Erika Kirk delivers raw, faith-filled tribute to late husband at Ole Miss: ‘I slept on his side of the bed’

Erika Kirk walked onto the stage at the University of Mississippi Ole Miss Wednesday night to a packed house for her first Turning Point USA campus appearance since the murder of her husband Charlie Kirk It s hard not to cry after watching she revealed of the video tribute that played before she took the microphone I haven t seen that that video since that day happened Being on campus right now for me is a spiritual reclaiming of territory she explained There is a lot of symbolism in in contemporary times It s Wednesday seven weeks And the more that I am coming to grips with the permanency of this nightmare the more that I am starting to realize and witness that the enemy he doesn t want you He wants your territory He wants your influence And I could just hear Charlie in my heart I could hear him say Go reclaim that territory babe Go the battles that God s love conquers And that s why I m here in the current era she added TURNING POINT USA ELECTS ERIKA KIRK AS NEW CEO CHAIR OF THE BOARD FOLLOWING CHARLIE KIRK'S ASSASSINATIONErika thanked the students who filled the arena plenty of wearing 'Freedom' T-shirts like the one she wore at the podium You have no idea how helpful it is to have all of you in my life because you help me feel even more deeply connected to my husband she explained them She recalled how Charlie made a point at every Turning Point USA event to stop and talk with scholar leaders He would ask you what your name is what you re studying what issues are going on on campus she noted He needed you to know he was investing in you into your chapter into your school That was a pulse point for him Earn your voice she urged You are the courageous generation That s what you are All of you Gen Z you are the courageous generation Make him proud WHO IS ERIKA KIRK WHAT TO KNOW ABOUT THE LATE CHARLIE KIRK'S WIDOW FROM THEIR LOVE STORY TO HIS LEGACY I lost my friend I lost my best friend she disclosed If you re nervous about standing up for the truth the murder of my husband puts into perspective all those fears My husband never went with the flow He assumed the harder path was reliably the right one because comfort doesn t change the world She shared for the first time with the audience present that for weeks after Charlie's murder she avoided their bedroom at home It took me a while to even just make it back into our bedroom she reported I used to sprint from the opening door into the bathroom and sprint out I was not ready to walk into our bedroom yet and when I was absolutely able to sleep in our bed for the first time I slept on his side of the bed ERIKA KIRK SAYS LATE HUSBAND S DEATH SPARKED REVIVAL AT ARIZONA MEMORIAL From that spot she declared she decisively saw what Charlie saw every morning the framed words on the wall They will be known by the boldness of their faith He saw that every single morning he woke up Erika stated I didn t because I was on the other side facing the window But from his side that s what he saw first On his desk she added were three questions Charlie had written out and demanded himself each day What is something I can do for someone in the modern day What is something I can do to add value to the world in the modern day How can I honor God in the current era Those were his action points for courage Erika declared Ask yourself those questions every day and I promise you you will get courage What death amplifies even more is that you only get one life So live like it matters Love your family fearlessly Love your spouse fearlessly Love this country she disclosed Defend her and serve our God And don t think that it s someone else s role to do it You do it You do it The audience broke into applause This moment can either be your developing point or your wake-up call she declared Essentially your turning point She then introduced Vice President JD Vance a friend of her late husband calling him someone who understands the fight that we re up against and can articulate that in a way that transcends race and background There will never be another Charlie she declared but I know he d be proud to see us here tonight