Erika Kirk Marks 1st Father's Day Without Husband Charlie: 'They Miss You'
Erika Kirk is marking the first Father's Day since her husband, Charlie Kirk, was shot and killed.
"It's Father's Day, I still wrote you your letter (I will the rest of my life)," Erika, 37, wrote via Instagram on Sunday, June 21, alongside a behind-the-scenes video of the late right-wing influencer walking onto the Turning Point USA AmFest 2024 stage, complete with a fog machine and pyrotechnics.
"GG has it waiting for you by your coffee mug," the widow continued. "I'll save them all for our son when he gets older. They miss you. I miss you. I just can't help but thank you, endlessly today. Thank you for loving us so well. Thank you for making me a wife and a mother. Thank you for our two precious babies that carry pieces of you with them. Thank you for all the times you've prayed over our family. Thank you for living your life in such a way to be an incredible example to other Fathers. Thank you for all the sacrifices you've made. You will forever be an extraordinary father. Forever."
The former Turning Point USA co-founder and CEO was fatally shot in the neck on September 10, 2025, while speaking on the Utah Valley University campus. He was 31. He is survived by Erika and their two children.
A 22-year-old Utah man eventually turned himself into authorities in connection to the shooting. He was later charged with aggravated murder - among other charges - after police claimed the alleged shooter targeted Charlie for his political beliefs. If convicted, prosecutors say they will seek the death penalty. The alleged shooter has not entered a plea.
"Today in our hearts we celebrate you like your favorite TPUSA AmFest 2024 walkout," Erika continued on Sunday. "You'd always say more fog, more sparklers, more bass and then next with the babies in our arms walking off stage. Our love was integrated ,and that is how it'll remain. I love you Charlie baby. Tell God Happy Father's Day for us."
Erika, who took over her husband's role as Turning Point USA CEO, has received consistent backlash in the wake of Charlie's death, most notably for how she has appeared to grieve in public.
"… there is no linear blueprint for grief. One day you're collapsed on the floor crying out the name Jesus in between labored breaths," Erika wrote back in October, addressing the criticism. "The next you're playing with your children in the living room surrounded by family photos, and feeling a rush of something you can only attempt to define as divinely planted and bittersweet joy as a smile breaks through your face."
She continued at the time, "They say time heals. But love doesn't ask to be healed. Love asks to be remembered. It's humbling to realize that this magnitude of suffering didn't steal my love for my husband. It amplified it. It crystalized it."
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This story was originally published June 21, 2026 at 12:04 PM.