"You have no idea the fire that you have ignited within this wife, the cries of this widow will echo around the world like a battle cry," said Erika Kirk, the wife of slain conservative commentator Charlie Kirk, in her first public message since his killing.
Just days after a gunman shot and killed Kirk at a Utah university, Erika Kirk said she would continue Charlie Kirk's political activism through his Turning Point USA organization.
"To everyone listening tonight across America, the movement my husband built will not die. It won't, I refuse to let that happen ... All of us will refuse to let that happen," Erika Kirk said. "No one will ever forget my husband's name, and I will make sure of it."
On Saturday, Turning Point USA announced details of a celebration of life ceremony for Kirk. The ceremony is set to be held Sunday, Sept. 21, in Glendale, Arizona, at State Farm Stadium, the NFL stadium in Arizona where the Cardinals play. The venue has a capacity of 63,000, according to the stadium's website.
In her public remarks Friday evening, Erika Kirk thanked first responders and investigators, as well as President Donald Trump and Vice President JD Vance, for their support in the wake of the fatal shooting on Wednesday.
"Mr. President, my husband loved you, and he knew that you loved him, too," Erika Kirk said, fighting back tears. "He did. Your friendship was amazing. You supported him so well, as did he for you."
Charlie Kirk was husband to Erika and the father of two young kids at the time of his death on Wednesday, a 1-year-old son and a 3-year-old daughter.
"When I got home last night, our daughter just ran into my arms ... and she said, 'Mommy, I missed you.' I said, 'I missed you too, baby.' She goes, 'Where's daddy?' What do you tell a 3-year-old? She's three. I said, 'Baby, daddy loves you so much. Don't you worry. He's on a work trip with Jesus so he can afford your blueberry budget," Erika said.
The founder of the conservative youth activist organization was shot while speaking at Utah Valley University, the first stop this fall for Turning Point USA's "The American Comeback Tour," which was traveling to multiple college campuses across the country.