‘He’s irreplaceable.’ Wichita crowd honors life and legacy of activist Charlie Kirk

A crowd filled with students, community members and mourners gathered to grieve political activist Charlie Kirk amid bagpipes, prayers and a rendition of “America the Beautiful” as the sun set on Wichita State’s campus Tuesday night.

According to a police estimate, more than 1,000 attended the candlelight vigil honoring the Turning Point USA founder, who was killed on Sept. 10 while speaking at Utah Valley University.

Among them were religious figures, local political leaders and student members of Wichita State’s chapter of Turning Point USA, who coordinated the memorial event.

Several members of the group’s executive board addressed the audience, sharing their heartache and fond memories of Kirk and how he connected with them. But most shared how they wished to continue Kirk’s mission — specifically, his commitment to God and country.

“I know there’s been a lot of sleepless nights. There’s been days where it seemed too difficult to push through,” WSU Turning Point President Ryan Whalen said. “Times thrown into the spotlight due to our leader’s public execution was all too much to handle. But we kept going. We knew that we wouldn’t let Charlie’s legacy die.”

Kirk established Turning Point USA, a nonprofit organization that advocates for conservative ideals on high school and college campuses, in 2012 when he was 18 years old. In the years that followed, Kirk established himself as a conservative activist, media personality and public speaker who toured the country to debate and discuss hot-button issues with others. He frequented topics relating to faith, family values, gender, race and gun control, among others.

Toyce Hare, a Wichita resident, attended the vigil with her sister. The duo held a large American flag and signs, one of which read “I am Charlie Kirk.” Hare said she enjoyed watching Kirk’s debate videos and admired him for his ability to soak up information “like a sponge.”

“Charlie was just trying to educate them,” Hare said. “(He) wasn’t spreading hate, just trying to educate and have a debate, because when we stop talking, that’s when violence breaks out.”

She said she and her sister attended the vigil to celebrate Kirk’s life and Jesus Christ, but also noted the noticeable difference in their world without him.

“He was a great debater,” Hare said. “I hope somebody picks up the baton for him, but he’s irreplaceable.”

Other attendees, like Wichita State senior Mathew Banman and 60-year-old Georgia Krkosska, said they attended the vigil out of respect for who Kirk was and what he hoped to achieve.

“I just appreciated his respect for opposition,” Banman said. “He didn’t put anyone down, but he tried to make his point.”

Krkosska agreed. She said Kirk appealed to her because of his dedication to his faith.

“I just think he was on the right track. He would quote the Bible, and he was pretty level headed,” Krkosska said. “He wasn’t like perfect. I mean, I don’t think he said everything correctly all the time, but … he wasn’t trying to force his views, but he was there to say, ‘These are my views.’”

During the vigil, several WSU Turning Point members said they were uncertain about what the future of the organization may look like now in Kirk’s absence. But they also shared a message of determination to move forward.

“In all truthfulness, I don’t have all the answers,” Whalen said. “... The only thing to do is pray and continue to work, and I can tell you that we will not back down. We will preach Charlie’s message.”

Some of that preaching began as soon as the vigil ended. Almost a dozen protesters, a mix of Wichita State students and community members, held signs and debated with exiting vigil attendees nearby the Grace Memorial Chapel.

One protester, who asked to remain anonymous out of concern for retaliation, said they came to raise awareness regarding some of Kirk’s more controversial speaking points.

“I don’t think some of them actually know everything that Charlie Kirk has said and done,” they said. “ ... He also had a lot of issues with things that I personally support, like immigration (and) stopping genocide in the Middle East. He said a lot of very homophobic, transphobic, racist things, and I think a lot of people are just kind of like glossing over that.”

The protester emphasised that they were not there to celebrate the death of Kirk, but rather they wanted to encourage attendees to consider who they offer empathy to and why.

“Anyone who might think that we’re here because we are celebrating the assassination of Charlie Kirk, or we are glad that he died in the way that he did, that is not what we’re here for at all,” they said. “We are here because we’re just posing a question … we’re here saying, where’s that empathy for the school shootings … Where’s the empathy for all the kids in Gaza?”

The vigil lasted nearly two hours and concluded peacefully. Police, from Wichita and the university, monitored the vigil from the ground, from nearby rooftops and via a drone.

Moving forward, members of WSU’s chapter of Turning Point USA said that while Kirk may no longer be on earth, a Christian truly never dies — and neither will what Kirk stood for.

“You can’t kill a Christian. You can only change their address,” WSU Turning Point USA Secretary Corwin Spatharos said. “And we owe it to Charlie to carry on his legacy, to glorify God in everything we do, to promote free speech and the truth.”

This story was originally published September 16, 2025 at 10:12 PM.