SPEAKER ERIKA KIRK (Widow of Charlie Kirk):
Thank you, Mr. President, for honoring my husband in such a profound and meaningful way, and thank you for making this event a priority amid the peace process in the Middle East. Thank you. Very grateful. Char—Charli—excuse me. Charlie always admired your commitment to freedom, and that’s something that both of you shared, so thank you.
Your support of our family and the work that Charlie devoted his life to will be something I cherish forever, so thank you. To our gracious First Lady and her office for making this event possible, thank you as well. It’s beautiful.
To the Vice President and the lovely Usha Vance, your friendship has been an unbelievable encouragement. And to all our friends and family that are here and watching from all around the world, thank you for loving us, thank you for praying for us, and for believing in what Charlie believed in. And to our Turning Point USA staff and the Charlie Kirk Show staff, we love you more than you could ever know.
And to the Turning Point USA chapters that are watching all across America right now, you are the heartbeat of this future and of this movement. Everything that Charlie built—you guys are the legacy holders of that. You’re living proof that his mission did not die with him. It lives through you.
Charlie always said, “The next generation will decide whether freedom endures.” And because of you, I know that freedom will endure. It will. And today, we’re gathered not only to celebrate Charlie’s birthday, but to honor a truth that he gave his entire life to defend—and that’s freedom. The very existence of the Presidential Medal of Freedom reminds us that the national interest of the United States has always been freedom.
Our founders etched it into the preamble of our Constitution, and those words are not relics on parchment. They are a living covenant. The blessings of liberty are not man’s invention; they are God’s endowment.
Charlie lived for those blessings—not as abstract words, but as sacred promises. He used to love to journal about this topic all the time, and with such a heart postured in gratitude. He believed that liberty was both a right and a responsibility, and he used to say, “Freedom is the ability to do what is right without fear.” And that’s how he lived.
He was free from fear. He was free from compromise, free from anything that could enslave his soul. His name Charles literally means “free man,” and that’s exactly who my husband was. He was a free man.
From the time I met him—sitting across from him, being interviewed on politics and philosophy and theology, anything that Charlie loved, any topic he loved—I just saw the fire in his soul. There was this divine restlessness within him that came from knowing God placed him on this Earth to protect something very, very sacred for all of us.
And he never stopped fighting for people to experience freedom. He didn’t. Charlie often said that without God, freedom becomes chaos, and he believed liberty could only survive when anchored to truth. I remember in one of his speeches, he told the audience that the opposite of liberty isn’t law. He said it’s captivity—and that the freest people in the world are those whose hearts belong to Christ.
What’s so powerful is that Charlie had the ability to communicate so brilliantly across all generations, and he reminded us that in a world that tells us freedom is doing whatever you want to do, the real freedom is the power to live freely and to do what is right. And in one of his journal entries, he wrote that he wanted everyone to know that you can’t have liberty without moral responsibility.
Freedom divorced from faith eventually just destroys itself. And what’s so fascinating about all of this, looking back at these past twelve years of Turning Point USA and his mission, there’s almost this veil of sacredness. Because what I realized is that while he was building an organization, he was also building a movement—one that called people back to God, back to truth, and a movement filled with courage.
Ironically, for a man who impacted millions, Charlie never desired to be the center of attention. He just wasn’t. My husband was not a man of extravagance. He loved simple but deeply meaningful things. Truly.
He loved his late-night walks. He loved buying more books than he could ever read because he felt there was no such thing as a book budget. And he loved being able to read to our kids the same bedtime story on repeat because he knew it was their favorite. To him, that was special. He loved to sit in the sun on a Saturday morning with his cup of decaf coffee, with his phone off because he was honoring the Sabbath.
For him, it was that moment to catch his breath and just be in peace, because he was unreachable at that moment. He preferred quiet birthdays. But that never stopped me from telling him. I told him every single year.
I said, “Baby, I love your birthday.” I said, “Because it’s the day that God knew the world couldn’t go another day without you.” The rhythm of our usual birthday celebration for him was mint chocolate chip ice cream. He only had it twice a year—on his birthday and the Fourth of July.
And then, after that, it was back to work as usual. But last year, his one birthday wish was to see the Oregon Ducks play Ohio State—and they won. Oregon won that night. And it was by far one of the most memorable nights of his life, until today.
