Charlie Kirk’s widow, Erika, shared a series of deeply emotional images showing her weeping beside her husband’s casket in what became her last, intimate goodbye to the slain conservative leader.
In the moving footage, Erika is seen gently stroking her husband’s hand as she sits beside his body, dressed in a dark suit and red tie, resting in a polished wooden casket. Through muffled sobs, she whispered, “Oh, I love you. I love you. God bless you,” her voice breaking as she cried over him. The sound of her grief filled the room, her trembling hands clinging to his lifeless one, in a final act of devotion witnessed by her 3.3 million followers.
Erika Kirk, the wife of the late Charlie Kirk, appears to be collapsed in grief as she lies draped across her husband’s casket
Erika took the opportunity to touch her husband one final time
One image shows Erika from behind, her long blonde hair cascading over her shoulders as she collapses in sorrow, draped across her husband’s casket. Though Charlie’s face is not shown, his presence is undeniable, his frame lying inside.
Erika also posted a final family photo of her kissing her two young children while her husband smiles
Erika Kirk, wife of slain conservative activist Charlie Kirk made her first public address since her husband’s assassination on Friday evening
Vice President JD Vance, right, Second Lady Usha Vance, center, and Erika Kirk, holding a cross on a chain, deplane Air Force Two, carrying the body of Charlie Kirk, on Thursday
Erika also posted a series of photos of her on the tarmac to welcome her husband’s body back to Arizona standing alongside JD Vance and his wife Usha, both seen left
In another private moment, Erika Kirk can be seen being embraced by Vice President Vance. His wife, Usha, looks on
Erika Kirk, wife of slain conservative activist Charlie Kirk, made her first public address since her husband’s assassination on Friday evening
These raw and heartbreaking moments came just hours after Erika delivered a defiant public address from Charlie’s studio, vowing to carry on his mission and to “never let his legacy die.” Standing beside the empty chair where her husband once recorded his show, she promised her online audience that the movement he began would continue.
Erika reached out to touch the chair where her husband once sat to present his podcast
In one particularly moving section, Erika Kirk told how her three-year-old daughter had been asking where her daddy was. ‘He’s on a business trip with Jesus’, she responded
During her tearful 15-minute speech, interrupted by pauses to compose herself, she urged Charlie’s supporters to join a church and swore to make Turning Point USA “the biggest thing this nation has ever seen.” Wearing a white blazer over an emerald-green blouse, Erika thanked former President Donald Trump and his family for their support, as well as Vice President JD Vance and his wife Usha, who had stood with her when Charlie’s body was flown home aboard Air Force Two.
Tyler James Robinson, 22, of Washington, Utah, was arrested in connection to Kirk’s killing
Her words honored not only her husband but also his colleagues, first responders, and police officers who tried desperately to save him on that tragic afternoon. A photo of Charlie sat on the podium with the caption: “May Charlie be received into the merciful arms of Jesus, our loving Savior.”
Erika Kirk called her late husband Charlie the ‘perfect’ father, weeping throughout her comments
Erika began her 15 minute long address after making a silent prayer. Overcome with emotion, she thanked employees of Turning Point USA – which her husband co-founded
Right-wing activist and commentator Charlie Kirk appears at a Utah Valley University speaking event in Orem, Utah shortly before he was assassinated
Erika described Charlie as a man who adored life, America, and most of all, his family. She tearfully recalled how their three-year-old daughter had asked the night before, “Where’s Daddy?” To which Erika answered, “Baby, Daddy loves you so much. He’s on a work trip with Jesus.”
Clutching a cross necklace, she spoke of her Christian faith, quoting Scripture, and declared her husband had given his life for his family and his nation. Calling him a “perfect” father and a martyr, she promised to keep his message alive: “He never gave up, and neither will we. His voice will remain in a world of chaos, doubt, and uncertainty.”
Erika then turned her words directly to the gunman she called “the evildoers responsible.” With fire in her voice, she warned that the attack had unleashed a force far greater than his killers could imagine: “The cries of this widow will echo like a battle cry. The movement Charlie built will not die—I refuse to let that happen.”
Before closing, she addressed her husband directly: “I can’t wait to see you again one day.”
Charlie’s body had arrived back in Arizona on Thursday, carried by Vice President Vance and service members. President Trump later announced he would attend Kirk’s funeral and posthumously award him the Presidential Medal of Freedom, the nation’s highest civilian honor.
Meanwhile, authorities confirmed that 22-year-old Tyler James Robinson of Washington, Utah, had been arrested in connection with the assassination. He faces charges of aggravated murder, firearms discharge causing serious injury, and obstruction of justice. Officials believe he acted alone, following a confession to a family member that ultimately led to his capture.
