Charlie Kirk’s Supporters Vow to Carry His Mission Forward at Powerful Utah Memorial [WATCH]

Thousands of Charlie Kirk supporters gathered at Utah Valley University in Orem, Utah, Thursday night to commemorate the first anniversary of his death and honor the legacy of the Turning Point USA founder, as reported by The New York Post.

The Sept. 10 memorial brought students, friends, supporters, and Turning Point USA members back to the university one year after Kirk was killed during an event on campus.

The ceremony was organized by TPUSA and featured remarks from several prominent figures, including radio host Glenn Beck, Christian author Frank Turek and TPUSA Chief Field Officer Andrew Sypher.

Fox News also reported that the event included worship, video tributes and the unveiling of a statue honoring Kirk.

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Sage Lloyd, president of the university’s TPUSA chapter, told the crowd that students had spent the past year grieving while remaining committed to Kirk’s work.

“Today, one year later, at Utah Valley University. We remember Charlie Kirk. We mourn Charlie Kirk, and we honor Charlie Kirk,” Lloyd said.

He later told attendees, “Perhaps the greatest way to honor him is not simply to remember what he did, but continue what he started.”

Lloyd said the students involved with TPUSA at UVU had faced a difficult year following Kirk’s death but had continued their activities.

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“Our chapter has grieved, we have struggled, and we have carried things that few people outside of our own experience will ever completely understand, but through all of the hardship, we are still here.”

He added, “The same students who witnessed a political assassination are willing to stand up, speak out, and keep moving forward all because of the impact one man, Charlie Kirk, had on their lives.”

Sypher also addressed the crowd, recalling that he had been standing approximately 10 feet from Kirk when he was killed during the 2025 event.

“I was standing 10 feet to his left when he was assassinated a short walk from this building. Today marks one year,” Sypher said.

“We did not come back to rehearse a crime scene. We came back because Charlie Kirk represented the best of us,” he added.

Sypher also spoke about Kirk’s family and faith.

“He was a husband, a father, a God-fearing man who never stopped leading by example,” Sypher said. “Successful, yes. But that is the least important true thing about him tonight. He loved this country unmistakably.”

For some students, the memorial represented a personal return to a place associated with a life-changing event.

Moria Dickman, a 24-year-old senior at UVU, told the New York Post that she had joined TPUSA after learning Kirk would be visiting campus.

She was reportedly waiting in line to ask him a question when the incident occurred.

After leaving campus and learning Kirk had been killed, Dickman said, “I just felt grief.”

“He cared about having conversations. He cared enough to visit our campus. He could have been kinder, but he was really saying what he believed. And that’s something to look up to,” said Dickman, a psychology major from Provo who described herself as “nonpartisan.”

Another UVU student, 21-year-old liberal studies major Jaxson, criticized online jokes about Kirk’s death.

“It’s the jokes that are sickening. Both sides making jokes is unacceptable,” Jaxson said.

“Charlie always tried to bring us together.”

Connor Holmstead, 36, said he had only casually followed Kirk before his death but attended Thursday’s memorial wearing a TPUSA shirt.

“It’s safe to say I’m a fan of his now, for sure,” Holmstead said.

“I don’t think the movement has changed at all. … The whole culture of America was a lot more leaning lefty… but it brought a lot of light to the mission, I think of just talking to people. Trying to understand one another,” he said.

The memorial came as TPUSA reported substantial growth among its student chapters since Kirk’s death.

According to the supplied report, chapters of the organization increased by 64% on college campuses during the 2025-2026 school year, while high school TPUSA clubs increased by 180%.

“Charlie Kirk’s murder inspired, and continues to inspire, hundreds of thousands of young people to get involved in TPUSA and to continue his mission,” the organization said in a statement ahead of the anniversary.

The event also drew opposition from some UVU students.

The campus’s Students for a Democratic Society club planned a protest and said it had collected more than 600 signatures on an open letter opposing TPUSA’s use of the university for the memorial.

Fox News also reported ahead of the event that the student organization planned to protest.

UVU President Jon Anderson emphasized that the memorial was not a university-sponsored event. The university nevertheless reviewed plans for the gathering and provided security.

“As an institution, it’s important that we stay apolitical, that we don’t jump in the fray,” Anderson said. “… Any entity could’ve used that space, and they chose to have that day. And we allowed them to do that.”

UVU officially closed campus Sept. 10 for what it designated a “Day for Healing, Service, and Connection.”

The university has also previously said it remains committed to free speech, intellectual inquiry and constructive dialogue following Kirk’s death.

The anniversary memorial was part of a broader series of events honoring Kirk.

According to the supplied report, commemorations were planned in locations including New York City, Georgia, Florida, Nevada and Sydney, Australia. Republicans also planned a tribute during their midterm convention in Dallas.

A year after Kirk’s death, supporters returning to the Utah campus made clear that they intend to continue the work associated with his political organization and student movement.

For the students who knew Kirk, attended his events, or became involved with TPUSA afterward, Thursday night’s gathering served as both a remembrance and a statement that his organization remains active on college campuses.

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