Honestly, President Trump, I have spent seven and a half years trying to find the perfect birthday gift for Charlie. And those of you who have spouses or loved ones—you know how difficult it is sometimes to buy a gift for someone you love. Because he wasn’t a materialistic man, that didn’t help either.
But now I can say with confidence, Mr. President, that you have given him the best birthday gift he could ever have. It’s such an honor—and the recognition of a life lived for defending freedom. That’s what Charlie fought for until his last breath.
It was written across his chest in those final moments—on one of his simple T-shirts that always carried a message. This one bore a single word: “Freedom.” That was the banner over his life, and that shirt was a declaration—the same declaration he made in every speech, every campus visit, every time he shared the Gospel at a church, every sleepless night that he would spend praying for the youth of this nation and planning for the future of our country.
He kept impressing upon them that when we defend liberty, we defend the soul of our nation. My husband never told anyone what to say. He never did. He would just encourage them to think. He encouraged them to think outside of the traditional political labels.
He wanted them to think in a way anchored in wisdom and truth. But he would never tell anyone what to say. Charlie wasn’t content to simply admire freedom. He wanted to multiply it. He wanted young people to taste it, understand it, and defend it.
He wanted them to see that liberty isn’t self-indulgence—it’s self-governance under God. And every day, I’d see him getting ready for work. He’d put on his cross necklace, he’d put his ring on his finger, and the boldness in his demeanor was always fearlessness.
He wasn’t afraid. Never. In his daily actions—whether in office, on campus, or at church—it was always without fear. That was his creed. That is how he lived out every single day.
He didn’t fear being slandered. He didn’t fear losing friends. He didn’t care. He stood for truth and freedom, and everything else was just noise to him. His confidence in Christ was absolute—that’s why.
There was no limit to what he would have sacrificed to defend freedom for all. And if the moment had come, he probably would’ve run for president—but not out of ambition. He would only have done it if he believed his country needed it, from a servant’s heart.
Charlie lived only 31 short years. Now, he’s 32 on this side of Heaven—but he lived. Every single second, he lived. He filled every single day with purpose. He fought for truth when it was unpopular and stood for God when it was costly—but that’s what we’re called to do.
Surprisingly enough, he did pray for his enemies—which is very hard—but he did. No one else saw it, but I did. He never did it in front of anyone else, but I can attest to that. He also loved people when it was inconvenient.
He ran his race with endurance, he kept the faith, and now he wears the crown of a righteous martyr. For me and for our children, the truth steadies our grief because Heaven gained what Earth could no longer contain—a free man made fully free.
To all watching—this is not a ceremony. This is a commissioning. And my message is simple: I want you to be the embodiment of this medal. I want you to free yourself from fear. I want you to stand courageously in the truth.
Listen for the still, small voice of God. And remember that while freedom is inherited in this country, each of us must be intentional stewards every single day. God began a mighty work through my husband, and I intend to see it through. The torch is in our hands now.
It’s in mine, it’s in yours, it’s in all of yours—it’s in all the students with Turning Point USA. Before I close, I’ll share with you that I asked our daughter what she would like to say to Daddy for his birthday. She said, “Happy birthday, Daddy.
I want to give you a stuffed animal. I want you to eat a cupcake with ice cream. And I want you to go have a birthday surprise. I love you.” And while our son—he’s precious—can’t yet speak, in classic Kirk family fashion, his actions spoke louder than words.
His gift to you, Charlie—and to me, for that matter—was deciding to become the man of the house and be fully potty-trained at sixteen months. But Charlie, baby, I know that you’re celebrating in Heaven today. Gosh, I miss you. We miss you, and we love you, and we promise we’ll make you proud.
Charlie’s life was proof that freedom is not a theory—it’s a testimony. He showed us that liberty begins not in the halls of power, but in the heart of a man surrendered to God. And so, today, as we honor Charlie with this incredible Presidential Medal of Freedom on his birthday, I stand here with tears and a humbled heart and spirit.
Because his story reminds us all that to live free is the greatest gift—but to die free is the greatest victory.
Happy birthday, my Charlie.
Happy Freedom Day.
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