Erika Kirk has opened up about the heartbreaking warning she gave her husband the night before he was killed.
Charlie Kirk, 31, was fatally shot on September 10 while speaking at a Turning Point USA event at Utah Valley University.
The murder has sent shockwaves across the nation, with his wife now sharing details about their last moments before the tragedy.
Erika's Warning to Charlie Kirk
In a recent interview with The New York Times, Erika described how she and her late husband spent the evening before his campus tour with a close friend who was a faith leader.
They gathered for dinner in Phoenix, where they all prayed together.
For months, the Turning Point USA founder had been receiving death threats, which had led him to travel with a security team.
But Erika’s worries reached a new level that evening, and she expressed her concern directly, asking Kirk to start wearing a bulletproof vest.
She also added that their friend also suggested that he speak behind bulletproof glass at events.
Despite the growing threats, the right-wing influencer showed reluctance to follow these precautions, replying, “Not yet.”
He believed in the safety of his team and the additional security measures in place for his tour.
Erika admitted she had begun to wonder if Kirk had “surrendered to the prospect” that his life could be cut short due to the dangerous nature of his work.
She noted that he had previously discussed the possibility of violence affecting him, a grim reality he had accepted.
What makes the situation even more chilling is that the mom-of-two was originally scheduled to be with Kirk at the Utah event, but had to change her plans.
Her mother was scheduled for medical treatment in Phoenix the same day.
She recalled her husband telling her, “Home needs you,” before they planned for her to join him at the next stop on the tour in Colorado.
Erika shares emotional tribute to Charlie Kirk
Following his death, Erika has been vocal about her grief and how she is coping with the loss of her husband.
She recently posted an emotional tribute on Instagram, sharing what she described as one of the “last photos” taken of Kirk.
In the image, he is wearing a white “Freedom” shirt, raising one arm while holding a stack of red-and-white caps he was handing out to event attendees.
“You loved witnessing excellence. It’s why you loved sports so much. You loved watching the best of the best perform at the level of greatness God intended for them," she penned in the post.
"This is one of the last photos taken of you before you were murdered.
"I look at it and can’t help but see excellence.
"You’re in your element. You’re in athlete mode. Training for this exact moment, mind, body, and soul.”
She continued, “To me, this is your ‘Jordan’ photo. Permanently etched in time, held in my heart, as I admire your greatness.
"Forever. I pray you’ve had the most amazing week in Heaven @charliekirk1776 I love you.”
Kirk’s memorial at State Farm Stadium
Charlie Kirk’s funeral service, held on September 21 at State Farm Stadium in Glendale, Arizona, was attended by more than 60,000 people.
The memorial blurred the lines between a political rally and a religious service, with attendees wearing red, white, and blue MAGA hats, and “Freedom” shirts like the one Charlie had worn in his final moments.
Erika, standing out in a white suit paired with a black top, delivered an emotional promise to her late husband. “I love you Charlie, baby. And I will make you proud,” she said.
President Donald Trump, who attended the memorial, posthumously awarded Kirk the Presidential Medal of Freedom.
In his speech, Trump praised Kirk's faith, recalling how the late man had called his decision to become a Christian in fifth grade the “most important decision of his life”.
“The answer to hate is not hate,” Erika said during the service. “The answer we know from the gospel is love and always love - love for our enemies and love for those who persecute us.”
Tyler Robinson was arrested in connection with the murder
Tyler Robinson, 22, from Utah, has been arrested and charged with seven counts related to the killing, including aggravated murder, felony discharge of a firearm, obstruction of justice, and witness tampering.
Despite the tragic loss, Erika has publicly stated that she forgives Robinson, saying it was what Charlie would have done.
"That young man, that young man. On the cross, our savior said: 'Father, forgive them for they not know what they do,'" she said. “That man, that young man, I forgive him. I forgive him because it was what Christ did, and it is what Charlie would do."