunman[/caption]
The power couple of young Donald Trump-supporting Americans both have important podcasts, and spoke about their love for the United States, God and their family.
Rather than turn up at an endless raft of red carpet events, Charlie and Erika preferred to visit the set of Sesame Street or go to basketball with their children.
Only two weeks ago Charlie, 31, had written about how raising his children with Erika “was the greatest privilege” and “having a family will change your life in the best ways”.
Now America and Erika, 36, are grieving after a fanatic tried to silence Charlie by shooting him dead as he spoke to students in Utah on Wednesday.
The former Miss Arizona USA 2012, who married Charlie in 2021, is left to look after their two children, daughter Sarah Rose, three, and a one year-old son.
Charlie created the Turning Point non-profit organisation aged just 18 and turned it into a $100million force, which many credited with getting Trump elected as President for the second time.
It was a remarkable achievement for a high school drop-out, from a politically moderate household in Chicago who worked his way up through the ranks making sure that Donald Trump Jr had enough energy drinks to get through the day.
Erkia said in a recent speech: “He is my husband Charlie Kirk, he is a force. He is the force. He is bold when the world demands silence.
“He is fearless where others flinch.”
At the outset Charlie did not appear to be born to be the spokesperson for America’s new generation of right-wing voters.
His mother was a mental health counsellor and his dad was an architect.
Although his dad did have a link to the President because he worked on designing Trump Tower in New York.
Charlie was brought up in a well-off suburb of Prospect Heights in Chicago and got into politics early at school.
His big awakening was from the talk show host Rush Limbaugh.
Charlie said: “I started listening to Rush when I was a junior in high school. On my lunch break, from like 12:17 to 12:55, I’d listen. Just me. I went all in on Rush.”
Young firebrand
In 2011 he was so outraged by the price of treats in the cafeteria that he formed the campaign Wheeling High School Against Cookie Inflation with a pal.
Charlie was rejected by America’s prestigious West Point military academy, but got into Baylor University in Waco, Texas.
ReutersOnlookers run after a shot was fired at the event[/caption]
APLaw enforcement tapes off the area after Kirk’s assassination[/caption]
X/BNOFootage showed a dark-clad figure on a roof after the shooting[/caption]
X/@GaroweOnlinePresident Donald Trump addressed the nation after the horrific killing[/caption]
Student life was not to his liking, and to his parents’ horror he decided to drop out and set up Turning Point.
The smart smooth talker persuaded several wealthy donors to back his project.
But, enlivened by national politics, he took a three-month sabbatical to go work for Donald Trump Jr when he was aged 22.
Charlie said: “I traveled the country for about 70 days straight carrying Donald Trump Jr.’s bags and getting his Diet Cokes.
“Helping book flights and taking pictures and coordinating media, essentially being the youth director of the campaign and also being Don Jr.’s body man.”
That close alliance endured and was never forgotten.
Donald Jr helped sharpen up Charlie’s image by giving him an £8,000 gift certificate from the clothes shop in Trump Tower.
Last night Trump Jr said: “He was like a little brother to me – and to millions of people around the world – he was a true inspiration.”
Trump’s loyal fan
He rose up through the ranks and he visited the White House more than 100 times during Trump’s first term as President.
Importantly for Trump Sr, he showed loyalty, sticking by him when the President lost the election in 2020 and faced impeachment for encouraging supporters to storm the US Congress.
Instagram/charliekirk1776Charlie and Erika carved out plenty of family time with their kids[/caption]
Instagram/charliekirk1776They kept the birth of their daughter a secret initially[/caption]
InstagramThe family attending a baseball game[/caption]
InstagramCharlie’s daughter surprising him during a TV interview in a sweet moment[/caption]
Charlie is credited with turning young people, who are often seen as left leaning, into Republicans.
By this time, he had met Erika, who was crowned Miss Arizona USA in 2012 and is a big fan of sports such as basketball.
He had been a tall basketball player at school and this was one of their shared interests.
During Covid lockdown in 2020 he stayed with Erika at her parents home and the following year they got married.
Her first birth was not easy, though, with Erika spending 48 hours in labour and needing an emergency caesarean.
She has often spoken about the importance of being a good role model to her daughter.
The couple were regularly seen in public holding hands and showing their affection.
She wrote: “Wives, your daughter is watching how you allow your husband to treat you. Empower and encourage and love your husband. If you married the right man and equally yoked this is easier to do.”
Timeline of Charlie Kirk shooting
Conservative commentator Charlie Kirk was shot in the neck while speaking at an event at Utah Valley University on September 10.
12 pm MDT– Kirk is scheduled to host a debate in the UVU Fountain Courtyard.
12:10 pm – A shot is fired at Kirk from 200 yards away and hits him in the neck. The event is immediately evacuated and a man is taken into custody.
1:02 pm – President Donald Trump posts a call to pray for Kirk on Truth Social.
1:37 pm – UVU closes campus, cancels classes, and tells students to leave campus immediately.
1:50 pm – Officials confirm Kirk is in critical condition to the Associated Press.
2:40 pm – Trump confirms Kirk has died, hailing him “great, legendary” in a post on Truth Social.
4:21 pm FBI Director Kash Patel shares on X that the ‘subject for the horrific shooting’ is in custody.
4:30 pm – Utah Governor Spencer Cox, speaking at a press conference, brands Kirk’s death a ‘political assassination. Cox adds there is a ‘person of interest’ in custody and a man arrested earlier has been released.
Charlie had a podcast called The Charlie Kirk Show, where he often spoke out against feminism.
Sometimes that got him into trouble, such as when he said after Taylor Swift got engaged to Travis Kelce: “This is something that I hope will make Taylor Swift more conservative.
“Engage in reality more. Reject feminism. Submit to your husband, Taylor. You’re not in charge.”
He has also spoken out about abortion and was a vaccine sceptic.
Charlie is credited with coming up with the phrase the “China virus” to describe Covid-19, which was adopted by President Trump.
Family man
Estate agent Erika also runs a religious fashion brand called PROCLAIM Streetwear and founded the nonprofit organisation Everyday Heroes Like You way back in 2007 to encourage heroic acts in communities.
She also started a podcast called Midweek Rise Up in 2019.
The couple owned a £4million six bedroom home in Arizona which they were trying to sell.
With Charlie’s assassin still on the loose, the immediate priority is to bring his killer to justice.
And the President’s thoughts were with Erika and her children.
He wrote: ”No one understood or had the Heart of the Youth in the United States of America better than Charlie.
“He was loved and admired by ALL, especially me, and now, he is no longer with us. Melania and my Sympathies go out to his beautiful wife Erika, and family. Charlie, we love you.”
APWell-wishers pay their respects at a makeshift memorial at the national headquarters of Turning Point USA[/caption]
GettyMourners hold candles during a candlelight vigil and prayer event for Charlie last night[/caption] Published: [#item_custom_pubDate]
